Lighting

[JohnD]

As you will know, the fluorescent tube is dead, long live the LED tube!   A while ago, I put an LED batten above my work bench and it was great.   But Ouch!  Can't recall but it might have been £50. 

So when another tube went on the blink, I looked at what was available.   You can now buy an LED tube, that slots into the original batten!   And it's a tenth of the price!!

But there's a catch.   The LEDs do not need the 'starter' and coil that the fluo tube does.   It's easy to strip out that gubbins and rewire the batten so thst the power goes straight to the LEDs, via an "LED starter" that looks just like a fluo one.

But how to do that rewire?   There are different types of LED tube a available.     The cover mine came in provided a diagram:

And as i wrote, its wrong!   The tube I bought is a "single ended" one and mains power should go to the two pins at one end, while the other is left alone.   They are labelled "AC"  and "Short circuit" and the wiring should be like this:

I'll have word with my supplier "Screwfix"  as Sylvania should revise their packaging!

But otherwise a very money saving change in workshop lighting.

John

Edited August 27, 2025 by JohnD

[RogerH]

Hi John

I converted my Garage earlier this year and fitted 4ft LED strips lights made by T-Vac. Cast about £20 and gave a good bright light.

A few weeks ago one started flashing like a dud fluorescent tube and was very dim.

Eventually I took it down and had a look at the circitry - OMG!!!

The low current innocent LED had started to burn out

If yours start to go dicky get it/them out quickly

 

Roger

 

[JohnD]

Where does the circuit board fit in, Roger?    On mine the two terminals on one end connect to the mains, via a 'starter' in the Live connection.   The 'starter' looks exactly like the original starter for a fluo tube, came with the LED tube.    I presume it rectifies the mains AC? And could contain a circuit like what you show?

  John

[DeTRacted]

This is all a bit of a minefield but Sylvania have not got it wrong John - the 'shorted' end of the tube is supposed to connect the two wires at that end together- there is no internal connection there to the LEDS  -  so the circuit ends up exactly the same as your second drawing.      The LED dummy starter is just a fuse in the same housing  and makes a direct connection.  The electronics are in the 'tube' itself.\

There is a whole array of different tubes  - some don't need any wiring changes to the fitting nor removal of the ballast but they do need the starter substituted.  

https://static.sylvania-group.com/assets/8797338489292/SellingSheetToLEDoT8Universal1721036670220_SellingSheet_en-INT_0.pdf

 

Edited August 27, 2025 by DeTRacted

[JohnD]

DeTRacted, your theoretical post is intetesting, but who rewired the batten and who has an LED tube working in their workshop?  When it didn't work with the advised circuit?  The LED tube works, and there is no external connection between the terminals at the end marked Short Circuit.  The diagram i showed is accurate -  I have read that tubes of this type have an internal connection at that end.

I have no idea what is in the LED starter, so can't argue about that.  But just a fuse?     Do LEDs work on AC mains, or is there a need for those to be rectified to DC?  Or do they flash so fast as the polarity changes 240 times a second that the eye sees them.on continuously?  Wouldn't they be brighter if the current was DC?

My research online after my initial rewire to the circuit shown on the packet failed certainly did find  several different types of LED tube, which makes it even more important that Sylvania know what they are selling and advise the buyer accordingly!

John

[zetecspit]

Talking of LEDs, I have a V tac 2ft batten type lamp that I use as an inspection lamp. It is brilliant (litterally) and has survived a lot of abuse. It won't survive n=being trodden on/squashed, but it does have a few holes in it from welding etc. Only downside it they are supplied with a pretty short fly lead (when I fitted some to my car port I used IP67 boxes, but for the inspection lamp I used a small inline switch) 

Only £10 from Toolstation https://www.toolstation.com/v-tac-led-weatherproof-fitting-ip65-6500k/p82982?store=null&utm_source=googleshopping&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=googleshoppingfeed&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=17631691595&gbraid=0AAAAAD-vLcW1xa70vZFBXpjjxMrMkt450&gclid=Cj0KCQjw_L_FBhDmARIsAItqgt5Pwc56R5jMrVwXF2yozdkFjj3TQ-8htxu1J7Dh89qH3MoG8ivi57MaAiKXEALw_wcB

[DeTRacted]

Sorry John - I was not disputing your findings, just pointing out that if the tube is wired up as Sylvania intends with the two pins connected at the far end,  it will work as drawn.   After all, they apparently did write "short circuit" on the tube. 

The idea is to minimise the tradesman's time and effort when converting to LED.  You can use some types of those tubes without having to dismantle the fitting to strip out the ballast or other wiring as you have done.  In that case the starter is replaced by a dummy which just shorts the connection on its socket since LEDs do not need a starter.    Yes there is just a fuse in the dummy starter.    

As I said - it's a bit of a minefield unless you really know what you are buying because there are differences in the original fittings. Some have simple inductive ballasts and some have high-frequency electronic ballasts.    The tube you have would work perfectly well as they have drawn it,  IF used with a particular type of fitting which has the far end pins shorted, known as a 'shunted' socket, which is used with instant-start ballasts.  Your fitting is obviously not that type.   

As you say, to power the LEDs direct from the mains would be possible but would result in annoying 50Hz flicker and would give strobe effects on anything moving. The brightness would also vary depending on the voltage.  To prevent that, the electronics inside the tube rectifies the mains and uses it to power a circuit which controls the LED brightness either by pulsing at at a frequency too high to be visible or by using a constant-current control. Both will keep the brightness constant over a range of supply voltage. 

[Escadrille Ecosse]

10 hours ago, zetecspit said:

Talking of LEDs, I have a V tac 2ft batten type lamp that I use as an inspection lamp. It is brilliant (litterally) and has survived a lot of abuse. It won't survive n=being trodden on/squashed, but it does have a few holes in it from welding etc. Only downside it they are supplied with a pretty short fly lead (when I fitted some to my car port I used IP67 boxes, but for the inspection lamp I used a small inline switch) 

Only £10 from Toolstation https://www.toolstation.com/v-tac-led-weatherproof-fitting-ip65-6500k/p82982?store=null&utm_source=googleshopping&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=googleshoppingfeed&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=17631691595&gbraid=0AAAAAD-vLcW1xa70vZFBXpjjxMrMkt450&gclid=Cj0KCQjw_L_FBhDmARIsAItqgt5Pwc56R5jMrVwXF2yozdkFjj3TQ-8htxu1J7Dh89qH3MoG8ivi57MaAiKXEALw_wcB

Starting to sound a bit like the Four Yorkshire men but my big 'inspection lamp' is a 4ft LED IP65 twin batten that I wired with a 5m flex and plug!

I am also converting the flouroescents in the garage to LEDs as the tubes fail. Garage has six twin 4ft fittings and I have converted four of them so far. I preferred to strip out the ballasts and rewire to avoid any future 'mistakes'.

[JohnD]

Thank you, DETRacted! I am further educated.     

I had a  civil response from Screwfix, who promised to contact Sylvania, for what that's worth.    I just thought it was worthwhile reporting the very cheap LEDs that can now replace Fluo tubes!  I'm glad that so many are already onto it. And it was an interesting exercise finding out how to do it.

The stripped out bit - the 'ballast'? - appears to be a coil of copper wire, as big as a small transformer.  That'll go in the recycling, so another plus.

John

 

Edited August 28, 2025 by JohnD

[ahebron]

Its funny that ther UK still has the conversion tubes.
Here in NZ they lasted a short time and now you just fit a new fitting.
Most reputable brands have three colour settings 3200, 4400 and 5600 kelvin.

Ive got a box of 4ft fluouro tubes in my garage roof all high cri 3200 and 5600 kelvin.
They will  most likely go to the tip!

[JohnD]

As I said in my OP, I fitted a new LED batten, the complete fitting, mount bar and light, some time ago.   But I was struck by how much cheaper was a simple LED tube!  A 'conversion  tube' as you put it.
It does require some fettling of the original mount bar - I would have expected that thrifty and capable NZers would like the first and  have no problem with the second!

John

PS I hope that at the tip there is a special container to leave your expired fluorescent tubes in, unbroken? They contain mercury, and so should be recycled in a way that contains and captures that toxin.  J

[ahebron]

My electrical wholesaler has the bin for old tubes

[Escadrille Ecosse]

Been gradually upgrading the lighting in my garage from fluorescents to LED. I have six twin 4ft battens and been doing the conversion as the tubes gradually fail.

A couple more were on the way out so after a bit of shuffling tubes it was time to do another pair of twins yesterday.

The LED tubes I have are, according to the written instructions, a straight swap and only need the starter replaced by a dummy straight through link - supplied.

However the tubes are marked with a red label that say < WARNING - Without Ballast > . So not exactly the pinacle of clarity!

Anyway on the three battens I've done previously I've simply bypassed and removed the ballasts and fitted the dummy starter. A bit of a faff as it's all overhead but no real problem. Incidentally I kept the double end wiring as there is no indication on the LED tubes as to which is the 'live' and which the 'dead' end.

Yesterday then the first one was straightforward. However number 2 turned out to have an 'electronic' ballast and no starter. Hmm. That required a bit more head scratching, mainly it seemed to generate a bit more internal wiring all of which terminated in the ballast pack. However, in the end all it needed was the multimeter to check pin polarity, the removal of a few redundant links and one new bit of single core for the live side (the original wasn't long enough) and all wired up as the others - except without the starter.

Noticably brighter and liking that the plink-plink of the failed tube has gone. Just one more more to do. Bit awkward to reach though with the Spitfire non-mobile as it is.

Edited November 30, 2025 by Escadrille Ecosse

[Yoda]

Last summer I converted the 8 Florescent fixtures. in my garage to LED.

Not that my bulbs had gone bad but that in my detached unheated garage the bulbs dim at temperatures below 4C.

Purchased the units from Costco which I understand as centers in the UK as well.  These are not replacement tubes but instead complete fixtures. My fixtures had 4 tubes in each. I gutted the inside of the fixtures and built the new units into the old housings. Though a lot of work, these are close to twice as bright as the originals.

This is a link to an Amazon.UK page for similar units:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Amdelne-Daylight-Lighting-Linkable-Warehouse/dp/B0FC2VZL48/ref=pb_allspark_dp_sims_pao_desktop_session_based_d_sccl_1_4/523-6530361-7921466?pd_rd_w=IrmXO&content-id=amzn1.sym.3d2941c4-8dbd-4559-a2da-3450ec26a618&pf_rd_p=3d2941c4-8dbd-4559-a2da-3450ec26a618&pf_rd_r=EV47Q1F5HV2PG1W8X9D9&pd_rd_wg=KuNjU&pd_rd_r=b2f9df67-0964-4087-8e8a-36704cb1fc86&pd_rd_i=B0FC2VZL48&th=1

[RogerH]

Be careful with LED version of the Fluoro tubes.

I had a circuit board burn out. Not sure how close to being dangerous it was but it looked dramatic.

 

Roger

[Nick Jones]

Timely. Replaced three tubes at the weekend. A 4’ in the utility room which has been irritating me for a while with it’s lengthy start-up and initial dimness.

Also a couple of 5’ ones in the garage, one of which had taken to random flashing.

These are the 5’ ones

https://www.screwfix.com/c/lighting/tube-lights/cat2690010?calclightbulbtechnology=led&lengthimperial=5__&lightbulbtype=t8

Direct swap, just also swap the starter out for the link (I assume) supplied. Work fine. Instant, silent start and full brightness immediately.  Seconds to fit a power consumption less than half. Seems like a win.

Got another 5’ and 8 x 4’ still to go in the garage….

[Escadrille Ecosse]

3 hours ago, Nick Jones said:

Timely. Replaced three tubes at the weekend. A 4’ in the utility room which has been irritating me for a while with it’s lengthy start-up and initial dimness.

Also a couple of 5’ ones in the garage, one of which had taken to random flashing.

These are the 5’ ones

https://www.screwfix.com/c/lighting/tube-lights/cat2690010?calclightbulbtechnology=led&lengthimperial=5__&lightbulbtype=t8

Direct swap, just also swap the starter out for the link (I assume) supplied. Work fine. Instant, silent start and full brightness immediately.  Seconds to fit a power consumption less than half. Seems like a win.

Got another 5’ and 8 x 4’ still to go in the garage….

Got my last twin 4' in the garage still to do. Was low priority on account of working ok and being awkward to reach. That has now changed as one of the tubes just went on the blink - literally.