# HID to T5HO retrofits



## personal (Jun 3, 2008)

How many are retrofitting gym's arena's ect. with T5Ho lights? I have seen some in T8 HO's but they need alot more tubes. Is it worth it to relamp from MH HID to T8 HO instead of T5HO? We just finished replacing fixtures in a gym that had 400w mh with 6 tube t5ho big improvment. We used the TCP fixtures with lithonia ballasts. Anyone else use TCP lighting?


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## JPRO2 (Dec 17, 2008)

we haven't done any gyms , but we have done 2 gm dealership shops,mechanics love t5hos


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## MDShunk (Jan 7, 2007)

A bit of a strange choice of lifts for that job, unless that was the only kind you could get in the door. What's the scoop on that?


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## personal (Jun 3, 2008)

they owned the lift for maintenance reasons it worked. never again.


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## EBFD6 (Aug 17, 2008)

MDShunk said:


> A bit of a strange choice of lifts for that job, unless that was the only kind you could get in the door. What's the scoop on that?


Just a guess, but I would imagine if it's a gym they probably don't want a heavy scissor lift driving on the floor.

We did some work in a gym and had to use one of those light weight genie lifts, we also had to put down plywood to protect the floor.


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## Randy L (Jun 11, 2008)

I'm researching replacing our 400W Metal Halide fixtures in our gym. So where's a good source for these T5HO fixtures?


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## pepelect (Apr 28, 2009)

The main reason to use t5 or t8 has more to do with height and reflectivity of the fixture. T5 put out more intense light and are recommended for higher mounting heights. Low bay fixtures are usually white painted reflectors while T5 for higher mounting are usually mirrored or chromed finished. It would depend on the light level you are shooting for and how high the mounting is as to what fixture would be best.


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## NevadaBoy (May 4, 2009)

We've done a LOT of lighting retros in the last couple years. T5 and T8s. We're doing a warehouse right now priced at $185k. Luckily they haven't put me on any.
I know we've done some gyms with mini lifts for weight purposes.


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## rdevarona (Feb 23, 2010)

*T5HO Gymnasium Lighting Application Guide*

Hi all,

We have done a number of gyms and prefer to go with T5HO over T8. A 6-lamp T5HO fixture puts out approx 29K mean lumens while an 8-lamp T8 fixture using high lumen output T8 lamps can only get to 22.8K mean lumens. The purchase price of those two fixtures is just about even but the operating costs of the T8 is a little lower. In some jr. high school and practice gyms, you could even get a way with a 4 lamp T5HO fixture if the mounting height was low enough. I wrote an application guide for gym lighting with T5 vs. MH. I would be more than happy to answer questions here if you are interested.

Regards,

rdv


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## Who Dat (Feb 27, 2010)

We've had good success with this company.

www.xtralight.com

We feel that in many instances a 4 lamp T8 fixture is plenty for elementary play gyms, with 6 lamp T8 fixtures for middle school and non-competition gyms b/c of their superior energy performance (although T5s are getting closer in efficiency all the time).

If light levels are critical such as for competitive gyms T5s might be the order of the day. Some people just insist on T5s because they put out more light lamp for lamp.....which is not always better...it comes at a ongoing cost....determine what light levels you need and then select the appropriate light source.

Just remember when specifying T8 FHBs with occupancy sensors that you use program start ballast or you sacrifice lamp life.

Two public school districts in Texas - Ft Worth ISD and Arlington ISD - both chose to use a very aggressive control strategy. They used occupancy sensors on every individual fixture in every gymnasium to maximize energy savings. Not sure I would have proposed this scheme but the fixtures are working well and they are very happy with the energy savings and the coaches and principals like how they work. This has allowed ultimate flexibility in how the gyms are scheduled with no worries about the lights being left on or off (both districts used T5s throughout).


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## Mr. Sparkle (Jan 27, 2009)

Who Dat said:


> We've had great success with the company that first developed the fluorescent highbay fixtures to retrofit gymnasiums. They have an extremely rugged full bodied FHB for gym use in both T5 and T8 versions:
> 
> www.xtralight.com
> 
> ...


Nice commercial.


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## cdnelectrician (Mar 14, 2008)

personal said:


> How many are retrofitting gym's arena's ect. with T5Ho lights? I have seen some in T8 HO's but they need alot more tubes. Is it worth it to relamp from MH HID to T8 HO instead of T5HO? We just finished replacing fixtures in a gym that had 400w mh with 6 tube t5ho big improvment. We used the TCP fixtures with lithonia ballasts. Anyone else use TCP lighting?
> 
> View attachment 1059
> 
> ...


That looks like fun!:jester: Beats a 14 foot A frame though!


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## Electric_Light (Apr 6, 2010)

Mr. Sparkle said:


> Nice commercial.


They have some super weak sauce "case studies". Before and after photos look convincing and they can certainly be a visual aid, but they're inappropriate demonstration of performance.

All you have to do to create a desirable result is set the camera on tripod, then play with aperture and exposure time to get desirable pictures.

I can expose a photo to make the parking lot look like its lit up like there's an artificial sun above it using 15 or 30 seconds exposure.

What should be presented is FC measurement at same points (on bench, floor, etc) using a light meter (with serial number and traceable calibration...)


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## sparky970 (Mar 19, 2008)

We replaced a bunch of High Pressure Sodium lights with those fixtures in warehouses and around some roll handling equipment in a pulp mill. It is so much nicer to work in those areas now.


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## Lighting Retro (Aug 1, 2009)

We've done some recent gymnasium gym work where the goal was more light and energy savings. We went 6 lamp T5, and the difference is pretty staggering.


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## jmole (Apr 28, 2010)

We recently met with a manufacturer called Alumen-8 in Vista, CA to view and discuss their line of T5 retrofit fixtures. We are looking to install these in outdoor as well as indoor applications. 

Here is a website http://www.amerillum.com/ I think Amerillum is their owner or vice versa.


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## Electric_Light (Apr 6, 2010)

sparky970 said:


> We replaced a bunch of High Pressure Sodium lights with those fixtures in warehouses and around some roll handling equipment in a pulp mill. It is so much nicer to work in those areas now.


The energy codes are quite strict in the 206 land too


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## BrandonC (May 4, 2010)

personal said:


> Is it worth it to relamp from MH HID to T8 HO instead of T5HO?



I just built an online calculator answers the HID to T5HO payback question. It is an Energy Efficient Lighting Calculator that is cool because we build in RS Means cost data (materials, labor, and local rebates) so it can give you both expected savings and ballpark installed cost. 

To use it: use the drop down under "Individual Lights" to pick your wattage of metal halide. When you hit calculate, it will automatically tell you which has a better payback: T5 or T8. 

I just put it online last week, so I'd love any feedback - good, bad, or ugly. Seriously.

Hope this helps. 

Thanks,
Brandon


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## vgarabet (Mar 4, 2011)

*HID to T8 or T5HO Installation Question*

Hi all,

I have a gymnasium project where I am looking to change out the existing 400 watt MH HID with either T8 or T5HO. The HID is chain mounted and the mounting height is approximately 25 to 30 feet. I am a lighting consultant and am looking for some ballpark idea of the installation effort and cost to determine the project payback period. Does anyone have a general ballpark that can be applied?

Thanks in advance.

Regards,

Van


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## personal (Jun 3, 2008)

We just completed an arena with the same heights and we chain mounted the new fixtures. One for one replacement, 6 lamp t5h0 was the fixture we installed. We were able to take advantage of multi level switching so we can run 2,4, or all 6 lamps. Driving all 6 lamps almost all "dark spots" are eliminated. Prefab/assembled all cable and chain, installed tubes & wire gaurds and tested fixtures in the shop (46 fixtures 2 days to complete) 3 people on site for install with platform and boom style lift - 16 hours to install. (all went well thanks to pre-assembly and testing everything on the ground). Our installed price was approx $350-375 per fixture. Hope that helps


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