# Shop Lighting Requirements



## gnuuser (Jan 13, 2013)

i think the cec has code requirements for shop lighting but as with any shop (wood,metal, or garage the more lighting the better)
led's tend to be brighter than fluorescent lamps so not as many are needed providing the light spread does not leave dark spots.
but a word of caution concerning led's 
some type of diffuser may be needed( some led's can be bright enough to cause eye pain and headaches)


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## Kevin (Feb 14, 2017)

gnuuser said:


> i think the cec has code requirements for shop lighting but as with any shop (wood,metal, or garage the more lighting the better)
> led's tend to be brighter than fluorescent lamps so not as many are needed providing the light spread does not leave dark spots.
> but a word of caution concerning led's
> some type of diffuser may be needed( some led's can be bright enough to cause eye pain and headaches)


The fixtures have built in diffusers. 

I'll have to try to find my CEC book and look it up. Maybe Ontario code book will have it. Thanks!

Sent from my SM-G920W8 using Tapatalk


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## 3DDesign (Oct 25, 2014)

A good local lighting supplier should be able to layout the fixtures and give you photometric data free. This should include a drawing showing lumens per ft throughout the building.


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## GeneC (Aug 28, 2017)

Have you looked at Hi Bay lighting in LED they work great at that height and spread a lot of light and won't cost an arm and leg. I did our shop with them at work and they proved to be the best solution and the ceiling height is same as yours. Switched 1/2 & 1/2 so all are not on when not needed. Just MHO


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## ppsh (Jan 2, 2014)

High bay lights kinda suck in shops when they're mounted below 16-18 feet or so. You will have plenty of light, but you end up with tons of shadows everywhere. Linear LED or linear fluorescent is king in these applications. 

A bare minimum for work lighting in a building this size is something like twelve 2 lamp T5HO strips, or an equivalent 4' LED strip in the 8-10k lumen range.

Below is an example of that using a 4" 2 lamp t5 strip with a reflector. Averages 36fc. 









Same setup but 60fc


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## EricBoss (Apr 26, 2018)

*Nice work*



Kevin_Essiambre said:


> The building is a 40 foot by 70 foot building, with 13 foot ceilings.


I agree with @ppsh. Shadows can definitely be a problem at this height. LED all the way.


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## Helmut (May 7, 2014)

For what your doing, I suspect you'd want at least 55fc at table height.

Go from there.


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## Helmut (May 7, 2014)

EricBoss said:


> I agree with @ppsh. Shadows can definitely be a problem at this height. LED all the way.


LED's won't solve shadows. Shadows are a by product of a bad lay-out.


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## Sblk55 (Sep 8, 2017)

While what everyone has said is true a regular grid pattern will not do. Plan a light pattern that would be minimum light and then ad more lighting for the placement of equipment and work areas. An extra bright shop as a whole dose not necessarily provide enough light for doing precise work.

We did our machine shop with enough LED's that it looked like noon on a sunny day and still had to add more lights for each peace of equipment.


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## EricBoss (Apr 26, 2018)

*Agreed*



Helmut said:


> LED's won't solve shadows. Shadows are a by product of a bad lay-out.


Actually Helmut you are more accurate. LEDs are great but a proper lay out will eliminate or at least minimize shadows. The issue most people have is changing or even re-designing the existing layout. Sometimes you just have to find a work around.


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