For those CFL converts…

[cantbreak80]

Would you be willing to provide your average monthly electrical expense savings since converting from MH lighting?

 

[2Biz]

I don't have that many bulbs....9 bulbs were 175w MH's and are now 85w CFL. And (3) 175w vac bulbs are now 40w CFL....So the monthly savings is 546,750w or roughly 546kw x .12 per kw= $65.52 (15hrs avg per day x 30 days a month)

It was worth the change for me...$786.24 for the year. The Cost of the conversion was $165.00...

 

[ted mcmeekin]

Your numbers are probably right but units are not. I think meant kwh for saving calc. Minor trypo--how's the light from customers point of view.

Thanks,

Ted

 

[bighead]

I installed the astronomic timers and the cfl's and my electric bill was down 18% from the year prior

 

[2Biz]

Your numbers are probably right but units are not. I think meant kwh for saving calc. Minor trypo--how's the light from customers point of view.

Thanks,

Ted

Here are the before and after photos.. Before is with 175w MH's. After is 85w CFL's. I have never had a complaint. I think you can see why...

 

[CCAR]

Where did you get the 85 watt CFL bulbs? I have tried other CFL bulbs and have found that they do not last as long as they are supposed to. Thanks CCAR

 

[CCAR]

Sorry I forgot to ask you what color temperature are the bulbs in the picture they look about right as far as color. Are they 4100 kelvin?

 

[2Biz]

I got them from 1000bulbs.com

They are 5000K

So far, out of 12 bulbs, I haven't had a single failure. In April, they will have been installed 2 years.

 

[soapy]

I am saving around $200 per location per month since I changed over to CFLs and T5s. One thing to remember with metal halide lights is that as they age not only do they loose 40% of their light they also use more than the stated watts. A 175 watt MH with some age is actually drawing closer to 200 watts of power.

 

[MEP001]

I installed the astronomic timers and the cfl's and my electric bill was down 18% from the year prior

I did the same, and set the back row of bay lights to turn off at midnight. There's not really a noticeable decrease in the electric bill because it varies so much from month to month, but I've estimated about $100 savings from those changes alone.

The lights on a photocell worked well for the most part, but they wouldn't shut off on an overcast day.

 

[PaulLovesJamie]

This is pretty much a no brainer

Unless you have a separate meter for you lighting circuits, looking at electric bills wont tell you if this is a worthwhile upgrade. For example, I converted from MH to Fluorescents, and my bill went up ... because the borough raised the rates.

Fortunately calculating usage is pretty accurate, as illustrated by the numbers 2biz posted - yes savings are significant and well worthwhile.

The bottom line is that if you are still on MH, you need to convert - most of us that have done it are happy with the light output, and savings are noticeable. If you can fit CFLs in your current fixtures, switch them out this weekend. If not, consider T5HO or other options, and do it this spring.

LED is another option, but much more expensive at the moment.

 

[packerscw]

going on second year with cfl bulbs installed. they are much brighter than mh. dont know exact numbers but saw a noticable drop in monthly usuage

 

[Earl Weiss]

Are there kits available to convert a 400W MH Ceiling fixture to CFL?

 

[2Biz]

I would think it would be much easier to convert since you would have more room in the fixture. Just install a bigger bulb that gives you 400w of light equivelance.

You really don't need a kit. All you need to do is wire up your socket direct to 120v. (If you have 120v service)...You'll bypass the transformer...Measure the amount of room you have in the fixture to see how big of bulb will fit. 1000bulbs lists the measurements of each bulb...

 

[I.B. Washincars]

It is my understanding that there is no CFL that comes close to the output of a 400W MH, or at least one that would fit.

 

[CCAR]

I got them from 1000bulbs.com

They are 5000K

So far, out of 12 bulbs, I haven't had a single failure. In April, they will have been installed 2 years.

Just curious, how did you decide that the 85 watt was going to put out enough light to equal the 175 metal halide? On their website they also have 105 watt and 150 watt. All of them seem to be less lumens that a 175 watt metal halide produces and yet I can see in your pictures that the clear choice would be the flourescent. A couple of years ago I installed some new wall paks that had a 150 watt metal halide pulse start bulb in it. These produce 9800 lumens, way more than a 175 watt probe start metal halide. I still have some old probe style metal halides that need replacing.

 

[mjwalsh]

The lights on a photocell worked well for the most part, but they wouldn't shut off on an overcast day.

Mep & others,

These are kind of spendy but if you have an analog voltage input module for a PLC or other similar programmable device ... from our experience they work better than regular photocell switches. You can certainly tweak the lights' automatic on-off trigger much better. We are glad we added these ... we know with them we do save energy costs. We actually left the regular photocells in place so if the PLC would be down or we want to override completely we have some DPDT with off in the middle toggles so we have more overrides if temporarily needed. There is an analog milliiamp version also available. We have a different intensity for our more enclosed bays vs the more outdoor bays.

http://energycontrol.com/mk7-b-cs-0-10.aspx

mike walsh king koin responsible & concerned youtube person

 

[copperglobe]

I'm going to go the CFL or T5HO route. I currently have 175 MH in GE lights which won't fit a CFL.

Does Kleen-Rite or Windtrax or another source sell a fixture that's not got the "guts" for MH so that I can simply buy the box and lense and use CFL?

Also, are the T5HO fixtures that Kleen-Rite sells still the fixtures of choice for you owners?

Thanks

 

[MEP001]

Does Kleen-Rite or Windtrax or another source sell a fixture that's not got the "guts" for MH so that I can simply buy the box and lense and use CFL?

This looks like a good deal - four of them on the ceiling should light a bay very well for a reasonable cost of hardware, and half the lights could be shut off late at night for energy savings.

http://tsscws.com/index.php/lighting-fixtures/114-watt-fluorescent-ceiling-fixture.html

 

[MEP001]

It is my understanding that there is no CFL that comes close to the output of a 400W MH, or at least one that would fit.

I had forgotten that a friend of mine had put a large CFL bulb in a 400W ceiling fixture in a bay - I don't recall what wattage he tried, but I saw it in service. The output was useless - there was more light coming over the wall from the bay next to it than the CFL-adapted light.

I'm quite happy with the light from four 42W adaptors in a Scottsdale - if you have the fixtures I think you do, there should be plenty of room.