Thin lights

[offgridmissions]

I am looking for a good light for a D/C only application. Has anybody had any luck with a DC fluorescent fixture called Thin Lite brand? I would post the site but it would probably get removed. Looking for a decent room light for a good value.

[inetdog]

I am looking for a good light for a D/C only application. Has anybody had any luck with a DC fluorescent fixture called Thin Lite brand? I would post the site but it would probably get removed. Looking for a decent room light for a good value.

It depends on whether you link to the manufacturer or to a specific seller. And how generally useful the information is. But since just Googling "thin lite" seems to find it, if probably does not make any difference in the accessibility to readers and it does not involve making this forum a link to that site.

Some of the fluorescent fixtures I saw in their catalog use T8 style fluorescent tubes, which seem to give the most light per watt of anything short of high or low pressure sodium, which would be very unsatisfactory. Still, when you use these tubes in a light fixture, the rest of the fixture design governs how much light ever reaches your room or work area.
The first fixture I looked at draws 1.4 amp and gives 1250 lumens. If you assume 14 volts rather than 12 volts, that would be a lumen per watt figure of only 63, which is not the best you can get from T8. Their P1954 (called "high efficiency") uses a longer T8 tube and is rated to give 2950 lumens from 32 watts, for a lumens/watt figure of 92, which is much better, but is probably more light than you need for a general room light. It would be the approximate equivalent of 3.2 standard 60 watt incandescent bulbs.

The fact that they sell to the marine and commercial truck market and not just the solar niche market is probably a good first indication of their reliability.

I do not have any personal experience to contribute though.

[offgridmissions]

micro inverters

Thanks for the input. I found the product through a solar/wind supply co. called Northern Arizona Wind And Sun. They also carry a line of Led fixtures that may be promising for low watt and longer life applications. The issue that I am most interested in with the florescent fixtures are the lifespan of the micro inverters that are part of the ballast. This is a bulb that can be picked up at the local hardware and still function in a DC application. Not any DC product suppliers around here and shipping can be a hassle every time a bulb needs to be replaced.

[Naptown]

Try searching the marine and RV stores outlets they have a lot of 12V lighting.

[offgridmissions]

Try searching the marine and RV stores outlets they have a lot of 12V lighting.

Yes that's true, but you know where I am installing this system. Tanzania, Africa. So when I say "here" I mean "there". Only two major city hubs over there so small hardware stores may be a persons quickest option for a bulb replacement. Although that brings in another question that I haven't thought of: bulbs in Africa are designed to run on 230v. Best to forget the micro inverter idea and stick with 12v bulbs. Bottom line is I have a classroom to light up and I need to keep cost low and lumens high. Go over to my other post and lets talk batteries.

[inetdog]

Thanks for the input. I found the product through a solar/wind supply co. called Northern Arizona Wind And Sun. They also carry a line of Led fixtures that may be promising for low watt and longer life applications. The issue that I am most interested in with the florescent fixtures are the lifespan of the micro inverters that are part of the ballast. This is a bulb that can be picked up at the local hardware and still function in a DC application. Not any DC product suppliers around here and shipping can be a hassle every time a bulb needs to be replaced.

Depending on whether the fixture sends AC or pulsed DC to the lamp, you may find that one end of the tube starts to turn black before the other. If that happens, reverse the position of the tube for somewhat longer life.

[offgridmissions]

Depending on whether the fixture sends AC or pulsed DC to the lamp, you may find that one end of the tube starts to turn black before the other. If that happens, reverse the position of the tube for somewhat longer life.

Now that's worth writing down for future reference. Good Tip!

[Naptown]

Yes that's true, but you know where I am installing this system. Tanzania, Africa. So when I say "here" I mean "there". Only two major city hubs over there so small hardware stores may be a persons quickest option for a bulb replacement. Although that brings in another question that I haven't thought of: bulbs in Africa are designed to run on 230v. Best to forget the micro inverter idea and stick with 12v bulbs. Bottom line is I have a classroom to light up and I need to keep cost low and lumens high. Go over to my other post and lets talk batteries.

Most of these lamps are standard T5 bulbs available in a variety of wattages. The ballasts are different.

[Athrothe]

I am looking for a good light for a clicking here D/C only application. Has anybody had any luck with a DC fluorescent fixture called Thin Lite brand? I would post the site but it would probably get removed. Looking for a decent room light for a good value.

I think it would be prefer to go with LED lights.

[inetdog]

I think it would be prefer to go with LED lights.

LED lights have some advantages, but for pure energy conversion efficiency a T5 fluorescent still wins by a hair.

[russ]

i Prefer LED Lights.....

For some uses yes - for most uses - not yet.