How Much Do You Know About Fluorescent T8 Tubes

How Much Do You Know About Fluorescent T8 Tubes ?

Fluorescent tubes have had a very long history with many advances made in their design, production, and efficiency.  At this point, they’re only slightly behind LED lights on efficiency and lifespan, but, barring some major technological breakthrough, there’s little we can do to truly improve fluorescents without developing a new technology altogether. Fluorescent tubes now have much higher lumen and CRI values than previous lamps.  They also last longer, use less energy, and have improved on-times thanks to better electrical ballasts.  And even with all of these improvements, fluorescent T8s are still inexpensive on a per-bulb basis (the ballasts themselves can be fairly expensive).

However, some of a fluorescent’s strengths come with disadvantages.  The newer ballasts last longer and help to improve lamp life, but while the bulbs are inexpensive, a good ballast is costly.  That same ballast introduces an additional failure point, since it will eventually wear out.  No matter how efficient a fluorescent is, flickering and warm-up time are still hallmarks of a fluorescent bulb.  Both problems are compounded by cold temperatures.  And, while they contain less mercury than a can of tuna fish, fluorescent lamps do contain mercury and require careful disposal.

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