Which LED TL tube do I need?

Choosing the right LED TL tubes is not as easy as you might think. There are quite a few things you need to take into account. In our latest blog, we list everything for you, so that you purchase exactly the LED TL tubes that you need.

 

Choose LED

Even before you start thinking about aspects such as light colour, fitting and ballast, you have to deal with perhaps the most important choice. Are you going for conventional TL lighting or LED? We can be brief about this: by switching to LED TL lighting you always make a good choice. You save up to 75% on your energy costs, the LED tubes have a longer lifespan and you also contribute to a cleaner climate.

 

What else should you pay attention to?

Okay, so the choice for LED is an easy one. But of course you're not there yet! When buying LED TL tubes, there are roughly 4 other things that are important:

• The fitting of the fluorescent lamp (also called lamp base)
• The ballast
• The length
• Color temperature (= the light color)

 

Fitting (lamp base)

By far the most common fitting for LED TL tubes is the T8 fitting. This lamp base is also sometimes called G13 fitting, because of the two pins that are exactly 13 mm apart. At LED.nl we only sell the common T8 LED TL tubes. There are also thinner LED TL tubes with 5 mm pin spacing (G5) and round LED TL tubes with a G10q lamp base. These are mainly used in ceiling fixtures.

 

The ballast

There are 2 types of ballasts. First of all, there is the traditional EM ballast, which has a starter as standard. The disadvantage of this is that the TL tube starts to flash when starting up. The variant that you see more often these days is the electronic ballast (HF). This does not use a starter and therefore has no start-up time. In this case, you need a starter with your LED TL tube. At LED.nl you always get this with it. So you do not have to make any adjustments to your fixture.

 

The length

LED TL tubes come in different lengths. If you are switching from conventional to LED, first measure your current TL tubes. The following 4 lengths are the most common:

• LED TL tubes of 60 cm
• LED TL tubes of 90 cm
• LED TL tubes of 120 cm
• LED TL tubes of 150 cm

The longer the TL tube, the higher the wattage and the higher the light output. Which length TL tubes are most suitable for your wishes and requirements, therefore depends closely on the space in which they are placed.

 

The color temperature (light color)

Last but not least: the light colour. Here too it is important to consider in which room the LED TL tubes will be hung. For example, you can choose:

• Warm white light (2700-3000K) – suitable for homes, reception areas and retail.
• Cool white light (4000K) – suitable for offices, schools, warehouses and sports halls.
• Daylight white light (6500K) – suitable for workshops, laboratories, warehouses and other areas where realistic colour reproduction is important.

 

Need help choosing the perfect LED TL tubes?

Feel free to contact our specialists. On weekdays we can be reached by phone between 09:00 and 17:00 via 085 23 90 555 . You can also send an email to info@led.nl or chat with us .