LED Linear High bays vs. T5HO High bays

The clock is ticking on the T5HO Linear Highbay. Once the the best option to replace Metal Halide Highbay Fixtures, T5HO Fluorescents are now on the receiving end of being replaced by Linear LED highbays. The LED Linear Highbay can produce the same or better light output, provide longer life (100,000 hrs. compared to 36,000 hrs.), Lower Maintenance costs, and lower Power consumption (50%). Not to mention being the recipient of State sponsored Lighting Rebate Programs.

For many years LED’s were simply cost prohibitive due to production costs and low energy rates however the situation has changed. Electricity rates will continue to increase and competition in the LED market has made the Linear LED Highbay a more than attractive option for the warehouse lighting market.

So lets make a comparison of a 4 lamp T5HO Highbay to one of our 150w Linear LED Highbays.

ILLHB4150 Linear LED Highbay 10 year warranty

T5HO replacement LED highbay

4 Lamp T5HO VS 150W Linear LED

A typical T5HO 4 lamp Highbay consumes roughly 230 watts and delivers roughly 18,000 lumens due to losses from the reflector and indirect lighting. The 150 Watt Linear LED highbay delivers 21,000 Lumens due to the Directional Lighting characteristics of the LEDs.

The cost of a 4 bulb t5HO Fluorescent fixture with bulbs is roughly in the $120.00 range, lamps included. The cost of ILLUHB4150 150W Linear LED Highbay light Fixture is $211.00. Therefore the difference in the cost between the 2 fixtures is $91.00. The difference in power consumption is 80W.

So lets assume our project is a warehouse that has 100 fixtures running 24 hrs a day 7 days a week and we are paying 15 cents/Kilowatt. We can then run a calculation to see what the immediate return would be.

T5HO Fluorescent Highbay 4 Lamp

After 1 year the t5HO highbay would cost.

24hrs x 365days x 230watts / fixture x $.15 / 1000 watts x 100 fixtures = $30,222 in energy consumption.

LED Linear Highbay 4ft 150 Watt Project Costs

For the sake of our example we will use the DLC Rebate structure for the State of New Jersey - $140.00/fixture.

$211.00 - $140.00 = $71.00 / Fixture Cost. $71.00/Fixture x 100 Fixtures= $7,100.00 Net Cost of Purchase of 100 LED Highbays

Installation Costs ($50.00/Fixture x 100 Fixtures)= $5,000 Installation Costs.

Total Project Costs =($7,100 + $5,000) = $12,100.00

LED Linear Highbay 4ft 150 Watt Energy Costs

After 1 year the LED highbay would cost ((24hrs x 365days x 150watts/fixture x $.15)/1000 watts) x 100 fixtures = $19,710 in energy consumption.

In this example we have realized a 45% savings in energy consumption which equates to $10,512.00 /year

Considering the energy savings coupled with the rebate the ROI or Return On Investment for this project would Calculate to ($12,100/yr/$10,512.00/yr)= 1.15 years ROI.

This does not take into account the Maintenance Savings as the

LED has 100,000 hour life Cycle and 10 year warranty. T5 lamp life cycle is around 36,000 hrs. To have an electrical contractor come in and re lamp your fixtures 3 times and add in at least one ballast change, your looking at easily an additional $25,000 in maintenance costs over 10 years. Thus $25,000 spread over 10 years comes out to roughly $2500/year in Maintenance costs.

With the Maintenance costs factored in the true ROI is ($12,100/($10,512 +$2,500))= .93 Year or 11 months ROI

Based upon the data the conclusion is obvious. It makes all of the sense in the world to replace existing T5HO fluorescent light fixtures with Linear LED light fixtures.

Imagine an investment with a breakeven point of 11 months and ae continuous returns on that money for the next ten years. If the electric rates stayed the same,(And we know electricity will never stay the same, they will always increase),The savings would equate to $1,182.90/month. Multiply this by 9 years and we will get (9 x 12mox$1,182.90)= $127,753.20 over this 9 year period. If the electric rates increase then the overall savings would then increase as well.

No stock market pick, real estate, or any other investment could provide a return like this.

Winner LED Linear Highbays…..