Should You Replace or Retrofit High Bay Lighting?

When replacing or upgrading your high or low bay fixture to LED, there are a few components you should consider. Before choosing an LED bay light, you should determine wattage equivalents and other specs that would make the light best suited for your space.

LED lights are the superior option to incandescent bulbs, providing a brighter light while using less energy. They also retain more light intensity and color consistency over time, with a lifespan of up to 50,000 hours.

First, determine whether you need a high bay or low bay light. Low bay lights are best for ceiling heights between 12 and 20 feet, while high bay lights are better for ceilings greater than 20 feet tall. High bay lights tend to have higher wattage and lumen count options. This makes them ideal for high ceilings in commercial and industrial spaces. Installing bay lights at the proper height is important because improper mounting can cause inadequate illumination or overexposure.

Next when considering bay lights, it is important to look at the required wattage and beam angle. A bay light has higher wattage requirements and usually produces over 8000 lumens to help light large spaces.

When deciding on a beam angle, a good rule to follow is the higher the ceiling, the lower the beam angle, and vice versa. When choosing wattage, bay lights need more watts the higher up they are.

To calculate how many bay fixtures you will need to light your space, consult our Commercial Lighting Guide.

When upgrading your lighting, you should compare different facets such as lumen output, wattage, beam angle, and ceiling height. Before you choose a light fixture, you must find the LED equivalent that works best in your space.

First, you need to look at the wattage of your existing metal halide light bulbs and find the correct LED replacement. Because LED lights are more energy efficient than traditional bay lights, they don't use nearly as much power. This means that they can produce the same amount of brightness using less watts, and for a longer amount of time.

LED replacement bulbs have many different options for all ranges of wattages. Use the chart below to calculate the exact equivalent you need.

Replacing the old fixture entirely is more costly and tends to involve rewiring of the system to work with the new fixtures. Replacing can be a better option if the fixtures are damaged or outdated.

For older lights, it can be difficult finding compatible retrofitting options. As a result, it may not be worth the effort. Rewiring and replacing the fixtures simplifies future installations.

When replacing fixtures it's best to find the wattage equivalent of the existing lamp. For example, LEDs are 75% more efficient than HIDs.

Pros:

• Low maintenance costs
• Eliminates safety risks from old fixtures and wiring
• Longer estimated lifespans over fluorescent, incandescent, metal halides, and high-pressure sodium lights

Cons

• High upfront cost; may require rewiring
• May require a permit and/or professional installation
• Added cost to fully remove old hardware

Most old high bay lights use metal halide technology. Metal Halides are powerful but their performance degrades quickly after the first 1000 hours of use. The degradation gets worse as more time passes. For this reason, we suggest replacing or retrofitting your lights to LED alternatives.

Retrofitting your high bay or low bay fixtures can also be a great option when upgrading your lighting system. Retrofit installations keep some old parts of fixtures and install new parts compatible with your existing wiring. Retrofitting usually has lower upfront cost than outright replacing the fixture (and wiring) altogether.

PROS:

• Ballast is removable and won’t use extra energy
• Most retrofits have dimmable capabilities
• Lower installation and energy costs
• Less maintenance and labor over time

CONS:

• Incorrect installation can damage the entire fixture
• Not a substitute for maintenance and repair, especially for aged or deteriorated fixtures

Consider retrofitting to LED if your fixtures are incandescent, fluorescent, or metal halide. LEDs offer up to 10x the efficacy of incandescent and 2x the efficacy of metal halide bulbs. This means LEDs bring brighter light at lower wattages than the competition. Over time, this can save you hundreds of dollars in energy bills a year.

Do not consider retrofitting if the existing fixture is damaged or in poor condition. Damaged fixtures are better off being entirely replaced due to their potential to break even after upgrading. Retrofitting outdated fixtures is possible but can be difficult to find compatible retrofit kits. In both cases, replacing the fixture with an LED high bay light is the best option.

To learn more about LED retrofitting, head over to our blog LED retrofitting.

When deciding how to upgrade, first you need to choose the upgrade method. The choice to retrofit or replace your bay fixture, streamlines the product options available to you.

High bay and low bay fixtures have many different upgrade options, each with their own use cases and benefits. Whether you decide to retrofit your existing fixture or replace it altogether, there is no shortage of possibilities.

Some of the most popular replacement options are LED high bay lights, namely UFO and Linear High Bay lights. Other LED replacement options include the following:

• UFO Bay Light: Most popular high bay fixture, perfect as a replacement or retrofit in warehouse and production facilities.
• LED Downlights: Offers powerful focused or adjustable (gimbal) LED lighting at an affordable price. Perfect in new constructions, homes, and commercial areas such as offices.
• LED Troffer Light: Consistent, uniform lighting for surface or suspension mounting applications in use schools, offices, hospitals, clinics, industrial production, and hospitality facilities.
• Linear High Bay: Powerful, glare-free lighting for large facilities with high ceilings such as large gyms, indoor athletic courts, warehouses, and aircraft hangars.
• Linear Shop Light: Directed lighting for areas with ample spacing and require multiple lights such as workshops, factory-lines, and industrial garages.
• LED Vapor Tight Fixture: Moisture-resistant lighting capable of illuminating in chemical processing plants, swimming pools, cold storages, and food processing areas.

Types of Retrofit Kits

Retrofit kits package parts and components needed to upgrade your lighting system. Should you decide to go the retrofitting route, you can choose from a selection of LED light options for retrofitting purposes. We've compiled a list of the best retrofit kit options for low and led high bay applications such as:

• LED Bay Light Retrofit Kits: Screws into fixtures and easily retrofits into existing fixtures. Perfect for retrofitting in high ceiling warehouses, hangers, walkways, and amphitheaters.
• Retrofitting with Corn Bulbs: Powerful lighting without a ballast requirement, easily retrofits into screw-based fixtures.
• Retrofitting with Shoebox Retrofit Kits: Retrofits offering long-lasting illumination for use in parking lots, streets lights, building entrances, and car dealerships.
• Multi-Use Retrofit Kits: Customizable lighting best for retrofitting into existing high/low bay lights, wall packs, garage lights, shoebox fixtures, and security lights.

Overall, LED high bay and low bay fixtures are incredibly beneficial for lighting large areas of space. Depending on your space’s needs, you can choose which replacement option is best for you. Start saving on cost, maintenance, and energy consumption today with low and high bay lights available at HomElectrical!