T8 fluorescent tube lights are popular in many homes and businesses. More and more homeowners and businesses updated T8 fluorescent light to LED.
Why Convert to LED?
- Save electricity bill. LED tube lights save over 50% on the electricity bill.
- Low maintenance cost. The lifespan of LED tube lights is much longer. High quality LED tube can get 5 years warranty. Besides, if you use a ballast bypass solution, you do not change the ballast either.
- Rebates make LED retrofit free or low product cost. LED tube lights with DLC certification can get rebates in many utility providers. Sometimes, rebates are higher than the product costs. Click to check the rebates of your local utility providers here.
- Eco-friendly. The fluorescent tube contains mercury, but LED tube is absolutely eco-friendly.
How to Convert 4ft Fluorescent Tube to LED?
There are different methods to convert to LED. Initial cost and maintenance cost are different.
- Type A LED Tube – Plug and Play (Compatible with Ballast)
Type A LED tube lights is compatible with ballast. It supports plug-and-play. However, product cost and maintenance cost is higher. Ballast compatibility may be a problem too.
2. Type B LED Tube – Ballast Bypass
Type B LED tubes can install directly on T8 fluorescent light fixtures. However, the ballast needs to be removed before installation. There are two kinds of type B LED tubes, which are single-ended power and double-ended power LED tubes. The single-ended power LED tube needs to rewire, but it’s cheaper. Double-ended power LED tube can work directly on fluorescent light fixtures after removing ballast.
3. Type C LED Tube – External driver
Type C LED tube comes with an external driver, which provides more flexible installation. However, product cost is much higher.
LED Tube Types Comparison
| Type A (Plug and Play) | Type B (Single Power) | Type B (Double Power) | Type C (External Driver) | |
| Product Cost | Middle | Low | Middle | High |
| Installation Difficulty | Low | High | Middle | High |
| Maintain Cost | High | Low | Low | Low |
| Other | Ballast compatibility and slight increase in energy use | / | / | Not recommend due to high product cost and installation cost |
So, you can make a decision on which LED tube types are best for your projects.
After your new LED tubes arrive, you can begin the installation. If you want to install it by yourself, please read the article – how to install T8 LED tube lights. Please kindly note that LED retrofits can be dangerous since you’re working with electricity. We will provide an installation guide for different LED tube types soon.
