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Does anyone have thoughts on floresent lighting in a basement track setting?

I don't know if it the faster lap times of the new oval or something else but I wonder if the two standard floresent lights above my track are causing more eye strain than maybe incandescent?

There are two and I think they are a standard drop ceiling style with four tubes each. I have not checked yet but I would guess they are cool white.

I thought about adding a color sheet or some sort inside the diffuser, or a shade around the permiter of the light, hanging down a few inches.

I think it is going to get worse now with the race display monitors hanging in front of them. :shock:

Any thoughts?

You can see one in this photo and the other is just above the banked turn in the foreground.




Jim

I use standard T8 "Office & Professional" bulbs in mine and don't have any issues?



I staggered mine for better directional lighting for photos, but we have not had any complaints with these or the oval, they all use the same.

Hey Jim

I hate fluorescent lights.

maybe adding some lights to your track, or fill in some of those spots with grass would give the eyes a brake
I was at an electrical show last year and they make florescent tubes filled with LED lights you just take out the ballast and wire to the tombstone
the salesman said they are good for a lifetime :liar: but at 70.00 bucks for 1, 4 footer I hope they would last a few years we did not get any yet :P

The other thing I forgot to include was the new wall now covered with white styrofoam since I installed the insulation on the long wall along the right side. It must be reflecting a lot more light than the painted concrete was. My plan is to put up drywall and paint it , that will probably help too.

Jim

No matter what type of fluroscent light you're using, they do have a flicker. They flicker rate does vary between different brands and different powers. This is possibly causing part of the issue. Even if it is not perceptible, this flicker is quite tiring. The colour of the light is another part of the issue. A warmer light is less stressful than a cold one.

The white Styrofoam on the walls will also be exacerbating things by adding a scatter factor. The Styrofoam will not be completely smooth, so that the light reflecting off it will be scattering and bouncing everywhere, rather than in a single direction. Resurfacing and painting will remove this problem, even if it is painted white.

Embs

I use a combo of 60w soft flood lights in canned lighting as well as track lighting with the same bulbs. Very nice light on the eyes and painting the walls makes a monster difference!

I am inclined to agree with the white foam insulation on the wall. I don't remember have the feeling of eye strain before I put it up. I may try to do a quick cover up with some paper. I am going to have to rip dry wall in half and feed it through a small basement window just to get it down there! I don't want to spend that much time working on that when I could be racing slot cars! :roll:

Jim

For a quick fix try tacking a colored blanket or bed sheet or rug over the styrofoam wall and see if that makes a differance.