Do T8 Led Bulbs Need A Ballast

4 t8 will fit in 4 t12 as long as it is bi pin type bulb and not spring loaded sockets.

Do t8 led bulbs need a ballast.

Since leds do not require either the high start up voltage or power regulation the ballast is not required. Often single input power supply will be satisfactory. The majority of led t8s on the market today still operate in this fashion. Many t8 led tubes are now compatible with electronic fluorescent ballasts.

Remove ballast leave other socket dead preferably grounded and install direct wire led bulb. There are two types of tleds some like philips instatfit led t8 lamps require a ballast and some like access fixtures t8 led tube lamps have an internal driver and work on 120v to 277v line voltage. In other words the ballast works directly with a driver that is inside the led making installation is easy. Most t8 led tubes do not need a ballast.

Metal halide mercury vapor and hid are also the prime examples of lights using ballasts. To make the single power supply lamps work the starter and the ballast must be removed while rewiring the circuit. This lamp works directly with the existing ballast to quickly replace the fluorescent t8. You do not need a ballast for led lights but instead a driver.

Ballast is still used in bulbs and tube lights to avoid current rise in the lights. Verde often uses this approach to replace t12 magnetic ballasts as well as older t8 systems with aging electronic ballasts. If sockets will not match bi pin bulb simply replace socket with twist in bi pin sockets and do as above. Initially all led t8 tubes ran directly off line voltage which is accomplished by bypassing or removing the ballast.

Ballast compatibility absolutely matters when the led lamp you ve chosen is of the ul type a variety. Yet this is not compatible with circuits that have a ballast or starter included. The plug and play led t8 also referred to as direct fit is the easiest of the two types to install. So if you are going to install a t8 led tube light it will require a ballast bypass unless you choose a ballast compatible t8 led tube.

Be sure what type of tled you are using before installation. However led lamps often now do not need bi inputs. Since led lights work on low dc voltage they need a driver. There are three types of t8 led tubes.