When it comes to providing the right amount of light for a given environment, choosing the best fixtures and lamps is always essential. All the different options in lighting solutions can be confusing, and understanding what each option offers is often the first step in finding the ideal option.
In areas where brightness is a critical factor, high output fluorescent lighting may be the ideal solution. High output or HO lamps come in different lengths and diameters. Like the standard fluorescent lamps, they fit into the fixtures designed for the specific lamp, but they are not interchangeable with each other. The lamps are designed as a T5, T8 or T12, with or without the HO designation, with the different nominal lengths offered for each.
The Lamp and Fixture
The choice of high output fluorescent lighting does require a slightly more expensive fixture and requires a different ballast than those for standard fluorescent lamps.
The offset to this difference is the use of high output fluorescent lighting allows for more space between lights, which helps to balance out the cost as fewer fixtures, and fewer lamps, are required to provide the same amount of lighting. There is also the consideration with lamp life to keep in mind, with both the standard and HO lamps offering an average of 20,000 hours for the T5 lamp size.
Larger areas benefit from the use of the HO (high output) types of lamps. The height of the ceiling is also a factor, with the increased height from the fixture to the working surface not limiting the amount of light as is seen with standard types of fluorescent lights and fixtures.
It is of relevance to note that the difference in the light output is significant between standard and HO, with the HO having a higher wattage but providing up to as much as two times the light output.