Commercial Lamp Supplies News

Apparently there is a World wide shortage of quartz glass, we hold substantial stocks of 25mm, 33mm and 48mm Quartz sleeves.
The 33mm and 48mm sleeves are used in Wedeco TAK systems, we also have the end which these require.
Please call us for other sizes of quartz tube as we have the ability to produce almost any size to order with a few days.

With some lovely summer weather upon us (well it is here in Devon anyway) many people are putting up their lighting festoons.

We have shelves full of all sorts of coloured lamps so whatever you want to light up in colour we should be able to help!

A really stunning effect can be simply made by using a Slimline Metal Halide Floodlight with a coloured bulb in. The other cool thing is that if you want to change it back to white light all you need to do is put a different bulb in it! These lamps really put out alot of light for the wattage (the smallest one is only 70watts) so they wont give you a big electricity bill either. Point a green one at a tree and it looks stunning!

We have a small range of garden lights (we are working on expanding the range) the Garden Spike Light With Lamp being very popular at the moment. Spike lights are very easy to fit and you can easily link them together and combine different colours throughout your garden

We do also have a wide range of coloured bulbs available with unusual beses and wattages - although these are getting hard to find as the only company in the UK that colours lamps is sadly no longer with us. We even have 60 watt coloured bulbs which are very hard to get hold of!

Would you like to brighten up your patio for all the wonderful BBQ’s you are going to have in this lovely weather? OK, while it lasts at least…

Well we have found a really great value rubber lighting festoon kit that comes complete with bulbs and standard wall plug so is ready to go out of the box. It is very reasonably priced for the quality and we think it should last you a while (not just one summer like many cheap festoons)

If you want one that you can leave up for years then you might want to consider the other festoon we do which is really good quality. Its not cheap but then you arent getting rubbish! Its a fit and forget job with this one! (remember that it does not come with bulbs so you need to pick them out separately)

Rubber Lighting Festoon Kit

Rubber Festoon

We often get people call us and say they want a UV tube - which isnt strange as that is one of our specialities! However, it is easy to get confused by the types of ‘UV’ tubes available.

Some people call Blacklight Blue Tubes UV tubes and although they are in a way they are not harmful to look at and have no germicidal action. Blacklight blue tubes are the ones that make white things look really bright white and they are usually used in nightclubs, bars or anywhere you want to make it look a bit funky! You can easily tell if you have a blacklight blue tube as the tube is a deep blue/purple colour - its pretty unmistakable.

The other confusion is with what is commonly called a Fly Killer lamp. These lamps dont actually kill the flies they just attract them becasue they emit a particular frequency of light that the flies like. They look like ordinary fluorescent tubes but when they are lit they generally give off a blueish or greenish light. Again as with the black light blue bulbs they are harmless to look at and do not emit germicidal radiation. It has been known for unknowledgable sellers to sell a UVC germicidal lamp as a fly killer lamp and it caused eye and skin problems with staff working nearby (nothing perminent I might add!) so it is important to be sure you get the right bulb.

If someone asks us for a UV lamp we assume they mean a germicidal or UVC lamp. It is pretty easy to tell if you have a UVC lamp because it will be completely clear (see through)and not white. It should also have some markings on it saying that you must not look at it without eye protection or expose your skin to it, sometimes the writing fades over time so dont rely on this alone. If it is made by philips then it will probably have a product code with the letters TUV in it. UVC lamps come in many shapes and sizes but most common are normal fluorescent tube shaped and are either Double or Single ended. It is important to replace a germicidal lamp with an identical one as they use control gear to run and this is usually specific to a particular lamp. We only list a few Germicidal lamps on our website because there are many different types and it is very important to get the correct one.

Lastly, please NEVER look at a germicidal tube when it is running, it may look like it isnt putting out much light (which is blue in colour) but what it does put out alot of is UVC light and that can give you conjuctivitus.

We are always happy to speak to our customers so if you are confused about the type of tube you have or need then please get in touch with us and we will try and get you the correct product

Blacklight Blue Tubes

Fly Killer Tubes

UVC Germicidal Tubes

Ceiling spotlight or downlight fittings are very popular these days. They are ideal for lighting small areas such as a worktop or a picture on a wall. They aren’t really designed for ambient lighting although they are often used for this and are quite energy hungry! For example if your kitchen has ten 50 watt halogen spotlights in it you are burning 500 watts! It isnt any better if they are low voltage - it is the wattage of the bulb that counts.

So we have put together a combination product of a spotlight fitting with an energy saving lamp which has everything you need to get lit up!

Combination Spotlight Fittings

They are all energy saving in their own way although the best energy saving option by far is the Megaman Low Energy GU10 Spotlight Bulb which will give you a 50 watt normal bulb light output for just 11 watts. The only tiny issue is that you cant dim them - however if you would really like them we can supply a dimmable version - just ask!

If you hate fluorescent low energy bulbs then we have an option with a filament 240 volt GU10 (or twist and lock) bulb. Its just a clever redesign of the old bulb so instead of using 50 watts it only burns 40 watts. Not a massively huge energy saving per lamp but if you have a few of them it does add up.

If you prefer the 12 volt spotlights then we have an option for you too! We supply the light fitting with an energy saving low voltage spotlight (or Dichroic) and with the electronic transformer that you need to get lit up. Again the energy saving dichroic is just a clever redesign of the old bulb so it uses just 35 watts to produce the same amount of light as a old 50 watt bulb.

To two energy saving halogen options are filament lamps and are both dimmable so are a good compromise if you dont get on with fluorescent low energy bulbs

We can also supply Firehoods too if you would like to use them

Well, its not been that warm has it! The evenings are getting longer now and it doesnt seem to been to wet even but its still a bit chilly to sit outside and enjoy the dry weather.

But we have a couple of Infrared patio heaters that will make it pleasantly warm while you sit outside and enjoy the light evenings

We have this one Here

Which you can mount on a wall perminently or this one Here That is free standing so can be moved to the garage when you dont need it outside anymore.

Both lamps come with bulbs ready to go. The only thing you have to do with the wall mounted on is to attach the wire to it - which is very simple. We dont supply them with wire as everyone always wants a different length!

If you keep animals we also have a couple of Heat Lamp Shades that are great for keeping all sorts of animals warm such as Puppies, Chicks or Tortoises. There are two types, one is a basic one with one heat setting and the other is a switched one that has two heat settings so you can lower the heat output. You can also choose between Ruby or Clear Bulbs depending on if you want a red or white light.

We also have a wide range of quartz heat lamps for many applications, if you dont see the one you want please get in touch with us and we will try and help

We have a limited stock of wire guards at (what we thank are) very reasonable prices!

Wire guards are usually put over light fittings where the tubes need to be protected but you dont want to use a plastic diffuser - ie in a sports hall

The wire guards we have are made by Crompton so you can be assured they are good quality and they come with all the fixings needed to fit them to the batten

We have two types, one goes on a fitting that has a reflector on it and the other mounts directly to the front of a batten fitting

We can get other wire guards but not at this great price unfortunately! Please contact us if you are looking for a size of guard we do not list here

This page lists the fluorescent fittings we carry and also the wire guards

We can supply all sorts of parts for fluorescent fittings, including the control gear that goes inside them. If you cant see what you are looking for on the website please contact us and we will try and help

And of course we also have a lot of fluorescent tubes

Unlike many of our competitors we will ship a single fluo tube as we understand that some people just dont need a box of 25!

The humble fluorescent tube has lit many an office or kitchen for years

Most people dont even notice them unless they flicker or go out! We obviously notice them everywhere we go…. but then lighting is all we do so we do have an excuse….

There are three basic types of fluorescent tubes (ok, there are quite a few really but these are the three main ones) the original tube was called a T12 and is 40.5mm in diameter, they were replaced by the T8 tube which is more efficient and is only 28mm in diameter. Now the latest development with fluorescent tubes is the T5 tube which is a only 16mm in diameter!

There is a tiny little fluorescent tube called a T2 which is ridiculously thin at only 7mm in diameter - but these are very uncommon as the idea never really took off - probably because of practical reasons

The T5 fluo tube is the most efficient tube you can get at the moment and is the only simple way to improve efficency in a office that currently uses T8 tubes.

We have a lovely convertor kit that will allow you to change your existing T8 fittings to run T5 tubes here

or we now list T5 battens here

T5 tubes have several advantages:

They are all triphosphor so have great colour rendering - ie colours look as they should and are less distorted
Their rated life is massive at 20,000 hours (12hrs a day for 4.5 years!)
They maintain their lumen output over their life - ie they dont dim so much as they age - unlike older type tubes
They run on High frequency ballasts which basically means they dont flicker as much (wire wound ballasts make the tubes run at a frequency of around 60Hz while with high frequency ballasts it is around 11000Hz)

They are made a tad more complicated because they are also available in two types, one is called High Efficiency or HE and the other is called High Output or HO.

The High Efficiency Tube is (mysteriously) as energy efficient as possible and the High Output tube is designed to have maximum light output for the wattage/length. It depends on the application as to which tube would suit you best for example if you want to cut your energy bill you would go for the HE tube

Will they make fluorescent tubes any narrower? We hope not!

It can be tricky to find people who know about discharge lighting and street lighting. Although we no longer do contract work we do have a fair amount of experience with industrial lighting and would like to think we are quite knowledgable about various control gear and lighting ballasts.

So if you are having trouble with your Son (sodium) light or would like to change your orange Son light to white light give us a call as we may be able to help. If we dont have an answer right away we will always try and find out for you.

We can also supply control gear for metal halide and mercury bulbs as well as bits and pieces such as lampholders or spare for fittings (we keep parts of damaged fittings so we may have a glass cover for example that would fit your light fitting)

We can get hold of some SOX ballasts and control gear. It is becoming increasingly hard to source sox kit as it is slowly becoming obsolete. If we cant replace the gear you have we can still advise on the options to get lit up again!

Of course there are new low energy alternatives coming on the market now too and we will be adding these as we test them out

So give us a call on 01822 860 110 or click the contact tab at the top of the page if you are stuck and we will try our best to help

If you already know what you need you can find control gear here

We know how hard it is to find a lamp changing pole when you need one as it took us a long time to source a quality product. The pole that we supply is definately a good product and is very well designed and made

The pole itself is fibreglass and is collapsable so it can be easily stored and transported. The sections are individually lockable so you can alter the length (or height) of the pole to suit your needs. We supply it with a head that will change most common metal halide sodium (SON) or Mercury bulbs found in industrial fittings. There is also a wide range of other heads available if you have a reflector shape lamp or a very high wattage bulb - we can supply these if required

Although the Lamp Changer Pole is not a cheap item it is very good quality and will actually work - if you consider the cost and hassle of hiring a Cherry Picker the lamp change pole will very soon pay for itself

If you would like to know more about the lamp changing pole please get in touch with us or you can find it on the website here