LED’s quick takeover of the retrofit market has led folks to look to retrofit all kinds of fixtures. There must be a way, right? Sometimes it is easy fix but it does not always go smoothly. Fortunately there is always time to learn and seek out new solutions.

HID LED replacement lamps have been a boon for the market; huge on energy savings not to mention labor savings given many of them are hard to get at (particularly the high wattage ones). GE LED HID replacement lamps have been one of the most popular ones as they have the same form factor/ANSI class as standard HID in addition to a very high efficacy. They even have 360W and 450W LED options now to replace 750W and 1000W HID.

One thing they did not consider (yet anyway). Many 1000W metal halides have a long neck to thread into the existing socket. Now most of the time having a smaller HID LED replacement lamp is okay as it allows for more room within the fixture for the heat to dissipate, ensuring it will not only fit but also stay cool. In the case of the 450W GE LED HID lamp – GE LED450BT56/750 93096547 – the lamp is only 12.2″ long and a long-neck 1000W MH is around 15″ length. This results in the lamp being too short, particularly the socket area as it will not thread into an existing socket within a fixture that had a longneck HID.

So what is the plan in this case? Olympia Lighting is a lighting manufacturer that among other things specializes in Sports Lighting applications, so naturally they have experience dealing with high wattage metal halides and high pressure sodium bulbs both from a retrofit and new fixture standpoint. They have a long neck LED HID cluster-style lamp that is suited for this exact application! Available in 350W (1000W HID equivalent) and 450W (1500 HID equivalent). Both come in standard 12.2″ length but the long-neck version comes in 15″+. 120-277V standard but also in 208V-480V which is commonly seen at this wattage level. 3000K for High Pressure Sodium and 5500K for Metal Halide replacement. Lumens-per-watt in the 160 range as well as a high 85 CRI for exquisite color rendering.

Sometimes in lighting you learn the hard way; on an expensive lift 50′ in the air at the fixture level to realize the bulb you ordered does not screw in. As always, Premier Lighting is here to be your partner in lighting as a distributor that provides the experience and insight you need to ensure you are prepared and will garner maximum value from your LED retrofit. Contact us today with any questions you may have or feel free to comment below.