An empty school corridor lined with blue lockers, lit by fluorescent ceiling lights stretching into the distance

Retrofit TLED solutions

Tubular LED lamps (TLED) are an easy solution to retrofit existing fluorescent lamps fixtures with LED lighting. There are three different categories of TLED lamps to be aware of, Type A, B, and C. In all cases, Bodine has an emergency lighting solution to ensure your installation meets code.

Some TLED retrofit lamps have internal drivers that can accept AC input through the original fluorescent ballast or through connection to line voltage.

These TLED replacement lamps have internal drivers that convert AC to DC in order to power the LED array. When emergency lighting is required in these fixtures, an emergency ballast or emergency inverter with AC output may be used. See types A and B for more information.

If the TLED replacement lamps do not have internal drivers, an AC LED driver with DC output must be used to replace the fluorescent ballast. Likewise, an emergency driver that provides DC output must be used to drive the TLED lamps when normal power fails. See Type C for more information.

Certified electricians or qualified contractors should be used to convert LED retrofit fixtures into emergency lighting fixtures.

Type A

Type A TLED retrofit lamps have internal drivers that are a direct replacement for the fluorescent tubes currently installed in your fixture. These are called Type A lamps. They are powered from the original AC fluorescent ballast’s output.

This type of retrofit is the simplest and can easily be done by anyone that can also replace a fluorescent tube. Bodine fluorescent emergency drivers, such as the B50 are suitable for this type of lamp.

View Type A emergency solutions

Diagram showing the installation of an emergency ballast into a TLED lighting fixture, comparing the original fluorescent ballast setup with the upgraded emergency ballast configuration

Type B

Type B TLED replacement lamps have internal drivers that convert AC to DC in order to power the LED array. These are powered directly from the AC line and are sometimes called “bypass” TLED lamps or “mains operated” TLED lamps.

When emergency lighting is required in these fixtures, an emergency inverter with AC output should be used, like the Bodine ELI emergency inverter series of products.

View Type B emergency solutions

Diagram showing the installation of an external emergency inverter to a TLED lighting fixture, comparing the standard setup with the emergency inverter connected configuration

Type C

Type C TLED systems focus not on the lamp but on the whole system, by providing replacement lamps along with a paired driver. Typically, the driver will provide DC voltage to the lamps but high voltage AC power is also possible (e.g. Type A lamps paired with a specialty TLED driver). These dedicated drivers can have controls or special options which makes the system approach attractive.

For emergency operation, use an emergency LED driver, like the Bodine BSL products, when the lamps are DC voltage driven. If the lamps are driven by high voltage AC, use a Type A solution mentioned above. Or, use a Bodine ELI series inverter to provide backup power to the whole system.

View DC voltage lamp solutions

Diagram showing the installation of an emergency LED driver with DC output into a TLED lighting fixture, comparing the standard AC LED driver setup with the upgraded emergency LED driver configuration

*Note: Any of the types illustrated may use an inverter as the emergency lighting source.

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