Type B & Rotatable F13T5/WW LED Tube Light - 21-Inch 6W (13W Equivalent), Warm White 3000K, Double-End Powered, Frosted Cover- 110/120VAC (Not-a-Plug-and-Play)

I just reread my review from 3 years ago (original review as written at the time, below), and I can confirm every word I wrote then. The bulbs in my kitchen, and another set that I installed in my son's kitchen, have worked flawlessly and they seem to be retaining their brightness unchanged. One of the best products I have ever bought!---------------------------------------------------------------------------I could not be happier with this product. I am using the Cool White / 4000K 110/120 VAC tubes in my kitchen undercabinet fixtures, replacing f13t5 fluorescents (having rewired the fixtures to bypass the ballast, per instructions that came with these new tubes). In a way this was an easy choice, but I did consider quite a few factors before settling on this particular tube:1. Long life: These tubes are listed as having 50,000 hour life. Frankly I was sick and tired of constantly needing to replace fluorescents which seem to last less than a year in my kitchen (around 1000 hours). I know the fluorescents are rated at 5000 hours, but turning them on and off repeatedly, which is normal use in my house, significantly reduces the life of fluorescents. Of course, I cannot yet confirm the longevity of these tubes, but if they are anywhere close to specs, they should last many, many years before needing replacement.2. Eliminate ballast: First of all, let me say that, for anyone who is even slightly familiar with house wiring, the fixture rewiring is very simple. There are three good reasons to prefer tubes that operate without ballasts (a) the ballasts draw power and bypassing them saves electricity, (b) some ballasts hum, although I did not have a problem with this in my house, and (c) the ballasts do not last forever (in my house, I have had to replace five of my six ballasts over a twenty year period).(3) Amount and quality of light: Although the fluorescents I replaced were rated at 850 lumens (initial) and 705 lumens (mean), and these tubes are listed at 600 lumens, these tubes actually produce somewhat more useable light, probably because all the light is delivered directionally (over 180 degrees). The way these tubes rotate once installed makes it easy to get them facing in the most desirable direction. The impression you have of the light, that is the quality of the light, is the same as the fluorescents they replace.(4) Temperature: Since my fluorescents were 4000 K, I stayed with that temperature for my retrofit. These tubes come in three temperatures, so you can pick what you like.(5) Diameter: These tubes are the same diameter as my old f13t5 fluorescents. There is another tube available that is larger in diameter and would not have fit in my fixtures (note: this other tube is also listed as an f13t5 replacement but is not the same form factor).These tubes are listed at 6 watts, replacing my fluorescents which were rated at 13 watts (plus whatever power the ballast was drawing). If you are considering this product, you are most likely looking at alternatives that draw more or less 6 watts, so I have focused on how these tubes differ from other LED solutions. Of course, I am happy to be using less electricity, but, for me, the expectation that this solution will be maintenance free for many years (including eliminating the maintenance of the ballasts) was the compelling selling point.

The under cabinet lights in our kitchen had F13T5 fluorescent tubes (21") - a pair per fixture. I have been replacing the tubes every so often, ultimately one of the lamp's ballast went out. Searched far and wide but could not find a replacement ballast (Ballastwise MX2E5). Which is one of a kind - requires to wire up two tubes in series and also each tube single ended(two pins shorted).Thus I was left with the choice to either replace the entire lamp fixture - given only one of the three was broken, it was not ideal. Or, find a 21" T5 LED product that can connect directly to the line, so I can bypass the broken ballast. There were hardy any product that suited the latter, as a matter of fact, this product was my only choice. I took a chance and it worked out just fine!Apart from being ballast-bypass-able, there are also a couple of pros. This LED tube can be rotated, while remaining installed, to control the direction of the light beam. I purchased the 6000K temp version - the color of which shows virtually no difference from a 6000K fluorescent lamp. Which is a great plus if ones application requires coexistence. Moreover, this LED tube appears to be about 10-20% brighter than its fluorescent cousin.

I installed this bulb in an existing fixture. I hadn't read the description fully, and was surprised that I needed to rewire the fixture and remove the ballast. I almost decided to send it back, but then spent the time/effort to do the rewiring. All working well. Hopefully this bulb will have a very long life!

I had never liked our kitchen undercabinet lights – classic old fluorescent lamps. They were Ok when the house was new, but over time, they started buzzing and the lamps died quickly after flickering for a bit – highly annoying.I first replaced one fixture with something from a big box store. What a pain – they make the undercabinet lights quite small, and squishing in all romex wire into a small area (in an awkward position under the cabinet) was quite difficult. If only there was a way to replace tubes with LED “tubes”.These lamps are awesome. The finished look is exactly as before. Yes, there is some rewiring, but my lamps had two nuts that I removed, and the “guts” of the lamp swung down for easy access. Removing three wire nuts, and I could bring the lamp to my desk, and perform the required rewiring easily. I had to make one run out to get more wire (so I could keep with the proper color codes), but each lamp took less than 10 minutes to remove the ballast and rewire it. There was plenty of room for the stiff wires. I also added a label notice next to the bulbs stating “Use 120V LED ‘tube’ only” (don’t want any future owner/repair person to be surprised). The final job was taking the old tubes and ballast to the hazardous waste drop-off, and that project is done.Just a side note – the plastic covering my fixtures had some cracks. Replacements looked difficult to find because of all the variability. I found a company (www.1800ceiling.com) would send a set of “trial” covers for $4 total. One of them fit, and I finished the above job by ordering and replacing the light covers with new plastic. (I have no relationship with this company, just a happy customer).

The light is fine but it's coming directly from a seller. That means that the high shipping cost is not refunded to you if you return it. The shipping cost was twice the price of the light. Otherwise good product.