They do make them, but since they are a bit less common you will probably have to purchase them online.

Have not been able to find any. I just need the fixture. Plug in and 36 inch width. I already have the bulbs. Bought 10 of them not realizing they are not 4ft. So now I have to find the 3ft fixture that they will fit into that is NOT an integrated LED.

Hi Poetie,

I realize it has been 2 years and you may no longer be looking for 3-foot T8 shop lights. This is a link to a source of a 3-foot T8 strip light fixture.

Those are not shop lights, and you would need to attach an electric cord to convert them to something equivalent to a shop light. Here is a similar link. 3-foot strip light

At this moment I don't know of a source for a 3-foot T8 shop light. That doesn't mean there isn't one.

ZM

Hello again, Poetie,

Since you have not responded, I think this is possibly effectively a "dead" message string. One last try. T8 technology is several years obsolete (I still use it, but in 4-foot shoplights that I have continued to use for many years). I don't know of any currently available 3-foot T8 shoplights. You might find some at a yard sale, but that would be a long shot. There are a few 3-foot T8 striplights available, and you could convert them to shoplights by adding extension cords and a couple of hooks to attach light chains. This is another link to 3-foot T8 strip light fixtures.

Since you purchased only 10 of the 3-foot T8 bulbs, you might just consider them a bad investment. But they contain mercury, so it would be illegal to just toss them in the trash. Fluorescent bulbs require disposal at a recycling center. Current lighting technology is all LED-based. I am kind of a dinosaur with my 4-foot T8 fixtures, but they continue to work just fine.

In the absence of a response from you, I think we can consider this to be a dead message string.

ZM (not associated with any product or vendor mentioned or linked)

Thanks so much. I did look at yard sales and thrift stores but no luck. I will keep on looking. I have also a bunch of 4 ft T8. Love them. They give me light and heat. So no complaining.

Hi Poetie,

Well, this message string wasn't dead after all. There are several available sources of 3-foot T8 strip lights, and converting one of them to a shop light would be fairly simple. I guess that depends on whether you would be comfortable working on an electrical fixture. Or you could pay an electrician to do it. I doubt that you are going to find 3-foot T8 shop lights in today's marketplace. But I could be wrong about that.

Years ago I got started working on my T8 shop lights by a participant here named Zink. He told how you could "overdrive" a fluorescent fixture by adding an extra ballast. Not all ballast models were suitable for overdriving. The overdriven fixture was nearly twice as bright. The overdriven bulbs are noticeably warmer, but they seem to survive the extra energy input. Quite a few of my T8 fixtures are now overdriven, and when I have some spare time, I will overdrive some more of them.

ZM