This cool white coloured LED T8 tube light has been coated with a foodsafe protective sleeve/coating which is IEC 61549 compliant and can also be used for long life lamps is recognisable by a green band. The sleeve encompasses both the tube and the cap (excluding the pins) making it essential for use in environments, such as food preparation or display areas, where you may be concerned about the possible costly consequences that a broken tube could cause.This 2ft LED T8 tube light bulb from Crompton Lamps replaces the mercury and other hazardous materials found in compact fluorescent tubes with modern LED components, making it a much safer, more reliable and more efficient alternative.The tubes linear circuit board is adorned with a series of SMD LED chips that sit within a protective, cylindrical glass shell. This use of glass - rather than plastic - prevents the tube from bending, warping or discolouring over time.The LED T8 tube itself uses just 9W but delivers the same light output as a 18W compact fluorescent tube, within an optimal 320 beam angle. Despite the much improved performance offered by its LED componentry, it shares the same G5 fitting as the fluorescent tubes its been designed to replace. This makes upgrading incredibly simple and completely removes the need for rewiring of any sort. Simply remove your power hungry 18W fluorescent tube, replace it with this 9W LED equivalent and you can begin to benefit from substantially reduced lighting costs almost immediately.Fitted with a standard sized G13 2-pin (13mm apart) caps to both ends.No warping, no bending. Replaces 18W fluorescent tube but consumes only 9W of power. Supplied in rigid 2mm cardboard tube to minimise risk of transport damage. Not suitable for dimming.* This LED T8 tube includes an LED starter for direct retrofit into existing battens where starters are used, however Crompton Lamps recommends wiring this light bulb directly to the mains to acheive optimum efficiency. For circuits which have an electronic ballast, Crompton Lamps recommends bypassing the ballast and wiring this light bulb directly to the mains for optimum efficiency. We highly recommend that the installation is carried out by a qualified electrician to ensure the best results. For more installation information please see manufacturers website.