Need to change a fluorescent bulb in a church. The fixture is 40 feet up. The area below the fixture with not support a scissors lift. Is there a one man bucket lift that can go that high.

Wow! What a problem. I was looking here and they have lifts that go high enough with extensins.

JLG Model: 41AM (http://www.jlg.com/en-US/Model.html?BaseProductLineNodeId=c662180a-b3fa-45f8-b066-07980981e2ba&ProductLineNodeId=c3b7a8e2-ca94-430c-9851-85a2c822d285&GroupProductLineNodeId=4bb785b0-9413-4d15-b4e6-373bf972ecdf&ModelId=87044dcd-c5d0-4a80-b296-34fbe6f495a7&ProductRootMenuId=d39badf6-70c2-4fa3-a03c-268cb1f085d7)

Say it weighed 1500 lbs and has 4 feet. That means 1500/4 lbs have to support each leg. That's like 400 lbs per foot.

If you could even spread that out with a steel plate, you'd have less to worry about. Maybe even an I-beam and a steel plate.

What I'd really reccomed doing is having a structural engineer give you an idea of what can be supported. Point wise and over a large area. Then talk to some lift manufactures with a few photos.

In the long run, you need to figure out a better solution. Wheher change the lighting to something like LED. I think there are some LED florescents that would need little replacement.

They had to get the lights up there somehow.

This is what you were looking for:
Genie Articulating Z Booms (http://www.genieindustries.com/zb-series/index.asp)

I used search terms such as "lifts" and "boom lifts"

See page 2 (59) of the following :

http://www.genieindustries.com/Brochures/AWP/AWPS.pdf

Look for the Model # AWP-36S, 42 Ft 4 In working height, 350 pounds.

Unit goes straight up with one man.

The unit works well, and is very safe. Using a plate can help with stablity on weak floors, but I am sure your floor can handle this unit. If not, you have other problems.

Done, or supervised I should say, ( I always hated heights, got reinforced after I fell 26 feet) several church and other high ceiling jobs, up to 60 foot.

In the old days, before OSHA, we would building a tower of staging (scaffolding) with a large base of up to 6 sections square, and gradually get smaller to a peak of one or two, depending on the overall height, to reach high lighting fixtures. We would design the tower to roll and fit the supporting legs so they would fit between the pews.

It is a good time to consider using longer lasting lighting. LED is now in the infant stage with 4 foot replacement lamps, but changing everyday, Definitely something to look at.

Fluorescent 40 foot high? VHO Lamps?

Ceramic Metal halide is something to consider for lamp life, and lumen output.