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The key to an aesthetic space lies in how it is lit up. Regardless of how well it has been furnished and maintained, if it does not have adequate lighting that accentuates its best features, its full potential remains untapped. Thoughtful lighting planning takes into account creating a perfectly illuminated interior that highlights the best features of a room and goes perfectly well with the rest of the setting.
When talking about interior and mood lighting, LED strip lights can’t be far behind. They have become a popular choice for adding the right ambience to a space, all the while being highly versatile, affordable, customisable, and above all, energy efficient.
In this guide, we will discuss everything about LED strip lighting installation, their benefits, applications where they can be used, and how they add style and function to any room:
LED (Light Emitting Diode) lights are an energy-efficient lighting solution that is quickly becoming the preferred choice for several residential, commercial, and industrial applications. Compared to traditional halogen, incandescent, and fluorescent lighting, LED lights dissipate significantly less heat and have a much longer lifespan.
An LED strip light is a thin, flexible strip of multiple small LEDs mounted on slim and flat circuit boards. It is generally 0.5 inches wide and up to 16 feet, or more, in length. The length can easily be adjusted by cutting the strip using a pair of scissors along the cutlines, which are located every 1 to 2 inches.
Interior LED strip lights are available in a variety of colours, styles, and brightness levels. The individual colour and brightness of the LEDs determine the overall colour and quality of the LED strip. They are also available in single-colour as well as multi-coloured options.
These strips usually have an adhesive backside, which makes them incredibly easy to install anywhere. Since the circuit board is flexible, it can easily be curved and adjusted to stick to uneven and irregular surfaces.
LED strip lights are both aesthetic and functional and can be used as interior mood lighting in a variety of spaces. Some common applications of interior LED strip lighting include:
If you’re looking to add style and function to your space, LED strip lights are the solution for it! One genius way to elevate your home’s aesthetics from ordinary to striking is by using under-cabinet LED lighting.
Under-cabinet lighting is a great way to add ambience to any room. It adds another layer of aesthetic lighting and works by not only creating visual interest but also adding functionality as task lighting.
For example, adding LED strip lighting under your kitchen and bathroom cabinets provides functional light for cooking and grooming, while adding a touch of elegance and modern sophistication to the space. It enhances the appearance of the rooms and makes the cabinets and drawers more visible and any surfaces under them easier to work on.
Under-cabinet LED strip lighting often eliminates the need to switch on the main lights in the kitchen and bathroom, and when installed on the upper side between the cabinet and counter, they provide great visibility and can serve as energy-efficient task lighting.
LED strip lights are best for shallow recesses such as under cabinets and are easy to install thanks to their peel-and-stick adhesive backing. Their flexibility allows them to fit into tight spots and unusually shaped areas, and their ability to stay cool makes them perfect for kitchen use.
You can either go for a standard white or warm colour, or if you wish to add a pop of colour to your kitchen or bathroom, coloured LED strip lights are a great way to do so. They come in a variety of colours and even in multi-coloured RGB options which can be adjusted to suit your lighting needs and mood.
Other creative places to install LED strip lights for adding style and function to any room include:
LED strip lights offer more than just adding a modern touch to your interiors. They offer several advantages over other lighting options which include:
Energy-Efficiency
LED lights are the most energy-efficient lighting option available in the market. Compared to traditional lights including incandescent, halogen, and fluorescent bulbs, LED lights require much less energy to produce light; 80-90% less energy than incandescent lights and approximately 60% less than fluorescent lights.
Increased energy efficiency directly translates to cost savings. Since LED lights use less energy, it means a lower energy bill and great savings. You can easily replace a 60-watt incandescent bulb with a 10-watt LED bulb to generate the same amount of light without compromising on its brightness and performance.
LED lights dissipate much less heat compared to traditional lighting. This is because, unlike heating a filament to produce light, LEDS turn electromagnetic energy into light, which allows them to operate at a much lower temperature. This makes them much safer to use around appliances, furniture, kids, and pets. The lower heat output also eliminates the risk of fires.
LED strip lights are extremely versatile, making them ideal for a range of applications. Their flexibility allows them to be installed anywhere, whether it’s for general or mood lighting. They come in a variety of colour options and their length can be adjusted by cutting them with a pair of scissors. Some even have an IP rating, making them suitable to use in the washroom or pool area.
LED lights have an exceptionally long lifespan of around 50,000 to 100,000 hours. They last 2 to 3 times longer than fluorescent bulbs and 50 times longer than a standard household incandescent bulb. They are also extremely durable and can withstand temperature fluctuations and shock much better than their counterparts.
LED strip lights some with an adhesive backside that can be easily peeled off and applied directly to a clean, dry surface. The cut markings on the strip make it easier to identify where to make the cut in case you need to adjust its length. The flexibility of the strip is another plus point that allows the LED strip light to be installed virtually anywhere.
Installing LED strip lighting is a simple procedure that doesn’t require any complex tools or technical expertise. It can be a DIY project unless the installation area is difficult to access or there are wiring issues that need to be addressed. Here is a step-by-step guide for a simple mood lighting install:
When selecting the best LED strip lighting for mood lighting installation, you need to factor in a few things to ensure the final lighting look aligns with your vision and adds function to your space.
The first thing you need to do is choose where you want to install the LED lights. This will be the foundation for determining the length, colour, and brightness of the strip lights. Whether it is to be used as under-cabinet lighting or for any other place, the installation location will determine the specifics of the LED strip lights including:
LED strip lights are up to 16 feet, or more, in length. The length can easily be adjusted by cutting the strip using a pair of scissors along the cutlines, which are located every 1 to 2 inches. The final length of the LED strip can be determined by the area it needs to cover. When installing under-cabinet lights, measure the total length of the cabinets and then decide on the length of the LED strip.
LED strip lights come in a variety of colours, and you can choose whichever matches your mood and aesthetic preference. Colour plays a major role in setting the ambience of a space, and coloured strip lights help achieve that with ease. Using RGB LED strip lights allows you to select from up to 16 million hues! If that isn’t enough, you can even change the colour of the lights depending on your mood.
Apart from being able to choose from a myriad of hues and colour options, you can even adjust the brightness level of the lights using the dimming feature. Using this feature, you can adjust the intensity of the lights as per your needs. For example, when you need to use the under-cabinet lighting for carrying out tasks, you can increase the brightness for maximum visibility. At other times, you can dim the lights to create a more comfortable ambience.
LED strip lights are highly versatile and customisable. They can be selected and adjusted according to your needs, whether you’re looking for subtle mood lighting or more expressive decorative effects.
Some additional features make them even more user-friendly and functional such as waterproof LED strip lighting. This is a very useful feature to have, especially for under-cabinet LED strip lighting in the kitchen and bathroom. These places can be wet, moist, and humid, and since all three are enemies of electrical appliances including LED strip lights, choosing waterproof lights is the way to go.
Smart LED strip lights offer advanced features and have added functionality to create an even better and more personalised lighting experience. Also called smart RGB LED strip lights, these lights are installed and work in the same way as traditional LED strip lights. Their standout feature is that they can connect to the internet and be controlled and managed seamlessly via your smartphone.
Smart LED strip lights can display a wide range of colours that can be changed and controlled remotely via a smartphone app. They can be controlled from anywhere, provided you have an active internet connection. From choosing the colours to adjusting the brightness, turning them on/off, scheduling on/off times, and creating lighting scenes, everything can be done with a simple tap on your screen.
These smart lights can also integrate into your existing smart home system for added control and customisation. They can be connected to other smart devices such as cameras, switches, and thermostats to make them a part of the smart ecosystem.
You can use supported voice assistants to change the colours of the light to adjust your mood and turn them on/off as per your need. You can even sync the lights to music for an immersive experience, which is great for parties and get-togethers.
To automate daily lighting routines, you can set on/off times for the lights according to your routine. With geofencing integration, you can set the smart LED strip lights to automatically turn off when you leave and on when you arrive.
If you wish to learn more about LED lights and the best lighting solutions for your property, Calder Electrical Services is here to help! From LED installation to upgrades, repairs, and troubleshooting, we offer a complete package for your homes and businesses – ensuring that everything complies with the latest electrical safety standards and regulations.
We can offer fittings with 3 to 5+ year warranties that will not only reduce energy costs but also make your homes brighter. We can also provide a forecasted energy calculation so you can see what your energy bills and savings will look like.
Our specialists can survey your property and create a lighting design to not only reduce the number of light fittings but also make the area reach a lighting level suitable for use. We can also incorporate motion detectors so that lighting in areas that are low usage is only switched on when someone enters them.
We can give you an energy calculation to show your current lighting costs and the estimated costs by upgrading to LED lighting so that you can see how much you will save, normally aiming for a 40% saving.
Contact us here or call us on 0800 612 3001 to talk to our LED lighting experts for more information on LED strip lighting installation and how to add style and function to any room.
