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| In the fall of 2006 I built this solid oak desk and hutch for my wife. Using high end LED undercabinet lighting is a great way to finish off this project. Since LED under cabinet lighting is fairly new it's a great time to see just how well they work. These same under cabinet lighting fixtures can be used in kitchen, bar and other under cabinet applications. |
This lighting comparsion is between LED and Xenon light sources. We'll get out the light meter and do some real life comparisons.
It's taken a while but white LED lamps are becoming more and more useable for general task and under cabinet lighting.
There are high end and low end LED fixtures, some poorly designed and others that show engenering was not an after thought.
This LED under cabinet light is rated at 8 watts and is 11 5/8" long. We will compare 2 of these fixtures to 1 - 4 lamp xenon fixture. (20 watts per lamp)
11 5/8" L x 1 3/4" W x 1" H
Uses 5 LEDs - 8 watts
(Image A)
32"L x 4 1/2"W x 1 1/4"H
Uses 4 - 20 watt Xenon bulbs
(Image C)
So 16 watts vs. 60 watts, and 60,000 hour LED lamps vs. 8,000 hour xenon lamps.
Either of these two fixtures will do a good job in lighting your under cabinet application. It just depends on the look and style you are trying to achieve.
These two fixtures were chosen because of the simular light output. The LED fixture comsumes 8 watts and the light meter read 46.9 ft candles. The Xenon fixture consumes 60 watts and the light meter read 54.9 ft candles. So the two light levels are very close.
When you consider the energy savings of 52 watts per fixture and the 60,000 hour life, the actual cost of this LED fixture becomes less of a factor. If this LED fixture was used 3-4 hours a day it would last 41 years. That's 41 years of never having to buy a replacement bulb. (Now I Like That) The energy savings over that 41 years at 7 cents per kw is a little over $200.00
However, all of these benifits do not come cheap. The LED fixture is expensive, more than double the cost of the Xenon fixture.
For this project I spaced the LED fixtures apart (Image A) because there is a 19" LCD monitor that goes in the middle of the desk hutch. If you want a more even look (Image C) you can run the fixtures end to end. The 8 watt fixture is 11 5/8" long and the 15 watt fixture is 22 5/8" long. All fixtures are UL anc CUL listed.
This is a distinctive and efficient LED fixture and is built to give you years of trouble free service.
Next I installed a wireless remote control switch to control the under cabinet lighting. (Image D) The wireless switch can be mounted anywhere, I used velcro pads and mounted the thin profile switch just inside and to the left of the chair opening. The wireless remote control switch works well for under cabinet lighting applications especially when you do not want to cut into your work.
Clean Mounting Close Up
| If you already know what you need:
LED Under Cabinet Fixtures Application
LED Under Cabinet Lighting
Spaced Apart
Image A
Xenon Under Cabinet Lightng
Image B
LED Under Cabinet Lighting
End to End
Image C
Wireless Remote Switch
Image D |
By using LED or Xenon under cabinet lighting you will bring style and function to your under cabinet application.
Steven Border is Director of Web Development for Budget Lighting, Inc. BLI Lighting Specialists owns the business product and information site BudgetLighting.com http://www.budgetlighting.com
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