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Under Cabinet Lighting....?

Gerard

"You have to"
Site Supporter
Looking to purchase but don't know what the difference is between Xenon and L.E.D. i.e., advantages/disadvantages. Chime in with your opinion if you have either one. Thanks in advance.

P.S. Granite counter tops were installed today if that helps.
 

jpr62902

Jeanclaude Spam Banhammer
SUPER Site Supporter
Xenon is just another form of Halogen. The xenon puck lights get a little warm, but nothing to be concerned about. The bulbs will last a little over a year with every day use.

Dunno much about LED's, other than they last a lot longer.
 

JEV

Mr. Congeniality
GOLD Site Supporter
Xenon is just another form of Halogen. The xenon puck lights get a little warm, but nothing to be concerned about. The bulbs will last a little over a year with every day use.

Dunno much about LED's, other than they last a lot longer.
With all due respect, the puck lights get more than a little warm, and it is reason to be concerned. I have seen the wood on kitchen cabinets burned when these lights have been removed, and that is a potential fire hazard. LED's are cool burning and long life, and are the way to go today. Properly installed, they are also less expensive than puck lights.
 

jpr62902

Jeanclaude Spam Banhammer
SUPER Site Supporter
With all due respect, the puck lights get more than a little warm, and it is reason to be concerned. I have seen the wood on kitchen cabinets burned when these lights have been removed, and that is a potential fire hazard. LED's are cool burning and long life, and are the way to go today. Properly installed, they are also less expensive than puck lights.

JEV, I'll always defer to your expertise, here. The ones I've had for over 3 years are only warm to the touch. Perhaps the heat problems are brand specific?
 

JEV

Mr. Congeniality
GOLD Site Supporter
JEV, I'll always defer to your expertise, here. The ones I've had for over 3 years are only warm to the touch. Perhaps the heat problems are brand specific?
That could very well be the case, but I have also found one instance where someone replaced the halogen lamps with ones of a higher wattage. They actually smelled a burning odor and called me instead of the fire department...this was their second error of the day, duh! More wattage=more heat, and the higher heat exceeds the insulation rating of the device and sometimes its internal wire insulation, potentially causing a fire. The same is true of lighting fixtures attached to ceilings and walls. Each has a maximum wattage clearly labeled on the device, but users can increase the wattage with a different lamp, as the screw-in lamp base can be the same size from 15w to 150w. LED's, on the other hand, emit very minimal heat, and since they are part of a printed circuit, there are no user changeable parts. LED's also use much less power, thus having a shorter payback period (ROI). IF someone is determined to use halogen puck-style lighting, I hope they at least buy ONLY fixtures with the UL label, and not increase the wattage of the lamp in the fixture.
 

muleman

Gone But Not Forgotten
GOLD Site Supporter
Got to agree with JEV on this. I have seen folks put higher wattage bulbs in can lights in the ceiling and scorch the paper on insulation in the attic. A fixture is rated for a max bulb wattage for a reason. They have increased the standoff distance on a lot of the new ceiling fixtures for this reason. Under cabinet I had fluorescent tubes in the old kitchen. Here we have plenty of can lights so they are not really needed.
 

jpr62902

Jeanclaude Spam Banhammer
SUPER Site Supporter
Sounds more like operator error. Mine are rated for 20 watt G8 bulbs and that's exactly what they get.

If I could do it all over again, I would go with LED's though.
 

waybomb

Well-known member
GOLD Site Supporter
LEDs. You can now buy dimmable LED's. I bought mine from an online place. The strips is just that - a paper-thin strip with LEDs built in. No fixture to speak of. Comes with a control and you can make them bright for work, or dim for effect.
 

Gerard

"You have to"
Site Supporter
LEDs. You can now buy dimmable LED's. I bought mine from an online place. The strips is just that - a paper-thin strip with LEDs built in. No fixture to speak of. Comes with a control and you can make them bright for work, or dim for effect.

Can you tell me where you bought them online? They sound like something I'd be interested in. As for the other replies, there is some good info given.
 

JEV

Mr. Congeniality
GOLD Site Supporter
I researched this lighting for a customer to install this as toe-kick lighting, and the best price we found was here: http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.39241

Read the pros & cons on this page for appropriate components. I installed this strip lighting under the vanity toe kick, and it makes really good night lighting when entering the room during the night when you don't want to use full room lighting. I renovated the entire bathroom, and installed a switched outlet inside the vanity to control the lighting. I'm ordering this strip to install under my kitchen cabinets, and it's the absolute best price I've found online. Like all trendy items, the prices are all over the board, and there is a lot of price gouging, IMO. Caveat emptor.
 
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