Anyone using LED tape lights?

[Lelandwelds]

I helped a friend install 5v colored tape on a tv. The install was easy and the quality was surprisingly good. They make it in 12 volt and white.

Why does everyone talk "fixtures"?

 

[American Locomotive]

Lots of variation in color on white LED tape unless you buy expensive. "12v" or "5v" LED tape wastes power with resistors.

 

[Lelandwelds]

No, these are high CRI without a hint of blue or green. I think all LED circuits have a resistor. Every group of three has its own inverter. The lumen output for the power used was impressive. The adhesive on the back sucked. It would be easy to mount on purlin or a piece of aluminum.

He bought his on Amazon. He went with 5v because he has USB everywhere in his place. It was cheap and came on a little reel.

He was all jazzed about individually addressable LED running off an Arduino. Joked about Disco Garage. I watched some youtube videos. This seems like the way to go.

My searches on this forum are a little wonky.

 

[stm317]

Based on internet anecdotes, long term quality seems like it can be an issue, but the concept is very cool. I'd like to install some along the joists in my crawlspace to make it a nicer place to be. I may also use some to replace the semi-functional undercabinet lighting I currently have.

 

[cybrdyke]

Nothing wrong with LED tape when used as it's intended. It's a common item in the lighting industry and is provided by dozens of manufacturers. It's particularly good at accent lighting (like the OP's TV), soffits, coves, shelves, trophy cases, retail displays and on and on....
What it's not good at is general illumination of spaces. Of course you can do whatever you want, but it would be a poor choice to light up an entire garage.
The Amazon/Ebay products are of the very worst quality, which their price reflects. Their prime use is as a gizmo, or a toy. But they can be fun to play with, like in a disco garage.
Higher quality LED tape can produce some pretty amazing results!
Good luck,
CD

 

[Lelandwelds]

CD, you seem well informed. Where is the good stuff? I thought tape would be as even coverage as you could get from a LED. I have seenit used as a toy but that tv wall was perfectly lit. I dont really know enough about the "lighting industry" to get good search results. I would like some examples of "amazing results".

Don't the jumbo trons use millions of LEDs? I collect flashlights and am familiar with the actual LED.

 

[Platonic Solid]

The “good stuff” isn’t going to be LED tape lights. Good LED array design requires proper heat sinking to keep LEDs cool which improves efficiency and reduces lumen depreciation.

 

[cybrdyke]

Leland,
Google "architectural led tape" and click on "images". You'll get to see some great pictures. You'll also see some projects that look like ****. There's a big difference between good LED tape and crappy LED tape.
Professional LED tapes emit about 140 lumens per foot, compared to around 500 lumens per foot for a standard LED tube. Tape efficiency is good, normally around 105 LPW, but other LED sources can easily reach 130, 140, 150 LPW or more.
The diodes on LED tape are bare, so mounted on a ceiling in plain view, will be very harsh. There is no secondary optic on LED tape to send the light in any desired direction.
In general, the amount of tape and drivers that you would need to light up a large space would be considerable.
There is a member on this forum who went forward with his plan to use tape to light up his garage. I think he finally succeeded in getting everything wired up, but it was pretty complicated. No offense to that member, but....just because you CAN doesn't mean you SHOULD. Just my opinion.
Good luck,
CD

 

[Falcon67]

I have a 24' roll of white. Bought for a trailer install that never happened. I'm sure some day I figure out a use for it. But not general lighting.

 

[blacksporty]

I used 2 40' rolls to light up a 20' enclosed trailer, I run them straight 12v off a battery, been 3 years but very limited use, so far, so good.

 

[MrSurly]

I used a reel of Led tape that was sourced from EBay to light up a gun safe. The stuff was perfect for this application, in my view. The tape I used was white LEDs fixed-color (three-wire) and they are designed for 12vdc. They are constructed such that three LEDs are in series for 12v power and then these 3-pot groups are paralleled on the tape. There are tapes that are fixed color, available in red green yellow blue; and others that are switchable color tapes. These are four-wire tapes, be sure to use the correct connectors. Also, the switchable-color tapes require a little controller box. I used an old 12v laptop brick and a door switch (that was already in the safe).
In order to make the light "less direct" I used plastic J-channel (made for drywall) which let me 'hide' the LEDs and direct the light so they you aren't looking right at them. They are fantastic for this task. I have thought many times about applying them in the shop. Along the bottom of each truss is very likely something I WILL do, if only for curiosity's sake. I don't think I would try sticking them directly to the truss wood but will need to come up with a cheap easy metal strip in order to not create a fire hazard. Of course, this drives the cost way up.
I will do it at least in a limited way just to compare.
BTW these tapes are also available in waterproof versions.


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[Wirepuller]

I've used it a bunch. Great for accenting architecture features.


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[Platonic Solid]

Beautiful work Wirepuller! And appropriate application as "accent lighting".

 

[Lelandwelds]

Wirepuller, is that barrel vault lit with tape ? I've seen lots of photos like that. Never realized I was looking at LED tape.

CD, "architectural " made the difference.

I intended the C purlin to be the heat sink. Some of those wider tapes are pretty bright. The plastic J channel idea is borderline genius. I didnt like the reflections for task lighting.

The LED tape is so cool it needed to be used. Not the first of my great ideas that turned out not so.

Google found some edge lit routed Plexiglas signs and some task lighting that was beatiful.

 

[couch67]

in 2011 I renovated my kitchen, it was a complete DIY (including building the cabinets and concrete countertops). Part of the renovation was undercab lighting, which was accomplished with an LED lighting strip that was simply adhered to the inside of a 1/2" polished aluminum channel under the cabinet.

The lighting strip I used was from Lee Valley Tool, with a density of 120 LEDs/metre. I had initially bought some cheaper stuff on ebay a few years prior for an undermount in the shop, and had a number of leds burn out or brown out after only a year of light use. A friend told me to try the Lee Valley LEDs as they have worked well for him, so why not.

These pics were just taken. In a run of about 12' or 4 metres, not one led has dimmed or burned in almost 6 years of use.

View media item 74462

View media item 74463

couch

 

[Lelandwelds]

Nice countertop. Did you grind down to expose aggregate? I hate pouring slabs but my outdoor kitchen was fun. I didnt like resealing so much.

I didnt know Lee Valley sold LED. I've seen the low angle planes but their site has really expanded.

 

[Platonic Solid]

couch67 - Looks good, but the recessed "U" channel heat sink is causing a shadow on the backsplash. Either a lower profile "U" channel or rounded diffuser (or both) would soften that shadow line. This is an aesthetic comment as you don't "need" light on the backsplash.

Though more light bouncing of that white backsplash would help to decrease shadows on the work surface.

 

[Lelandwelds]

I think Couch must be taller than we are.

 

[ishiboo]

The “good stuff” isn’t going to be LED tape lights. Good LED array design requires proper heat sinking to keep LEDs cool which improves efficiency and reduces lumen depreciation.

Not really an issue. The tape lights distribute a little light over a large area, so there isn't a highly condensed amount of heat to dissipate. I have LED strips above my cabinets for the last 5 years and will soon replace my under cabinet lighting with them, had them in my boat for years, have a strip above my bed the last 3 years, etc... they all stay cool and I haven't had any issues.

 

[ishiboo]

Wirepuller, is that barrel vault lit with tape ? I've seen lots of photos like that. Never realized I was looking at LED tape.

CD, "architectural " made the difference.

I intended the C purlin to be the heat sink. Some of those wider tapes are pretty bright. The plastic J channel idea is borderline genius. I didnt like the reflections for task lighting.

The LED tape is so cool it needed to be used. Not the first of my great ideas that turned out not so.

Google found some edge lit routed Plexiglas signs and some task lighting that was beatiful.

The good tape light has more diodes and distributes the light better, but many older installations are using regular rope light.

 

[pedrodagr8]

I picked up some budget tape lights off GearBest (I think) for under cabinet lightning. These had a high LED count but ran them at a lower current to keep the die temps lower. They have been working extremely well in my apartment for task lightning and at night as a low brightness nightlight (they are on motion detectors).

 

[Platonic Solid]

Not really an issue. The tape lights distribute a little light over a large area, so there isn't a highly condensed amount of heat to dissipate. I have LED strips above my cabinets for the last 5 years and will soon replace my under cabinet lighting with them, had them in my boat for years, have a strip above my bed the last 3 years, etc... they all stay cool and I haven't had any issues.

The OP's original question is: "Why does everyone talk "fixtures"?"

Since this is a garage forum, not a mood lighting and kitchen forum, I assume he is suggesting the use higher lumen output tape lights for general illumination in a typical garage instead of using fixtures.

To answer the original question directly: Current technology quality tape lighting will have a higher purchase cost (lumens/$) and lower efficiency (lm/W) than bulbs and fixtures.

It's fine for under cabinet task lighting, but keep in mind that in a typical dirty garage environment you would want strips that can tolerate being cleaned with a wet rag.

 

[Lelandwelds]

ISHIBOO
Google has found me some shops lit with the stuff. No shadows but the hundreds of points of light in paint jobs is a little annoying. If you have gotten five useful years of no drama use, I will need to make it part of the mix.

I don't see the wiring difficulty. I am thinking parallel strings with soldered connections.

PLATONIC
Fixtures must be better than they used to be. I thought the tape was darned efficient. Fixtures seem on their way to buggy whip status.

I dust my ceilings with a leaf blower.

 

[Lelandwelds]

I picked up some budget tape lights off GearBest (I think) for under cabinet lightning. These had a high LED count but ran them at a lower current to keep the die temps lower. They have been working extremely well in my apartment for task lightning and at night as a low brightness nightlight (they are on motion detectors).

Are you saying the PIR toggles from night light to full bright and times out back to nightlight? How did you manage that?

 

[Platonic Solid]

Lelandwelds - LED tape light has essentially no heat sink. If you spend real money on high quality LED tape lights, at best you'll reach an efficacy 100-120 lm/W and at that cost you could buy high end fixtures. Low cost LED bypass bulbs and high bay LED fixtures can easily be found with an efficacy of 130+ lm/W. Higher quality fixtures can be found all the way up to 190 lm/W.

IMO exposed strip lights would look like dung used as general area lighting. There's no good reason to do this other than you want to play and have too much cash on hand.

 

[couch67]

Lelandwelds, yes the counters were ground to expose aggregate. I used the Cheng method of making molds in the garage from templates, and doing all of the dirty work out there. The downside is you have to move them from garage to kitchen.

Platonic, good observation on the shadowing. my original intent for the channel was to eliminate direct glare from the LEDs when sitting at the dining table that is close by.

This was a bit off topic, but wanted to share that I've had good success using strip LEDs as task lighting. Based on previous experimenting I would not recommend strips for general lighting, at least the 60 or 120 LED per meter stuff I've used.

couch

 

[Lelandwelds]

I am glad I googled Cheng method. My outdoor BBQ counter was not as refined. I cast in place and ground through some SS screws.

Task lighting only it shall be. I think I'll start a "PVC for compressor airline" thread.

Still seems dumb to have 4 ft fixtures, recessed cans, 500 watt halogen styling, and fixtures that look like they are waiting for two PAR38 to screw in. I think some one should offer a better idea but I havent seen it yet. I thought purlin and steel trusses would make an effective heat sink.

Its a lot cheaper to ask about potential use of something than have it bomb.

 

[homebuilt burner]

I thought there was someone on here that routered a keyhole slot into the bottom of the trusses and pulled tape led's into them for garage lighting.

 

[swharris]

be sure to use the correct connectors.

I would add "for the size of the wire" to that. We have had issues with suppliers saying a connector would work with wires sizes from 18ga - 22ga. when it most certainly did not! While the smaller wire would lay in the connector(22ga 5 wire flat), when snapped down there was not enough engagement to force the wires down into the terminals. Very frustrating. Had to send them all back.

 

[PCMusicGuy]

I've used some that I bought off of Amazon. The light quality is quite good at $12 for 16 ft of light. I can appreciate the high end quality items, even if everything is made overseas, but for the average DIY user there is no way I could imagine that the architectural style strips that go for $250 for 16 ft would provide 20 times better light output or quality or longevity.

 

[cybrdyke]

$250? Someone is making a ton of money at that price point.
We use top quality tape and it's about 1/3 of that.
CD

 

[PCMusicGuy]

$250? Someone is making a ton of money at that price point.
We use top quality tape and it's about 1/3 of that.
CD

So, about 6 times the price of the cheap stuff. Still expensive for some DIYers but you've got me curious about what you use. Would you be willing to share the manufacturer? I want to lookup if they have CRI 93 or higher strips available.

 

[Wirepuller]

Wirepuller, is that barrel vault lit with tape ? I've seen lots of photos like that. Never realized I was looking at LED tape.



CD, "architectural " made the difference.



I intended the C purlin to be the heat sink. Some of those wider tapes are pretty bright. The plastic J channel idea is borderline genius. I didnt like the reflections for task lighting.



The LED tape is so cool it needed to be used. Not the first of my great ideas that turned out not so.



Google found some edge lit routed Plexiglas signs and some task lighting that was beatiful.

Yes. Everything except the obvious fixtures was lit using the same tape light.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Wirepuller]

in 2011 I renovated my kitchen, it was a complete DIY (including building the cabinets and concrete countertops). Part of the renovation was undercab lighting, which was accomplished with an LED lighting strip that was simply adhered to the inside of a 1/2" polished aluminum channel under the cabinet.



The lighting strip I used was from Lee Valley Tool, with a density of 120 LEDs/metre. I had initially bought some cheaper stuff on ebay a few years prior for an undermount in the shop, and had a number of leds burn out or brown out after only a year of light use. A friend told me to try the Lee Valley LEDs as they have worked well for him, so why not.



These pics were just taken. In a run of about 12' or 4 metres, not one led has dimmed or burned in almost 6 years of use.



[GALLERY=media, 74462][/GALLERY]



View media item 74463



couch

Ditch the channel. The sharp light cutoff looks horrible.


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[Gotcha640]

I put some around my bed frame, run off a brick with a dimmer, so my wife quit crashing in to the bed in the dark. I keep them at 10% and it's dark enough to sleep.

My neighbor has it in his box truck he uses for remodeling jobs, and in his pickup bed. Both were amazon kits, under $40, but make the difference in the dark.

 

[Lelandwelds]

Could some of the naysayers be forgetting this tapes current draw is for 5v or 12 v not 120volt? When I look at tape I still see an efficient high quality light source. Or am I just wrong?

My garage will not be a color coordinated sheetrocked interior decorated show place. It won't be a "heritage barn". It will be the kind of place where you wont cry over spilled beer or a busted hydraulic hose.

I have spent a lot of free time looking at lighting displays. Quality has improved in the last two years. Or at least filtered down to where I shop.

I will probably use bar joists for a shed roof at less than a 3/12 pitch like a commercial metal roof. I can run tape light on top of the angle that ties across the bottom of the joists. The power use and cost of this is so low I can leave it on 24/7. I know some of wirepullers barrel vault is lit by that big beautiful half round window. I still like it alot.

I would love to never walk into a dark shop ever again. I could say goodbye to leaky damn skylights.

 

[cybrdyke]

Could some of the naysayers be forgetting this tapes current draw is for 5v or 12 v not 120volt? When I look at tape I still see an efficient high quality light source. Or am I just wrong?

120v tape is even less efficient, sometimes around 55 lumens per watt...terrible.
I'll say it again, 24v tape is only around 140 lumens per foot. An LED tube is 4 times as bright. LED tape is around 105 lumens per watt. LED fixtures are easily around 150.
It's no contest. LED tape is not a great choice for general illumination.

Would you be willing to share the manufacturer? I want to lookup if they have CRI 93 or higher strips available.

Normally Liteline, but also WAC. Both professional grade. Definitely not 90 CRI as accent lighting doesn't require it.

 

[jthomas944]

LED light strip

 

[couch67]

Ditch the channel. The sharp light cutoff looks horrible.

Dangit WirePuller and Platonic ! Never even noticed the shadow on the backsplash, but there it is, every time I look at it now.

I suppose replacing the channel with a similarly sized angle, to shield the glare while sitting lower than the lights, but would wash the backsplash more evenly... on the list - thanks for the observation.

couch

 

[Platonic Solid]

Or you could replace the lower tiles right at the shadow line with a grey tint that matches the shadowed tiles