Cabinets and Lighting - Over Workbench

[Mordi]

I purchased a 96" workbench at Costco that is approx. 24" deep and 37" high. I want to build some cabinets above the bench and install lighting under the cabinets. My original thought was to have (3)x 32" long cabinets, 17" deep and perhaps 16" high, but I open to other possibilities. For the lighting, I was striving for a clean look and rather than a fluorescent fixture that hangs down, I was thinking about under cabinet lights (puck lights with 20w halogen lamps) - perhaps one every 16" - for a total of 6.

1) Would it better to have (4) x 24" long cabinets or (3) x 32" long cabinets or some other size?

2) Will there be enough light on the workbench surface (hardwood top) with the under cabinet lights? Any other possibilities for under cabinet lighting?

3) About how far should the distance be from the under cabinet lighting to the working surface?

Anybody have any suggestions for a cabinet design over a workbench and under cabinet lighting? Pics would really be great

Thanks,
Mordi

 

[Full Size 66]

Measure the distance of your kitchen or bath or other over under arrangements to get a feel for distance. Think about what tasks will be performed on the bench & how much hieght you will need. Then look @ the various fixtures on the market for lighting. I discovered some super clean fixtures for my 1 car ceiling @ the local electrical supply house. I would look other places than the big box stores.

 

[boiler7904]

1. Depends on what you want to store in the cabinets. If buying cabinets, you'll find stock 24" wide cabinets well before 32s because they run in increments of 3". If making custom cabinets yourself, build them to suit the contents. If space permits, make the cabinets taller. 17" deep for wall cabinets is a bit deep. Things will get lost in the back. Standard wall cabinets are usually 12" deep which will help eliminate the potential for knocking your head on them.

2. I'd look at fluorescent strip undercabinet lights. More energy efficient with a more uniform light pattern and less heat. I think Home Depot and Lowe's carry them. If not, a lighting showroom or electrical supply house should be able to find them. They usually come in 1', 2', and 3' sections and can be purchased with cordsets or hardwired to a junction box. If you're building the cabinets, design the front bottom edge of the cabinet carcass to conceal the lights - whatever you decide to go with to help with your clean appearance.

3. Fixture manufacturers usually have mounting guidelines and photometric charts on their website, catalog, or installation instructions. The closer the fixtures are to the work surface, the brighter and more intense the light will be. This means that you will also have the heat generated by the fixtures closer to your head. Another thing to consider is that puck lights generally have a fairly narrow beam. You'll want to play with the spacing to achieve an even pattern.

 

[Torque1st]

I do not like the under cabinet lights except as soft fill lighting. Light should come from over both your shoulders for a workbench. Strong under cabinet lights can cause glare off the surfaces of the bench and what you are working on that will cause poor vision conditions. A valence under the front of the cabinet can hide florescent strip lights there. Lights shining in your face are bad news.

Tip- If you wear glasses make sure they have an anti-reflective coating on both sides of the lenses. The AR coating on the outside is mainly cosmetic but it can improve the amount of light transmitted thru the glasses. The AR coating on the inside is key. It keeps light from reflecting off your face and eyes from reflecting off the inside of your glasses back into your eyes. The difference in performance and vision is like night and day.

 

[marty_p]

Mordi:

You can save some serious $$$ by buying some "under cubicle" 2', 3', & 4' flourescent fixtures from used office supply warehouses/dealers. I got plenty for $8 each w/ the bulbs, stashed away and ready to go (eventually)! The ones I bought are medium gray, but I saw some dark brown ones as well. They're only 1.5" thick and you can mount 'em with 1" L-brackets. You would probably still just want to hide the light frame with a molding or something. They have a plug on the end of a 10' cord, so you can just cable tie the excess as they lead toward switched receptacles or a power strip.

Good Luck!

 

[bomber]

Another consideration wrt under-cabinet lighting it Foreign Object Damage -- I don't know about you, but sometimes things really get get swinging on my bench, and I just KNOW I'd be replacing bulbs, if not entire fixtures, from time to time . . . . .

 

[jmack]

Here's my favorite for under-cabinet lighting: Seagull

I installed these in the kitchen at my last house and always got plenty of compliments. This is so much nicer than the "pucks" and much better light than flourescent. The best part is that they are so slim, you never see them unless you actually get under the cabinet.

System is very simple - measure the total length you want lighted and estimate number of sockets/bulbs. That'll help you size the correct transformer. I chose to mount the lights every 3" which gave a great, even light. Install the track under the cabinets about 1.5-2" back from the front. Then just push the wire into the track and wire to the transformer. Each socket holds 1 10w halogen bulb and the socket simply snaps onto the track and "bites" into the 12v line.

You have to buy these from an electrical or lighting supply store (not available at HD or lowes), but they should have all of it in stock.

It'll be a little more expensive than the options others have suggested, but it will look the best for sure.

 

[sammerdog]

My counter has a southern facing window above it to help during the day with some full spectrum lighting, and then I threw some of the 20w hockey puck lights under the cabinets to help at night. I had a 4' flourescent shop light mounted above, but the thing was useless as **** on a boarhog during the winter. Replaced that with a 75w hanging light.

Here's the swing light I couldn't live without -

http://i384.photobucket.com/albums/oo283/sammerdog556677/GEDC0128.jpg
http://i384.photobucket.com/albums/oo283/sammerdog556677/GEDC0127.jpg
http://i384.photobucket.com/albums/oo283/sammerdog556677/GEDC0124.jpg
http://i384.photobucket.com/albums/oo283/sammerdog556677/GEDC0125.jpg

Found it at an artist supply store - has a built in magnifying glass for detail work, takes a 40w regular bulb, folds up out of the way when not needed. Ran the power cord up through the inside of the cabinet.

 

[JB740i]

I've got 3-4 4' fluorescent lights that Hallmark was going to trash when they redid the aisle in our store (terrible company by the way, you can't imagine all that they misshipped and then just threw in the trash).

I was thinking about putting them Below the workbench I'm building right now to light up the shelves below the bench. I don't think they'll put out enough light to help all that much above it anyway.