I've been sitting on the sidelines waiting for building materials to come down to earth but copper is still so high I'm wondering if low voltage lighting is catching on or is it all just cost realitive to getting what you pay for performance wise?
How prevalent is Indoor low voltage Lighting these days?
- Thread starter i4ni
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dcg9381
Well-known member
I use it frequently as "accent" lighting and you can do some pretty cool thinks with it. Over/Under cabinet lights. I also light under the stair hand rails. Cost savings? That I'm not so sure on.. Cost of high quality voltage regulators, in-wall rated copper, etc... It's probably cheaper to do the LED cans in series.
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justsam
Well-known member
I would not expect a cost saving via use of low voltage lighting. Certainly with LED the entire house can be LED low voltage wiring but it is not the 600 Volt wire rating that is costly, it is the copper itself. There is a 2023 NEC proposal for 10 Amp branch circuits using 16 ga. Might save a few bucks there, but this is still not "low voltage lighting" but 120VAC so LED voltage level conversion must be done in the bulb or fixture.
https://forums.mikeholt.com/threads/10-amp-branch-circuits-would-you-use-them.2560894/
https://forums.mikeholt.com/threads/10-amp-branch-circuits-would-you-use-them.2560894/
Paul_The_Builder
Well-known member
Not common. Just not worth it when LED drivers are inexpensive.
Even PoE lighting which might become more popular would be 60V or more.
Most higher end commercial lighting I see on job sites are 120v/277v with 0-10v dimmers. All the fanciness comes from the dimmers (scene controls, etc). The lights themselves are pretty straightforward.
Even PoE lighting which might become more popular would be 60V or more.
Most higher end commercial lighting I see on job sites are 120v/277v with 0-10v dimmers. All the fanciness comes from the dimmers (scene controls, etc). The lights themselves are pretty straightforward.
HoosierBuddy
Well-known member
That's exactly what we did in our offices. Replaced the 70's era buzzy fluorescent 2 X 4 troffers with 2' X 4' LED panels with the 0-10V dimmer control. You talk about an upgrade? No more buzz. No more flicker. No more headaches from working under buzzing, flickering lighting for hours on end. Probably the best bang-for-the-buck upgrade I've ever seen.