Proper lighting is one of the components of the effective design of any room. It is especially important in the kitchen, where the correct distribution of light flux turns cooking into a pleasant and comfortable process. All you need for this is a lighting design and calculation. One of the most interesting options in modern interiors, which you can implement with your own hands, is LED strip lighting.
LEDs are special semiconductors that emit light when electrical energy passes through them. LEDs can have different chemical compositions, which causes the brightness of the light they generate to differ. There is one more nuance - the installation of LED backlighting is never carried out directly, since this way the tape can overheat and break. A prerequisite for connecting LEDs is the presence of a stabilizer.
Advantages of LED lighting
LED lighting has a number of obvious advantages:
- Resistance to mechanical external damage;
- Durability – kitchen lighting strip can last 14 years or more even when working more than 15 hours a day;
- A variety of colors - kitchen lighting under cabinets can be made in white, red and orange, green and blue, purple and yellow. You can also choose LEDs that operate in the infrared and ultraviolet spectrum;
- Excellent lighting brightness, and the device does not require time to warm up;
- Affordability (due to distribution and popularization);
- Possibility to use tape with different radiation angles;
- Safety;
- Environmental friendliness;
- Undemanding to room temperature.
Methods and places for interior lighting in the kitchen
The number of crystals directly affects the number of colors in the ribbon. In general, LED strips can provide 15,000,000 shades - if they combine crystals of different brightness.
You can make LED lighting for the following purposes:
- Combined lighting for zoning, highlighting cabinets, niches;
- Illumination of paintings or other decorative elements of the interior;
- Illumination of the kitchen apron; lighting looks especially impressive if the apron is made of glass;
- Lighting inside drawers and cabinets;
- Highlighting stained glass or clear glass shelves;
- By installing lighting at the bottom of the bedside tables, that is, under the cabinets, you can create the effect of “floating furniture”;
- Lighting of several ceiling levels;
- Lighting the bar counter with LED lighting creates the atmosphere and style of a real bar.
Warm spectrum LEDs are installed for classic interiors, while in a high-tech style, cold light will be more appropriate.
Choosing a suitable LED strip - classification and comparison
Most often, LED backlight installation is made from SMD LEDs. They are classified according to a number of characteristics:
- Number of crystals – from 1 to 4;
- Glow type – full color or monochrome;
- Dimensions - in the range of 1.06x0.8 to 5.0x5.0 mm.
Before you buy an LED strip, you need to decide what type of lighting you want to make. Here are the following recommendations:
- SMD 50x50 strip with three-crystal LEDs is perfect for lighting the work and dining areas and can provide uniform bright light.
- For decorative lighting, a single-chip SMD 35x28 tape is suitable.
LED strip (LED) consists of several small LEDs located within the same plane. It can also have several varieties depending on the density of the LEDs:
- 30 pcs/meter;
- 60 pcs/meter;
- 120 pcs/meter;
- 240 pcs/meter
The power consumption and the brightness level of the generated lighting depend on the number of LEDs.
Tapes are divided into groups according to the degree of moisture protection:
- IP20 – not suitable for the kitchen because it cannot withstand high humidity;
- IP65 – average level of moisture protection, can be used in the kitchen;
- IP68 – complete moisture resistance – even a swimming pool can be illuminated with this tape.
How to choose a power supply
Power supplies come in different capacities, and therefore sizes. We need to determine the optimal option so that the power of the transformer is sufficient with a reserve, but at the same time so that it is not too large.
We multiply 12 W by 5 m (the length of the tape), for a total of 60 W. But since we need a reserve, we also take into account the coefficient equal to 1.25 - it turns out 1.25 × 60 = 75, therefore, we need to buy a 75 W transformer.
How to illuminate a tabletop or dining area with LEDs
For the work area, a device with an average degree of moisture protection is suitable - it has a special protective layer that protects against vapors and contamination, water and other liquids. This means that if wet cleaning is necessary, you can wipe down the cabinets along with the lamps.
Installing the tape to the table involves attaching a special aluminum profile. It is necessary to hide the wires and make the lighting aesthetically pleasing. You can also make lighting from self-adhesive tapes. By the way, by installing additional devices you can create a backlight that will change brightness and/or color.
Advice! A warm white LED strip color is optimal for a desktop, as it will not change the natural colors of the food.
Additional lighting can be made from LED strips in the work area. Designs with high moisture protection are also needed here. The tapes here are installed with double-sided tape. You can use several ribbons to create an expressive decorative effect.
What do we need for installation?
Self-installation of LED backlighting will require the use of the following tools and components:
- The actual kit: tape reel (12W), electrical cable with a cross section of 0.74 mm square;
- Transformer - 12W power supply and dimmer with remote control (if available);
- Solder with rosin;
- Soldering iron;
- Scissors;
- Double sided tape;
- Insulating tape (or heat shrink tube with a heat gun);
- PVC corner and or aluminum profile for LED mounting – if necessary;
- Drill - if necessary;
- Electrical installation brackets - if necessary.
We carry out installation
So, all the tools and materials are ready, you can start installing the LED backlight yourself.
Installation is carried out in the following sequence:
- The tape on a reel is most often 5 m long. Most likely, you need less, so cut off the excess. The required length is measured with a tape measure and cut in a strictly defined place, after which the outer contacts must be carefully exposed from the silicone coating by about 1.5 cm.
- Solder 2 cables to the contacts (preferably) or connect them using connectors (not recommended).
- Then insulation is performed (with tape or tube). To insulate the wires with heat shrink tubing, you need to cut a small piece 2 cm long, place it in the place where the wires are soldered and secure it with a hair dryer. What to choose - tape or tube - is up to you, but it is better to use a tube, as it is more reliable and looks better.
- Tape is attached to the corner or profile from the outside, and tape is attached to the opposite part after removing the protective film.
- A transformer must be mounted near the backlight. This place needs to be thought out in advance. The cleaned wires of the cut tape are soldered to it on the low voltage side. A plug with an electrical cable is attached to the opposite side. The LED strip is attached to a previously cleaned and degreased surface.
Advice! To glue the tape evenly, it is better not to press it immediately, but first just carefully glue the entire tape, and then trim it if necessary.
- The wires are connected in a parallel circuit and lead to the installation location of the power supply.
- Be sure to install a plastic box for wires, where the wire is secured with electrical installation brackets.
New times - new rules of energy saving. The advent of LEDs was a real revolution in the field of lighting. Thanks to this fashionable approach, designers were able to bring their fantasies and the most incredible solutions to life. Today, the use of LED lighting is very widespread, from industry to home decoration with a garden. Unlike the standard one, it has a number of advantages.
Advantages of LED lighting
The main advantage is the long service life. LED technology does not use mercury. Such devices can be safely disposed of with household waste and without fear of poisoning the atmosphere. Compared to their fluorescent counterparts, LEDs do not have piston flicker. LED lighting is favorable for human vision.
Installation
When connecting the strips, you can use the services of specialists, but installing LED lighting yourself is not so difficult. Initially, you need to calculate the length of the section on which the tapes will be placed. Skeins of 5 meters are available for sale, and if the required length is longer, then calculate the required size in multiples of 5 meters. There are output wires on both sides of the tape, which allows you to later connect the segments to each other using regular soldering.
The prepared device must be freed from the protective layer and glued to the surface using double-sided tape, if it is not present on the tape as standard. After the installation work, all that remains is to connect everything to the power supply. If you install LED lighting at home with your own hands from one power supply, then each of the 5 meters of strip must be powered in parallel. With this connection, large current losses can be avoided, which, in turn, will affect the brightness at the beginning and end of the device.
When installing it yourself, you need to foresee in advance whether a dimmer will be used. For multi-color ribbons, an RGB controller is used. Using it, you can change the brightness of colored diodes, as well as ensure good operation of several devices. The controller design uses two terminals. The first is used to connect to the power supply, and the second is responsible for connecting the common wire to the strip channel.
Indoor use
Knowing how to make LED lighting for an apartment with your own hands, you can perfectly zone the space. Basically, such lighting is used along the contour of the room, due to which it is divided into different zones. For this purpose, a television stand, a kitchen wall, a stereo system and a podium are most often used. One of the most favorite techniques of designers is LED ceiling lighting. With its help, multi-level transitions of plasterboard and tension structures will look much more beautiful and voluminous.
Do-it-yourself LED spot lighting is installed directly on a suspended or plasterboard ceiling and replaces the main light. To create coziness and comfort, it is used on loggias, balconies and stairs.
Ceiling lighting
This is a very interesting solution. In order for everything to look beautiful, you need to follow certain fastening rules so that in the end you get uniform and pleasant lighting. Initially, you need to install the power frame. All joints and the base are primed and puttied, and then a corrugated cable is installed, which serves to store wires. Before final processing, tape is placed in the cornices. The place where the strip needs to be fixed is first cleaned and degreased. The tape, as a rule, includes adhesive tape, with which it is attached to the cornice. Power supplies must be placed in places with good fastening.
If subceiling lighting is used, you can use another method of placing the tape - installation behind the baseboard. The room will also be illuminated using reflected light.
Those who use tape in suspended ceilings need to know that it is attached 20 mm from the covering.
For aquarium
The use of LED lamps has a significant advantage. Their installation does not require a lot of time and effort; their sockets are suitable for almost all types of bases. Such lamps can be used in a damp room, as well as in water, if they have appropriate protection. There is no chance of a short circuit - the tapes are fireproof, so they are perfect for water containers.
Connecting LED aquarium lighting with your own hands is quite simple. To do this, you will need the most ordinary tapes, which must be filled with plastic. They need to be installed in the lid of the water tank. The resulting joint with the cord must be filled. This procedure is performed so that water does not get on the cord from the power supply. Due to the fact that the tapes are very plastic, you can make your own LED lighting for an aquarium as original as possible. It is better not to experiment with light bulbs of different colors, as this may deteriorate the health of the fish. LED power should not exceed 1 watt.
How many lamps will it take to make it yourself? For a tank with a volume of 200 liters, you will need a strip on which there will be 30 light bulbs, each with a power of 0.3 watts. Such lighting has a very beneficial effect not only on the coloring, but also on the health of the inhabitants of the aquarium. In addition, this light has a good effect on plants. In order to achieve maximum lighting quality, you can use several lamp models at the same time and combine them with strips.
Using LEDs outdoors
Thanks to the rapid development of modern technology, LED street lighting has come into daily use. It is often used in places where there are shopping and office centers, industrial buildings, parks, gas stations and many other crowded objects. The streets where such lighting has already been installed are distinguished by their beauty. The main advantage of this light is that manual adjustment is possible, and its operation can be carried out according to the specified settings, with the help of which even the smallest LED illuminates a fairly large area.
LED street lighting is much more economical than its predecessors, and the LEDs themselves are very durable - they last at least 10 years. Thanks to such good indicators, the funds spent on lighting are used rationally. Doctors also speak positively about this light, since its characteristics are very close to daylight, do not hurt the eyes and do not fill the space with infrared waves.
Rules for using LED strip
1. You cannot connect tapes longer than 5 meters in series. Only parallel connection of segments is possible. If you install pieces of more than 5 meters in series, significant voltage drops will occur, and the current on the tracks will increase. Ultimately, this will cause the tape to become seriously damaged and fail.
2. Switching on is not allowed at temperatures above +40 degrees.
3. The ingress of liquid and moisture, as well as the formation of condensation on open areas of the tape, is prohibited if they are not provided for this.
4. Devices that are partially or completely unprotected by sealant or casing must not be immersed in water.
Flaws
LED lighting, perhaps, has only one drawback - the high cost of light bulbs. But if you look at it, it becomes clear that a long service life, as well as a low level of energy consumption, justify and pay off expensive investments.
The LEDs themselves, as well as the strip, should not be subjected to various mechanical loads. When assembling your DIY LED lighting, be careful not to cause any damage as this will cause the strip to burn out. When installing long sections, only parallel connections should be used. If you use a serial one, you can overload the conductive tracks, which will ultimately lead to the burnout of the entire tape.
Natural fuels suitable for mass energy production are gradually being depleted. Alternative energy is not developing fast enough and does not have time to compensate consumers for the lack of electricity, which inevitably leads to a constant increase in its cost. In such conditions, an alternative to expensive and ineffective incandescent lighting is needed.
The problem was partially solved by the so-called energy-saving lamps, which quickly gained popularity. However, their high price and insufficient durability did not allow them to become a “lifesaver” for everyone and enter every home.
Not so long ago they had a worthy and much more effective replacement - LEDs. Ease of use, ease of installation, energy efficiency, environmental friendliness, low cost - all this allows the use of LED lamps for interior lighting in every home.
Initially, LEDs did not have the necessary parameters and were used only in the illumination of various devices or in low-power emergency systems. However, with the development of technology, they have increased their capabilities and are now widely used in both domestic and industrial premises. There are many options for use: from decorative multi-colored lighting to basic lighting of large rooms.
The installation features of LED lamps significantly distinguish them from classic incandescent lamps. Perhaps this is why the pace of their spread is not as rapid as one might expect.
However, there is nothing overly complicated about making LED lighting yourself. You just need to have knowledge of certain rules for working with such light sources. For this purpose, it is worth considering their pros and cons, rules of calculation, selection and installation.
Advantages and disadvantages
The main positive qualities that an LED lamp has are:
- The highest energy efficiency of all light sources available on the market;
- Environmental friendliness, complete absence of release of harmful substances during operation and during disposal of used elements;
- Extremely long service life, absolutely incomparable with incandescent or fluorescent lamps - 10 years or more.
Important! The long service life of LEDs directly depends on their quality. That is, the cheapest Chinese fakes can work for 1-2 months, while more expensive high-quality ones may not burn out after 15 years.
- The LED lamp allows for very smooth adjustment of the brightness level, as well as the ability to change the color of the lighting (!);
- The LED in its design does not contain breakable elements, is not afraid of shocks and constant vibration;
- The familiar voltage surges in the home electrical network lead to the “blinking” of standard lighting fixtures - LEDs do not have this disadvantage, since their luminosity is not related to the voltage of the electric current, but to its strength;
- There is no infrared and ultraviolet in the emission spectrum of LEDs - the paint of wallpaper, walls, and fabrics will not fade, as under the rays of incandescent lamps.
As always happens with technical devices, there was a fly in the ointment. However, to date, only one problem has been discovered: the fairly high cost of high-quality diodes. But if we take into account their service life, then it is probably worth talking about the high cost of incandescent and fluorescent lamps, and not LEDs.
Application area
There are two main ways in which you can connect LEDs for lighting:
- use of LED strip for distributed lighting of a room: with its help, decorative lighting of individual areas can be created - well suited for “hidden” lighting, when the light source itself is not visible;
- using a ready-made LED lamp as a light source is a more expensive option, suitable for “spot” lighting.
Important! Lighting using ready-made LED lamps has a more traditional and familiar look, especially if it is made in the body of wall sconces or as a chandelier for the ceiling. is no different visually from its ordinary counterparts, and you need to work with it the same way.
Since working with LED lamps is practically no different from a similar procedure with ordinary traditional lamps, they do not require separate consideration. Is it worth knowing how to correctly calculate the power to sufficiently illuminate the premises. But since the power calculation is similar to that for the LED strip, that is what should be used.
LED strip allows you to create the most “sophisticated” lighting schemes for a room, illuminating various individual zones (for example, illuminating a kitchen backsplash or the contours of cabinets), creating hidden lighting under the ceiling or illuminating walls around the entire perimeter of the room. The possibilities are limited only by the designer's imagination.
The available options are greatly expanded by the ability to use different colors in lighting and change them. Here, of course, you need to know when to stop and not overdo it - too much color can lead to the opposite result and make the interior design tacky.
Hidden lighting under the ceiling along the perimeter of the room visually increases its size, which is important for small city apartments.
A common way to use LED strip is for lighting in cabinets, mezzanines and other closed interior elements. Complete with an automatic switch, this adds greater functionality to them (especially true for kitchen cabinets and large wardrobes).
Calculation of the number of diodes
To simply calculate the required power of LEDs, you can use a comparison with conventional incandescent lamps; for this you need to know the indicators of the luminous flux emitted by these light sources:
- each incandescent bulb produces approximately 13 lm/W (lumens per watt) of luminous flux;
- different LEDs can produce different levels ranging from 75-90 lm/W (average 80 lm/W)
Knowing this data, it is quite simple to calculate the number of LEDs that can replace an incandescent lamp. For example, instead of a 100-watt light bulb that emits 13x100 = 1300 lumens, you will need 16.25 W (17 - rounded up) LEDs. Thus, you can use 18 LEDs of 1 watt each, or 9 pieces of 2 W each, or 2 powerful ones of 9 W each. Or you can use one powerful 20-watt LED spotlight.
Important! When purchasing LEDs, you should pay attention to their luminous flux. On average, it is 75-90 lm/W, but some specimens have significantly better characteristics. For example, the Luminus CSM-360 LED has a rating of 115 lm/W, and the Cree XLamp XHP70 model has a rating of 150 lumens per watt.
To organize standard spot lighting, it is more rational to use high-power LEDs or LED lamps. If you plan to evenly illuminate the ceiling or walls over the entire area, then it is optimal to take many low-power light sources (for example, a strip with LEDs).
Selecting a Power Source
It is also necessary to resolve the issue of how to connect LED lighting to the electrical network, because the LED voltage is not 220, but 12 or 24 volts (strips with a supply voltage of 36 and 48 volts are available, but this is rare).
The length of the LED strip is always standard and is 5 m, but it can contain a different number of diodes with different powers. For the calculation, one should proceed from the total power of the powered tape.
In general, the following steps should be taken to calculate the required power supply power for connecting an LED strip:
- The manufacturer usually indicates the power indicator per meter (for example, 6 W/m), which means that to obtain the total power you need to multiply this figure by the length - in the example it will be 6x5 = 30 W;
- For power supplies, such an indicator as power reserve is used. If the lighting is planned to be turned on from time to time (for example, lighting in cabinets), then it is taken equal to 1.3. If constant main lighting is installed, which will work for a long time without being turned off, then the power reserve is taken equal to 1.5. The power of the power supply is obtained by multiplying the power consumed by the LEDs by the reserve indicator - in the example it will be 30x1.5 = 45 W (if constant lighting is planned) or 30x1.3 = 39 W (for periodic switching);
- The operating voltage of the diodes is indicated on the tape, and the power supply should be selected at the same voltage. The modern market offers a huge number of power supplies, from which it is easy to select with the necessary parameters - in the example, this is a 12 V and 45 W power supply (or 12 V and 39 W for periodic switching).
Important! It is not always possible to select a power supply with exactly the calculated power. In this case, you should purchase a unit with higher power: in the example, these could be units of 50 and 40 W, respectively.
As can be seen from what has been described, the calculations are simple and can be easily done on the go right in a hardware store if you know the required lighting parameters. When purchasing, you should also pay attention to the design of the housing - they can be sealed or not. For work it is worth purchasing waterproof ones, but for ordinary premises - not (due to the difference in price).
Mounting the tape and connecting to the network
Before starting work on placing the tape in its intended place, you should remember several general mandatory rules:
Installing an LED strip in its intended place, for example, on the ceiling, is quite simple, but still requires a certain sequence of actions:
Economical lighting lamps are already found in almost every home. We offer you to consider how to make an LED lamp with your own hands, what materials will be required for this, as well as tips on what criteria should be used to select them.
Step-by-step development of an LED lamp
Initially, we are faced with the task of checking the performance of the LEDs and measuring the supply voltage of the network. When setting up this device to prevent electric shock, we suggest using a 220/220 V isolation transformer. This will also ensure safer measurements when setting up our future LED lamp.
Please note that if any elements of the circuit are connected incorrectly, an explosion is possible, so strictly follow the instructions given below.
Most often, the problem of improper assembly lies precisely in poor-quality soldering of components.
When making calculations to measure the voltage drop in the current consumption of LEDs, you need to use a universal measuring multimeter. Basically, such homemade LED lamps are used at a voltage of 12 V, but our design will be designed for a mains voltage of 220 V AC.
Video: LED lamp at home
High light output is achieved with diodes at a current of 20-25 mA. But cheap LEDs can produce an unpleasant bluish glow, which is also very harmful to the eyes, so we recommend diluting your homemade LED lamp with a small amount of red LEDs. For 10 cheap white ones, 4 red LEDs will be enough.
The circuit is quite simple and is designed to power LEDs directly from the network, without an additional power supply. The only drawback of such a circuit is that all its components are not isolated from the mains supply and the LED lamp will not provide protection against possible electric shock. So be careful when assembling and installing this light. Although in the future the circuit can be upgraded and isolated from the network.
Simplified lamp diagram- When turned on, a 100 ohm resistor protects the circuit from voltage surges; if it is not there, you need to use a higher power diode bridge rectifier.
- The 400 nF capacitor limits the current required for the LEDs to glow normally. If necessary, you can add more LEDs if their total current consumption does not exceed the limit set by the capacitor.
- Make sure that the capacitor used is designed for an operating voltage of at least 350 V, it should be one and a half times the mains voltage.
- A 10uF capacitor is needed to provide a stable, flicker-free light source. Its rated voltage should be twice that measured across all LEDs connected in series during operation.
In the photo you see a burnt out lamp, which will soon be disassembled for a DIY LED lamp.
We disassemble the lamp, but very carefully so as not to damage the base, then clean it and degrease it with alcohol or acetone. We pay special attention to the hole. We clean it of excess solder and process it again. This is necessary for high-quality soldering of components in the base.
Photo: lamp socket 
Photo: resistors and transistor Now we need to solder a tiny rectifier, we use a regular soldering iron for these purposes and have already prepared a diode bridge in advance and process the surface, working very carefully so as not to damage the previously installed parts.
Photo: soldering the rectifier As an insulating layer, it is fashionable to use the glue of a simple hot-melt assembly gun. A PVC tube is also suitable, but it is advisable to use a material specially designed for this purpose, filling all the space between the parts and at the same time fixing them. We have a ready-made basis for the future lamp.
Photo: glue and cartridge After these manipulations, we proceed to the most interesting part: installing LEDs. We use a special circuit board as a basis; it can be bought at any electronic components store or even taken from some old and unnecessary equipment, having first cleared the board of unnecessary parts.
Photo: LEDs on the board It is very important to check each of our boards for functionality, because otherwise all the work is in vain. We pay special attention to the contacts of the LEDs; if necessary, we further clean and narrow them.
Now we are assembling the constructor, we need to solder all the boards, we have four of them, to the capacitor. After this operation, we again insulate everything with glue and check the connections of the diodes to each other. We place the boards at the same distance from each other so that the light spreads evenly.
LED connection We also solder a 10 uF capacitor without additional wires; this is a good soldering experience for future electricians.
Finished mini lamp 
Resistor and lamp All is ready. We recommend covering our lamp with a lampshade, because... LEDs emit extremely bright light that is very hard on the eyes. If you place our homemade lamp in a “cut” made of paper, for example, or fabric, you will get a very soft light, a romantic night light or a sconce for the nursery. By replacing the soft lampshade with a standard glass one, we get a fairly bright glow that does not irritate the eyes. This is a good and very beautiful option for a home or cottage.
If you want to power the lamp using batteries or from USB, you need to exclude the 400 nF capacitor and rectifier from the circuit, connecting the circuit directly to a 5-12 V DC source.
This is a good device for illuminating an aquarium, but you need to choose a special waterproof lamp; you can find it by visiting any store of electromechanical devices; these exist in any city, be it Chelyabinsk or Moscow.
Photo: lamp in action Lamp for the office
You can make a creative wall, table lamp or floor lamp for your office using several dozen LEDs. But for this, the flow of light will be insufficient for reading; here you need a sufficient level of illumination of the workplace.
First you need to determine the number of LEDs and rated power.
After that, find out the load capacity of the rectifying diode bridge and capacitor. We connect a group of LEDs to the negative contact of the diode bridge. We connect all the LEDs as shown in the figure.
Diagram: connecting lamps Solder all 60 LEDs together. If you need to connect additional LEDs, just continue to solder them sequentially, plus to minus. Use wires to connect the negative of one group of LEDs to the next until the entire assembly process is completed. Now add a diode bridge. Connect it as shown in the picture below. Connect the positive terminal to the positive wire of the first group of LEDs, connect the negative terminal to the common wire of the last LED in the group.
Short LED wires Next, you need to prepare the base of the old light bulb by cutting off the wires from the board and soldering them to the AC inputs on the diode bridge, marked with the ~ sign. You can use plastic fasteners, screws and nuts to connect the two boards together if all the diodes are placed on separate boards. Don't forget to fill the boards with glue, insulating them from short circuits. This is a fairly powerful network LED lamp that will last up to 100,000 hours of continuous operation.
Adding a capacitor
If you increase the supply voltage to the LEDs in order to make the light brighter, the LEDs will begin to heat up, which significantly reduces their durability. In order to avoid this, you need to connect a 10 W recessed or table lamp with an additional capacitor. Simply connect one side of the base to the negative output of the bridge rectifier and the positive side, through an additional capacitor, to the positive output of the rectifier. You can use 40 LEDs instead of the suggested 60, thereby increasing the overall brightness of the lamp.
Video: how to make an LED lamp with your own hands
If desired, a similar lamp can be made using a powerful LED, but then you will need capacitors of a different value.
As you can see, assembling or repairing a conventional DIY LED lamp is not particularly difficult. And it won't take much time and effort. This lamp is also suitable as a summer option, for example for a greenhouse; its light is absolutely harmless to plants.
The article is intended to show all the pitfalls and costs of using LED strip as the main lighting.
Initially, an ordinary chandelier was planned for the main lighting of one of the rooms where a major renovation was underway. But recently I came across a super-bright Ultra 5000 LED strip with smd 5630 LEDs from the Arlight brand. The decision was made quickly, finally and irrevocably - I want such a strip as the main light in the room.
Theoretical brightness
The manufacturer stated that the Ultra 5000 smd 5630 tape provides a luminous flux of as much as 1200 lm per meter. For comparison, the luminous flux of a 100-watt incandescent lamp is about 1600 lm.
In my case, for a room of 14 m2, 15 meters of tape should have been used, laid along the entire perimeter. It seems that the resulting luminous flux cannot be calculated by simply multiplying lumens by meters.
I decided to puzzle over how to correctly calculate the total luminous flux, but after Googling, I realized that this problem cannot be solved at once. I need to spend nth time studying the theory of lighting calculations using the luminous flux utilization coefficient method and somewhere find several data unknown to me:
- reflective ability of walls, ceilings, and other objects;
- honest luminous flux of one strip LED;
- characteristics of the profile diffuser in which the tape was planned to be placed;
- voltage drop along the strip and the dependence of the LED luminous flux on it.
In the end I decided that I would just do it and see what happens. But, just in case, I also purchased a dimmer for LED strips. Maybe it will be too bright :)
Theoretical spectrum
Bright LEDs are, of course, cool. But, brightness is one thing, and the spectrum of light is another.
If we compare it again with an incandescent lamp, it is good because it emits light in a wide range, its spectrum is relatively uniform and in some parts close to the spectrum of sunlight. Such light is familiar and pleasant to the eye, it does not irritate or tire.
The spectrum of white LEDs differs significantly from the spectrum of an incandescent lamp, and not for the better:
White LEDs in this case are of the phosphor type; two humps on the spectral characteristic are formed from the radiation of a blue LED (blue region of the spectrum) and a phosphor (yellow region of the spectrum).
In my lower brain, I understood that I should be careful with the use of LED lighting and leave a regular chandelier as well. Who knows how the eyes will react to such a spectrum. It is also hardly possible to calculate this in advance.
I chose the tape based on color temperature average of the three options offered by the manufacturer - the so-called. Day White, 4000 K. Just seemed the nicest.
Accessories
Profile
I have a simple suspended fabric ceiling, without any multi-levels or cornices, and since the perimeter lighting strip was planned to be placed under the ceiling in plain sight, it was necessary to refine its appearance, but make it as invisible as possible. Thinking about which profile to use, straight or angular? It turned out that the intensity and uniformity of the lighting did not visually change in any way depending on the direction of the glow of the LEDs of the strip located near the ceiling. What's down, along the wall, what's along the ceiling, what's at an angle to them - the same. This is understandable; the nominal glow angle of these LEDs is 120°, but in reality it turned out to be close to 180. Therefore, the angle of the tape was not important, and I chose a straight profile as the most compact:
Ribbon
Ultra 5000 tape is supplied from the factory on reels of 5 meters, the cutting ratio of the tape is 10 cm, the store cuts for sale in multiples of a meter. In my case, I didn’t have to cut it; I took three whole packages:
The width of the tape is 12 mm; it does not fit into the selected profile quite normally, but it does fit:
Power supplies
The rated power consumption of 15 meters of tape is 240 W. Calculated based on real measurements - 180 W (measured on a 3-meter segment, current consumption was 3 A).
But, in addition to power consumption, there is also the factor of voltage drop along the tape, which leads to a gradual decrease in the brightness of the glow towards its end. Power supplies for LED strips (I don’t know all of them or not, but the ones I took - yes) allow you to power one common load in parallel. To equalize the brightness along long powerful strips, instead of one power supply at one end, two less powerful power supplies are included at both ends of the strip, and in especially difficult cases, also in the middle of the strip. In my case, the perimeter is closed, I divided it in half, and simply took two 130 W power supplies and connected 7.5 meters of tape to each separately:
The choice of sealed power supplies was due to the fact that they have significantly smaller dimensions compared to open ones and do not have coolers, that is, they do not make noise, which is important. In addition, I planned to place them all in a sealed (for fire safety purposes) shield, located in a hidden place inside the wardrobe, where there are problems with heat dissipation.
Dimmer
The dimmer, which I liked the most in terms of functionality among those that were available, was originally designed for wall installation:
This dimmer has both mechanical brightness adjustment and remote control. Moreover, in addition to smooth adjustment, the remote control has four buttons for preset brightness levels (25%, 50% 75% and 100%), and four more buttons for programming custom levels.
But to connect it requires four wires, which I did not have installed in my walls. So I decided that Dimmer I will install it in the panel along with the power supplies. By mechanically adjusting the brightness level, I will set only the starting level when turning on the tape, and I will adjust the desired brightness with remote control.
But for this you need to desolder IR receiver:
take it out of the shield on the wire and place it in a convenient, inconspicuous place. Will it work like that? Checked it, it works:
Looking ahead, I’ll note that the dimmer has one significant drawback.
The role of memory of the brightness level set before turning off is performed by the potentiometer. When 12 volts are supplied to the dimmer, the tape turns on to the brightness level that was set by the potentiometer. After which the brightness can be changed both from the remote control and the potentiometer. But, regardless of how the potentiometer was installed, at the first moment when turned on, the dimmer does not immediately start PWM, and pure 12 volts flow out. At the moment of switching on, the tape necessarily flashes for a split second at maximum brightness, and then is set to the set value. It hits the eyes unpleasantly.
Amplifiers
The dimmer power was not enough for my tapes. I had to buy extra for it amplifiers- one for each power supply:
Shield installation
In addition to the main lighting, I decided to use another 3 meters of the same strip for local lighting above the cabinet, with a separate wall switch and limit switches in the sliding doors. I also planned decorative lighting from a simple LED strip and a night light on duty on a short piece of dim strip switched on by a photo relay. All this is not directly related to this article, but since it was necessary to place three additional different power supplies in the shield, this should be mentioned. Initially, the photo relay has a rather large size and an unaesthetic appearance, so I also wanted to hide it in a shield so that it would not loom in front of my eyes:
I treated him the same way as I did with dimmer- unsoldered the sensor and took it outside on the wire, after checking that this too would work:
I found a sealed shield of suitable sizes:
Stocked up with corners and fasteners:
And started installation:
The shield is ready:
Installation of profile and tape
To increase light output, it would be advisable to mount the tape not close to the ceiling, but a little lower, at least 5 centimeters. In this case, the reflection of the light from the tape from the ceiling will be better. But I didn’t have such an opportunity for some subjective reasons, so I mounted it close to the ceiling.
On the left is a piece of profile for a local lighting strip above the cabinet, mounted on the lower end of the cornice, behind which the decorative lighting strip will be located:
It’s easy to cut the profile with a fine-tooth hacksaw exactly at an angle of 45° if you use a miter box, for example this one:
The profile was fastened with gypsum board self-tapping screws, length 32, directly into the drywall, without dowels (the drywall was glued to the walls using Perlfix), having previously drilled holes in it (in the profile) in increments of half a meter:
Then I laid the tape in the profile and soldered the power wires. I have not yet covered the perimeter profile with a diffuser (the store has not yet supplied part of the diffuser), I only covered the local lighting profile above the cabinet:
First start
So - let's turn it on!
Wow! This is awesome!
Of course, I wasn't blinded by the brightness. Bright, yes, but not overwhelming. And very beautiful!
Flash photo:
Without flash:
View from the street (4th floor):
I tried to photograph the difference in illumination between the tape and the 200 W incandescent lamp, which I currently have hanging instead of a chandelier. I fixed the camera settings with one light source, launched the camera for a series of shots, and in the meantime switched the light source. This is what happened.
First I tuned in to the light of an incandescent lamp and started a series, the first photo is a lamp, the second is a tape:
Now, on the contrary, the first is a tape, the second is a lamp:
An interesting effect - in the light of the tape there are almost no vertical shadows. This can be seen, for example, by the shadow from a horizontal pipe and the missing shadow from a vertically located regulator handle on it.
From these photos you can see that 15 meters of tape shines brighter than a 200 W incandescent lamp. But it seems like not much. In fact, it is certainly not entirely correct to compare this way. The light bulb is a point source, and the tape is a distributed source. With the light of a lamp, the corners of the room are much darker than in the center, and with the light of a strip located along the perimeter, it is equally light everywhere.
I measured the illumination with a lux meter:
Here are the results in numbers:
As can be seen from the table, the illumination under the light of the tape differs slightly between different measurement points in the room, whether near the floor, at eye level, in the corners or in the center - the difference is no more than 2-3 times. Of course, this is a consequence of the uniform distribution of a large number of point light sources along the perimeter of the room. What is not observed with a light bulb that hangs in the center of the ceiling - the difference at different points reaches almost 30 times.
When both the lamp and the strip were turned on at the same time, their illumination levels were simply summed up.
If someone could explain to me why the lumens do not add up directly (or do they add up?), but the luxes add up (maybe this is a consequence of the large difference in the spectral characteristics of the LED and the lamp in the long-wave region?), and how with the stated light intensity of 1200 lumens per meter when measured at a distance of 1 meter from a piece of tape 4 meters long, the illumination is only 530 lux, I will be very grateful.
For a short section, I put a diffuser on the profile and photographed the difference at a short shutter speed:
I measured the illuminance at a certain distance: without a diffuser 600 lx, with a diffuser 520 lx at the same distance. Absorbs more than 10%. It’s a pity that there is no diffuser for the entire perimeter yet, so we can’t evaluate the overall decrease in illumination.
Voltage drop
The voltage along the tape drops significantly.
At the beginning it was 11.5 V, and at the end of the segment of 7.5 meters it was already 8.5 V. Total - 0.4 Volts per meter.
The drop in brightness is not noticeable, but if you specifically compare, you can see that in one corner the tape is much brighter than in the other.
Measurements with a lux meter at a distance of approximately 30 cm in opposite corners of the perimeter gave results of 1600 and 600 lux, a difference of more than 2.5 times. Measurements at other distances gave the same difference of 2.5-3 times. Therefore, the value of 530 lux in the table for measurement at a distance of 1 meter from the tape is an average value measured at a distance of approximately 2 meters from the beginning of the tape.
Heating of the tape, temperature in the shield
The tape heats up, and heats up noticeably.
At the beginning of the tape, the temperature of the aluminum profile was 55...57°C, but at the end it was already quite cool, about 30°C. When the diffuser is installed on the profile, the temperature does not differ significantly.
Inside the sealed shield at maximum load (which is unlikely to happen in reality), the temperature also did not rise above 57°C after a 4-hour run. This slightly exceeds the rated operating temperature of the power supplies, but it didn’t stink, everything worked. In normal operating mode, when only the perimeter tape is turned on, the temperature in the panel is set exactly at the level of the power supply's rating value of 45°C. Quite satisfactory.
Summary
I am quite pleased with the technical side of the LED lighting system. Convenient and simple installation, high-quality components, light switching on without delay (which not all power supplies for LED strips provide), silent operation, moderate heating, low consumption with high light output. There are only two minuses, but both can be solved in principle - the voltage drop along the strip (although the total illumination in the room is already quite enough), and the incorrect operation of the dimmer at the moment of switching on (can be solved by introducing a delay circuit for turning on the strip after turning on the dimmer, but then instead of flashing there will be this is the same delay, I don’t know what’s better).
It’s too early to talk about the operational side; time is needed.
The first impression is that this light is completely different. And it is impossible to say whether he is better or worse. Just different.
I spent several days assembling furniture under the lighting of the tape, and did not feel any discomfort. In general, I like everything so far.
I didn’t like the financial side - the whole system cost me about 20 thousand rubles. The cost of a meter of profile tape is approximately 1 thousand rubles. Plus power supplies and other equipment. True, it is unknown how long all this will work. LEDs have a stated service life of about 100 thousand hours, by which time they lose up to 30% of their brightness. If you use the tape for an average of 5 hours a day, then it should last for 50 years. We'll see.
