I recently added under cabinet lighting to my kitchen counters. It looks fantastic once completed. I have a very large kitchen, around 25 feet or more and was able to wire the whole thing up for under $100. Without the diffusion rods, could've done it for under ~$30.
I have a custom built house so I had the builder install electrical outlets above the top kitchen cabinets, this way I can plug in the adapters and it can't be seen from below.
The most basic materials needed is
1. a plug in adapter to provide the 12V of power that plugs into the wall,
2. the wire for getting the 12V power from the adapter to the LED lights, the LED light strips,
3. and solderless connectors for hooking things up (this was a big headache).
When I was installed the LED string lights I noticed the lights were glaring off my silestone countertops so I added a diffusion rod to diffuse the light, and the aluminum rod it came in made moving around the lights a lot easier during installation. Highly recommend getting the diffusion rods to protect your lights and re-orient them in the future without having to rip them out because their glue is strong and the LED strip is very weak.
Below are the materials needed and my reviews for them.
LE DC 12V 2A Power Supply Adapter, AC 100-240V to DC 12V Transformers, Switching Power Supply for 12V 3528/5050 LED Strip Lights, 24W Max, 12 Volt 2 Amp Power Adaptor, 2.1mm X 5.5mm US Plug
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B019Q3U72M/
Great power supply, used for powering up my LED strips and the connector it comes with useful for testing connections before securing wires. I shorted it a few times and it must've had a built in protection circuit because it never burnt out or caught fire. It says 24W max and my LED strips are 24W so it must be slightly more efficient since it was able to drive them without issues. Later I only used half the light strip on this adapter since my kitchen has a gap in it. Buy this, you'll need it and its very cheap.
Homelek 100V-240V To DC 12V 5A Power Supply Adapter, for SMD3528/5630/5050 LED Strip Lights
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01DA1SAVG/
This one is OK, the issue is I didn't like is the 3 prong connector at the end as my z-wave light controller only has 2 pins so I had to use an adapter. I can sort of understand why though since it can push up to 5A unlike my other power adapter. This adapter is also big, it basically looks just like a laptop power adapter. I thought my lights would use more than 2A so I also got this adapter but I didn't end up needing so much power ( I still use this in the project). I might add floor lighting in the future, where this extra power capacity will come in useful.
LE 16.4ft/5m Flexible LED Light Strips, 300 Units SMD 3528 LEDs, 12V DC Flexible LED Strip Lights, Daylight White, Non-waterproof, Lighting Strips, LED Tape, for Gardens/Homes/Kitchen/Cars/Bar
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00HSF65MC
This is the heart of your system, the lights themselves! No wonder it has so many reviews, these lights are great and crazy cheap. For $10 you get 5m worth of lights, I thought it was a scam or there must be some catch because the quality of these lights are great. I didn't measure the power consumption, but they light up during the day and night very well. I actually bought two rolls because I thought one wasn't enough. Its OK though since I can use the second roll for future floor lighting.
Pyle PSC1850 18-Gauge 50-Feet Spool of High Quality Speaker Zip Wire
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003ZX4RBM
This is just generic speaker wire, but its great for hooking up LED lights because its thin so can be strung through cabinets easily, can drive ample current for LED lights and is easy to strip and work with. I used it to string wire from above the cabinets to down under the cabinets where the LED lights are situated. The kitchen cabinets usually have a gap between the cabinets, but in some cases I just drilled holes through the cabinet and pushed this wire through. For $3-4, if you don't already have enough wire, just get this.
LE 2 Pcs Adapter Cable + 2 Pcs 2-Pin 8mm Connector Kit for 3528 Single Color LED Strip Lights, Gapless Strip to Strip, Cables Connect Adapter and LED Strips, Seamlessly Extend LED Strip Lights
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0085ZX8EM/
These are awesome, no wonder it has so many great reviews. The adapters are perfect for connecting to light strips and the connectors are good because they go over the LED strips guaranteeing a solid connection. Unfortunately, it only comes with 2 connectors so you need to buy more separately.
Glo-shine 20pcs LED Strip Solderless Connector Adapter for 3528 Waterproof Single Color Led Strip ,2pin 8mm PCB Wide (GS-DJ-8BB-2-20)
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B013SPE8JW
This is why my project took several days instead of one afternoon. These are horrible, don't buy it unless you hate yourself. The problem is when they shut close, they don't securely come in contact with the LED strips, resulting in very loose connections and the LED strips just falling out of them. I ended up having to BUY A soldering iron to solder my connections to these horrible pins.
FINELED 10 Lots 2pins 8mm Wide Waterproof LED Strip Light Connector Adapter for SMD 5050 3528 Single Color LED Strip Light, No Need Soldering (10PCS)
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0180EGI9E
Same thing with these, horrible. Far too loose to be useful connectors for the 8mm single color LED strips I was using. Maybe because in the description it says for WATERPROOF LED strips, and since mine are not waterproof they might be much thinner. My LED strips are 8 mm so it should work well but it doesn't. They should be like the other connectors I bought where the LED strip goes underneath the contacts. I ended up having to BUY A soldering iron to solder my connections to these horrible pins.
LightingWill 5-Pack 3.3ft/1M 9x17mm Silver U-Shape Internal Width 12mm LED Aluminum Channel System with Cover, End Caps and Mounting Clips Aluminum Profile for LED Strip Light Installations-U02S5
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01DM7EXBO/
This is optional but highly recommended, it diffuses the lights and protects them. Allows you to easily move the lights around, etc. I wish it was cheaper, it basically cost as much as everything else in the project combined, but luckily one order was enough for the whole kitchen and I even ended up with some spare material. Its easy to cut, I was able to use a hacksaw for the aluminum, and scissors/wire stripppers for the diffusion covers. The covers snap easily into the aluminum channel.
GoControl Z-Wave Plug-in Dimmer Module - PD300Z-2
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00E1OXK3A
I control the lights using my z-wave controller. This works really well. Sometimes it doesn't pair well with my domoticz z-wave controller. I figured out I need to just reboot the controller and it should show up.
| Color | Daylight White |
|---|---|
| Brand | Lepro |
| Indoor/Outdoor Usage | Indoor |
| Special Feature | Waterproof |
| Light Source Type | LED |
| Power Source | AC/DC |
| Light Color | white |
| Theme | Christmas |
| Occasion | Christmas |
| Style | Modern |
| Material | Plastic, Copper |
| Color Temperature | 6000 Kelvin |
| Controller Type | Button Control |
| Number of Light Sources | 300 |
| Voltage | 12 Volts |
| Wattage | 16 watts |
| Included Components | no |
| Item Weight | 60 Grams |
| Number of Items | 1 |
| Item dimensions L x W x H | 196.85 x 0.31 x 0.08 inches |
| Control Method | App |
| Manufacturer | Lighting EVER |
| Part Number | 4100057-DW |
| Item Weight | 2.12 ounces |
| Product Dimensions | 196.85 x 0.31 x 0.08 inches |
| Item model number | PR4100057-DW |
| Is Discontinued By Manufacturer | No |
| Area Lighting Classification | IP20 |
| Assembled Height | 2 millimeters |
| Assembled Length | 5 Meters |
| Assembled Width | 8 millimeters |
| Shape | linear |
| Finish types | Plastic, copper |
| Special Features | Waterproof |
| Batteries Included? | No |
| Batteries Required? | No |
| Luminous Flux | 1200 Lumen |
| Wattage | 16 Watts |
| Color Rendering Index (CRI) | 80.00 |
