12 Volt Led Light Strips

Led light strips: What makes them so easy to use?

Led light strips, also known as led strip light, led tape light, led ribbon lights, are assembled by SMD led, PCB board, resistance and 3M tape. Normally they come in 5meter/reel. Led light strips have many features that make them easy to use in many applications.

12V LED Light Strip Applications:

• Kitchen Cabinets and Shelves (kick board lighting, under cabinet, nightlight)
• Bathroom Counters (kickboards and nightlights)
• Closets / Attics (places with insufficient lighting or places that are hard to light)
• Movie Theater / Game Room
• Vehicles (interior and exterior lighting)
• Weddings / Events

Easy to cut

Cutting led light strips is very easy. DC12V led strip light is 3 led unit, DC24V led strip light is 6 led unit. It has cut lines between each unit, and each cutting point has solder pads there. After cutting the strip light, we can use a fast connector to connect the strip light or solder the strip light with wires. Then you can power the strip light easily, and cut any size of the strip light to fit the requirements of the applications at home.

Led strip light with 3M tape

Most of the led light strips have 3M tape on the backside. That makes the strip light easy to mount on the wall. Some waterproof version led tape have clips for installation, which will fix the led tape stronger.

Waterproof and Non-Waterproof

Led light strips have waterproof and non-waterproof versions. For indoor use, the non-waterproof version is used the most. Waterproof versions have IP55 (silicon glue on the surface), IP65 (silicon tube protect), IP68 (silicon injection process). Most waterproof version led light tapes are used where it is easy to get wet or rain, just like bathroom, courtyard, swimming pool, etc.

12 voltové LED svetelné pásy

Led light strips have 12 volt and 24 volt input versions. We have to use an AC/DC transformer to power the strip light. Low volt input is safe for people. Led power supply has many different options, and it can dim and control the led strip light. We also can use a battery to power the strip light — the car battery is DC12V, so we can use led light strips in cars.

How many led chips per meter?

Led density of a led light strip means how many leds are in one meter of the strip light. The more leds in one meter of the strip light, the higher density led of the light strips. There are many densities of led light strips. Lightstec has 30led/m, 60led/m, 120led/m, 240led/m. Normally, 60led/m and 120led/m sell the most.

Led Density & Brightness

Lumen is a measurement of brightness. Simply, if the project needs more brightness, then you need to use a high lumen output led light strip. Different projects require a certain amount of brightness to achieve their purpose. Our advice is to always go for the brighter option and add a dimmer. Below is a helpful guide on Lumen requirements:

• Accent or Mood Lighting – 100-300 Lumens/ft.
• Under Cabinet Lighting – 175-360 Lumens/ft.
• Task lighting w/ higher distance from source – 300-450 Lumens/ft.
• Bedroom, Cove Lighting – 180-500 Lumens/ft.

Led light strips color: RGB, Single color, CCT change

LED strip light color depends on personal preference. RGB LED strips are a good option for those that like some variety and color effects. RGB strip lights are color changing strips that are great for accent lighting all around the home. They use red, green and blue diodes so that they can be mixed to create many different colors. If you are using RGB strips just make sure you use a 3 channel controller from the dimming section of this guide.

The strips light are also available in single colors of: Red, Green, Blue, Yellow and White (1800k, 2400k, 2700k, 3000k, 3500k, 4000k, 5000k, 6500k, 8500K CCT). CCT stands for Correlated Color Temperature, which is the color temperature of light, measured in degrees Kelvin (K). The temperature rating of an LED strip directly affects what the light looks like. Warm White is what we call 3000K which gives off an orange or yellowish appearance. As we increase degrees Kelvin the color changes from yellow to off white to natural white and then to bluish white which is known as Cool White.

How to choose CCT at Home?

• Teplá biela creates an inviting, cozy area. It is generally used in rooms where everyone gathers to visit or relax (living rooms, bedrooms, dining rooms, etc.)
• Prírodná biela creates a natural, daylight effect. This is the best selling strip as it mimics natural light and is comfortably used anywhere in the home. This is our most popular strip for under cabinet LED lighting.
• Studená biela complements contemporary and modern styles, casting a bright, fresh glow. Cool white is great for task lighting as it is a brighter, more focused light. The bright, cool colors are used the most in bathrooms, kitchens and work spaces.

Length of led light strips

You have to count how many meters of led strip light you want in the project. That will give you an idea of the cost of the project. Normally, the strip light comes in 5meter/reel. You can ask if the supplier can custom make the length for you. For some big lighting projects, the factory can customize led light strips. You can order different lengths in different quantities.

LED Strip Wattage and Power Supply

Led strip lights have DC12V and DC24V versions. Normally it has a mark on the PCB board, so you cannot make a mistake. And on the label you can know how many wattage per meter of the strips. Then we can easily count the wattage of the led power supply.

For example, LT-2835WW120R-W24: DC24V, 15W/M. In a project, we need to use 10 meters, then the total wattage is 15W/M × 10meter = 150W. Normally we need the power supply 20% bigger than the total wattage, which means 150W × 1.2 = 180W. We can choose a led driver output DC24V and wattage bigger than 180W.

LED Power Supply Options:

• Zásuvný adaptér – Plug straight into your wall to power your LED strip lights.
• Hardwire Power Supplies – Directly wire in between your line voltage wiring and your LED strips.
• Dimmable Power Supply – triak, 0-10V dimmable a DALI dimmable power supply
• Batteries – DC12V battery or DC3V battery

Wiring and Connecting LED Strips

We suggest using strip light 5 meters in series for DC12V and 10 meters in series for DC24V. In this way, the brightness from the beginning to the end will not have a big difference. When we use led light strip in a big project, we can connect the strips in parallel. First we connect a wire from the power supply, second we connect all the strip lights to that wire. First of all, you need to count the total wattage of the strip light, then the wattage of the power supply needs to be 20% bigger than the total wattage of the strip lights.

How to connect led light strips without soldering?

From our experience, soldering is the best way to connect led light strips. But in some places, we do not have a soldering iron or we just use it once. So is there any way to connect led strips without soldering? Lightstec has fast connectors for connecting led strips. We have 8mm, 10mm and 12mm connectors for different size PCBs. And we have connectors for single color led strips and RGB connectors for RGB change light strips. We also have connectors with wires, so you can connect the strip light to the power supply.

Stmievanie LED pásikov

Led light strips are dimmable. There are many ways to dim the strips. We can use a dimmable power supply: Triac dimmable power supply, 0-10 dimmable power supply, DALI dimmable power supply. We can also use a dimmer between the strip light and a normal power supply. In this post you can check how to dim led light strips.

Mounting LED Light Strips

The strip light has 3M tape on the backside. It is helpful for mounting. But it is not good for some surfaces. We have solutions as following:

• Silikónové lepidlo – effective for most of the mounting surfaces
• Led Mounting clips – better for waterproof version strips
• Mounting profile – we have many types of led aluminum profile for strip light