Highlighting the work area in the kitchen. Kitchen: LED backlight

The kitchen is one of the most important rooms in the house. People spend a lot of time on it: they cook, eat, read a newspaper with a cup of coffee, etc. The significance of this room is great, so when arranging it, it is very important to choose all the details of the interior with special attention. Highlighting the work area in the kitchen requires a carefully thought out approach. Places such as sinks, hobs, countertops most often remain in the shade. This is mainly due to the fact that hinged cabinets, an extractor hood, and a dishwasher are located above them . This is what leads to some discomfort during use. The solution to the problem is quite simple - a beautiful LED illumination of the working area of ​​the kitchen.

Common types of lighting

1. Chandelier. The main source of light. Most often mounted on the ceiling, in the center. Her role is more aesthetic than functional.
2. Luminescent lamps. Mounted on the bottom of the wall cabinets. Their light is soft but bright. Highlight the entire work surface quite well.
3. LED Strip Light. It can be used in the most inaccessible places. It performs both a decorative function and a practical one. Her light can be classically white, as well as all other colors of the rainbow. Installing dimmers is the most successful option to completely transform the kitchen. LED illumination of the working area is considered an economical and fairly original design move.
4. Skinali - special glass panels that are used to decorate a kitchen apron. Their feature is the integrated LED backlight. She effectively highlights the ornament depicted on them, giving the space an originality.
5. LED spotlights emit soft diffused light. They cope well with the main task, but they can distort the natural color of the products.
6. Pendant and rotary lamps can be either mounted on the ceiling or mounted on furniture. Their advantage is that they not only capture the working area, but are also ideal for basic lighting.
7. The spots have a clear directional light. They are installed in furniture cornices, cabinets, ceiling structures. Most often, such devices are designed to illuminate a specific area.
   

Choose the backlight for the work area in the kitchen

In order to properly position the lighting, you need to familiarize yourself with some of the nuances. The first thing you need to pay attention to is the level layout. Typically, a kitchen has 5 levels:

1. The first level is the ceiling. Both pendant chandeliers and a variety of compositions from spotlights can be used. Their location should take into account certain areas: dining and working. Chandeliers are ideal for the first option. They will give harmony and comfort to the space of the kitchen. And for the working area, spotlights are good, which will cope well enough with lighting.
2. The second level is the upper zone of the wall cabinets. If there is a special cornice in the furniture design, then the installation of spots will be an ideal option, you can also use rotary lights. Their advantage is mobility, if necessary, such devices are deployed in a certain direction. This is what allows you to qualitatively cover the part of the working area that is needed at the moment.
3. The third level is the bottom of the cabinets. Here, the highlight of the working area in the kitchen can be varied. These are LED strips, fluorescent lamps, spots, etc. As a rule, they are guided only by personal preferences in this matter.
4. The fourth level is a countertop. For this part of the working area, only waterproof LED strips are suitable.
5. The fifth level is gender. The lower part of the tables is decorated in the same way as the countertop.

It is worth noting that the LED strip is ideal for installation at all levels.

What are the backlight options?

The most effective solutions:

• General lighting allows you to fully illuminate the entire space of the kitchen. This option will make the room as comfortable and bright as possible. The following sources are suitable: spotlights, ribbons, chandeliers. Preference is given to LED lamps.
• Local illumination of the working area in the kitchen, namely, countertops, provides comfortable conditions during a certain process, for example, cutting meat, washing dishes, cutting salad, etc. It is designed to illuminate the sink, bar counter, hob.
• Decorative lighting plays the role of decorating space. In order to achieve excellent results, the most relevant are LED strips with bulbs of different colors. It can be installed on multi-level ceiling structures, kitchen cabinets, countertops.
  

Examples of decorating the kitchen with LED backlight

1. Skinali is the most common and successful option.
2. Sophisticated ceiling design in several levels with installed LED lamps of different glows.
3. Combination of light sources such as chandeliers, spotlights and LED strip light.
4. The effect of soaring furniture is achieved by installing special lighting on the bottom of the tables.
5. Near glass and mirror inserts, it is recommended to additionally install light sources. This will not only decorate the space, but also visually increase its size.
6. Kitchen lighting for countertops and work areas with lamps and LED strips.
7. An ideal option would be a parallel distribution of sources, for example, at the upper and lower levels of cabinets.
8. In the case of a glass top, you can use LED strip of a certain color. In combination with the skinned effect will be stunning.

In fact, there are many more such options, the use of LEDs to illuminate the kitchen space allows you to widely use imagination and experiment.

How are the LEDs arranged? Principle of their work

LEDs are semiconductors; when connected to electricity, they emit light. Depending on the chemical composition, its brightness and saturation change. It is forbidden to directly connect to the network, as this will lead to overheating, and the LED will burn out. It is recommended to use a special device that stabilizes the voltage in the network - the stabilizer. LEDs are infrared, ultraviolet, yellow, white and other colors. Between themselves, they differ in the type of luminescence, size and number of crystals.

LED backlight: advantages

1. Significant energy savings.
2. Resistance to mechanical damage.
3. The LED illumination of the working area in the kitchen has a diverse palette of colors.
4. Environmental Safety.
5. There are models with a high level of protection against moisture.
6. Long life: 15-20 years.
7. Bright but soft light.
8. Affordable price.

Countertop lights

When equipping the kitchen, it is important to fully illuminate the area of ​​the countertop, since it is here that many tasks must be performed. However, choosing devices, it is worth considering the characteristic of its location. The countertop is constantly exposed to water, grease, soot and other dirt. Therefore, it is very important to choose LED strips with certain technical characteristics. There are models that have a special layer, it is he who will protect the lamp from humidity, vaporization and pollution.

There are several types of mounting LED backlight. The most common:

• Mounting is carried out using the LED-profile, it is quite light, as it is made of aluminum. It also provides complete security by hiding the wires well.
• Sticking. Recently, self-adhesive LED strips have become in great demand. Their installation is quite simple, and in quality they are absolutely not inferior to conventional models. However, the advantage is obvious: in those places where it is not possible to establish a profile, the self-adhesive tape will be fixed quite simply.
• Installation of LED lights. As a rule, they are placed in the corners of the countertops. They are small in size, so you can install them without additional effort. And the wires are hidden using an LED profile.
  

Professional Tips

In order for the LED illumination of the working area in the kitchen to please the owners for a long time, when installing it, you must follow these rules:

1. The power of the tape and the power supply must be the same.
2. It is better to connect the contacts with a soldering iron.
3. Cutting the tape is allowed only in the place with the signed contacts "+/-".
4. To adjust the brightness, it is recommended to install a dimmer.
5. When connecting the tape, the contacts must be completely insulated, that is, not at all in contact with each other.

Highlighting the work area in the kitchen: installing tape

1. Sizing takes place using a tape measure.
2. The required length is cut off on the tape with a margin of 1-1.5 cm to release the contacts.
3. Before gluing, completely degrease the surface.
4. Cable segments are soldered to the contacts, then connected to the power supply.
5. It is necessary to install a profile and a special box in which the remaining wires will be hidden.
6. A switch is installed and connected to the LED strip.

Efficiency, versatility and durability of such a backlight brings it to a leading position. However, she also has a weak point - the power supply. It is worth noting that it often fails, so you need to install it in a place where it will be quite simple to replace it with a new one or make repairs.