Led light strips are those cute bright, and shiny strips with lots of tiny led lights that can enlighten your home anytime you put them on. They are best to decorate your home on any occasion. If you want to beautify your sweet little house with some tiny small lights, then choose the led light strips. Here are 17 facts and instructions about led light strips.
1. What Are LED Light Strips?
2. LED Strip Light Vs. Fluorescent
3. How LED Light Strips Function?
4. Are LED Light Strips Safe
5. Are LED Light Strips Waterproof
6. Where to Put LED Light Strips
7. Where to Buy LED Light Strips?
8. How to Fix LED Light Strip?
9. What Is the Brightest LED Light Strip?
10. Why Are My LED Light Strips Different Colors?
11. How Long Do LED Light Strips Last
12. How to Test A LED Light Strip with a Battery?
13. How to Install LED Strip Light
14. How to Use LED Strip Light Connectors?
15. Where to Cut LED Light Strip?
16. What LED Light Strip Color Is Best for Sleep?
17. Are LED Light Strips Bad for Your Eyes
#1. What Are LED Light Strips?
The SMD & LEDs or Surface-Mounted and Light-Emitting Diodes are a light, flexible circuit board that generally comes with an adhesive backing. LED light strips can also be called as ribbon lights or LED tape. It is because you can fix them anywhere, just like tape. LED strips are generally used for backlighting, accent lighting, decorative lighting, and task lighting. There is a led light strip for the bedroom, a led light strip for a shadow box, and even a led light strip for the kitchen too. Besides you can use them in your bathroom, and hall room. You can use them to decorate your mirror or the interior of your car. There are various led light strips in the market, but they have some common characteristics.
• Led light strips are made up of many individuals led emitters. They are all mounted on a flexible narrow circuit board.
• Led light strips are energy efficient. They can be run on low-voltage DC power.
• There is a wide range of vibrant fixed and variable color options you will get. You can also buy it according to your preferred brightness level.
• Led light strips to come in a long reel of 5 meters or 16 feet, but you can cut it according to the length you need. They have a double-sided adhesive for easy mounting on any surface.
#2. LED Strip Light Vs. Fluorescent
Though led light strips are slightly more costly than fluorescent lights, they are cost-saving in the long run. A lot of factors led light strips to beat the fluorescent lights successfully.
• Lifespan- The lifespan of fluorescent lights is only 10,000 hours, whereas the Led lights will give you 50,000 hours of lifespan. By the time your led light strip wears out, you will have to buy four more fluorescent lamps.
• Watts- in the consumption of electricity too, Led lights wins. For the lighting system equivalent to a 60-watt bulb, a fluorescent bulb will require 14 watts, but the led bulb will require only 10 watts. So, in the long run, Led light strips will save a lot of extra money for you.
• Environmental Impact- Led lights are eco-friendly as they last longer and do not require any replacements regularly. As a result, they will cause less waste for the environment. Also, Led lights do not contain mercury, which is a toxic material for nature. But fluorescent lights contain 1 mg to 5 mg of mercury. Led lights also reduce the amount of Carbon Dioxide Emissions as they require less energy to power them.
#3. How LED Light Strips Function?
The strip of the Led light is a circuit board that is populated as well as flexible with Led lights. The Led lights are in the market for more than 50 years now and also, the technology beneath has progressed over the decades. Previously Led light strips are used predominantly for decorative applications of lighting. But now a day it has made sure a vast use because of its enhanced performance.
The light strips come with a large range of depths and lengths. Due to its narrow, delicate, and flexible nature, you can place them on areas like under the cabinets or around your doorways. You can cut the length and fix it on any material by peeling the tape. So to make a Led light strip work is straightforward. You can get various effects of lighting and colors quickly. If you use it in addition to the right controller or transformer, you can promptly dim all your Led light ribbons.
#4. Are LED Light Strips Safe
Yes, they are completely safe for daily use. It is are as safe as any other electric lights if you use them properly. In terms of electricity or toxicity concerns of Led lights, they are the best among all different sorts of lights. That is why most government buildings are now adapting Led lights to prevent fire and electric shock risks. The Led light does not emit any harmful ultraviolet light, but it releases a blue light that can slightly affect our health. The blue light stimulates the production of melanopsin. It is a hormone in our eyes that supports alertness. It is customary to take blue lights during the daytime, but if you are exposed to a lot of blue light in the evening, it will alter your body’s natural biological clock.
#5. Are LED Light Strips Waterproof
Though all Led light strips are not waterproof, you can buy the special waterproof led light strips anytime. So Led lighting is not limited to indoor decoration. You can decorate the outside of your home quickly during Christmas or Halloween. The waterproof Led lights are generally IP65 rated and have a silicone resin material to protect the strip’s components from water, moisture, and dust. The waterproof Led strips will cost you a bit more than the normal ones, but you should buy them if you plan to decorate outdoor. The Led light strip outdoor must be waterproof to avoid damage and short circuit from rain or snowfall. Cutting the waterproof Led light strips is also not troublesome. You can even easily re-waterproof them by using the proper end caps and a strong adhesive. You can use RTV 4500 Silicone Sealant for the end cap adhesion. And you can use Precision Micro Shears to trim back the silicone housing of the light strip.
#6. Where to Put LED Light Strips
You can use led light strips anywhere and everywhere to decorate that place.
#7 Where to Buy LED Light Strips?
You can easily buy your Led light strips from your nearby electric shop. You can even order them online from Amazon or any other shopping site. They are readily available everywhere. It would help if you made sure the brand you are trusting is good at service. Various reputed brands in the market can give you a long-serving led light strip in an affordable price range. Some of them are Pangton Villa Led Strip lights, Nexillumi 59ft Led Strip light, Cotanic 70 Led Closet Light, Govee 32.8 ft Smart Led Strip light, and WenTop Led Strip Lights Kit. You can easily compare them on the criteria of brightness, wattage, color and color temperature, flexibility, length, and operations.
#8. How to Fix LED Light Strip?
If your Led light strip stop working suddenly and you want to fix it yourself, then try this step by step method. There can be factors like a power problem, environmental problem, or controller damage.
If your led light strip does not light up at all, then at first confirm that the voltage of your power supply and current ratings are compatible with the led strip. You need to check the power supply unit’s back as it will have the output voltage marked on it. And at the connection points of the led light strip, you can find the input voltage mark. Check that the power supply is working correctly and isolate other accessories on the same circuit. Then make sure that all the connectors and wires are precisely in their places, and there are no loose connections. Try to tighten screws on DC adapters, then re-insert Led strips into solderless connectors as they are the most common failure points. If the Led strip has sections that do not light up, this is probably because there is an open circuit in one area. It can be due to manufacturing defect or damage during shipping or installation. To fix it, you can try reheating all LEDs’ solder joints along with the dead ones. But this task is risky; overheating can burn the entire circuit. So it is best to ask for a replacement.
#9. What Is the Brightest LED Light Strip?
Considering your Led light strip’s brightness is the most important because they will enlighten your house the way you want. Three metrics measure the brightness of your Led light strip. Out of them, Lumens is the most common metric. It is used to measure the total light produced by a Led. Lumens are calculated by putting Led inside a sealed, reflective sphere. The Led light then bounced around the globe, and by summing the flux of the bounce at one point, Lumen is calculated. The greater the Lumen is, the brighter the led light. The most luminous Led strip series is the 3020 Super Bright strip. It has 120 LEDs per meter and a power draw of 19.2 W/meter. So, you can easily compare and choose the better Lumen to get the brightest led light strip. Also, the SMD 5730 series is the most luminous LED strip as it contains powerful LEDs to create a lot of lights.
#10. Why Are My LED Light Strips Different Colors?
if the LEDs of your Led light strip show different colors or some are getting dim than the others, then the problem may be with the insufficient power supply. If one end of your Led light strip shows different color or brightness than the other end, then the power supply is not up to the mark. Then you need to check the power supply and make sure that the leader wire, which runs from the power supply to the head and end of the strip, is an insufficient gauge to endure the current.
#11. How Long Do LED Light Strips Last
Generally, a LED light strip lasts for 50,000 hours, as the manufacturers boast. It means it can last up to 6 years of continuous use. But there are a lot of factors that can influence Led life. The quality and the durability of the material of the strip and wires also decide the longevity. If the adhesive backing’s quality is low, then it will ruin the Led light strip quickly. Also, if there is any mistake or damage during the installation and maintenance process, it can lessen the led light strip’s life. So you need to clean and maintain and place your led light strips properly over time. And always go for quality over low price. It will eventually save you money in the long run.
#12. How to Test A LED Light Strip with a Battery?
It is not possible to supply current in all places. In places like, under cabinets, inside cars, bottom of the bathtubs, you cannot provide current for obvious reasons. Here you will need batteries to do the same job. You will need to use eight batteries of 1.5 V power if your Led light strip is 12 V (8 pcs*1.5 V= 12 V). You can also use rechargeable batteries for led light strips. It is of particular help while camping where you need to glow other items like lanterns, flashlights, etc., in the same way. To connect the led light strip with the battery, you need to join the ribbon’s positive wire to the positive side of the battery and the negative to the opposing side. Many led strip light batteries have a switch to turn off the light when you do not need it. The larger the battery will be, the longer it can glow the led light strips for you.
#13. How to Install LED Strip Light
There are four methods to install led light strips. At first, you will have to select the LEDs and power supplies. For this, at first measure the area where you want to hang or place the led light strip. The location should be close to the power outlet. Then check your Led light strip to know what type of voltage they require. The 12 V lights are more common and use less power. Then determine the maximum power consumption of your led light strip. You can do it by measuring the length of the ribbon and its watt per ft marking. Multiply the watt per ft with the total distance of the strip.
It will be the power consumption by your led light strip. Then multiply the power consumption b 1.2 to get the minimum power rating. Now that you know how much power supply you need, at least, you can finally connect the Led strip with the power supply. Use quick plug-in connectors to join separate Led strips. Use screws on connectors to cover any loose wiring. Then select red and black power wires to solder to the led contacts. Melt the ends of the wires to join them with the copper dots of the led strips. Join the opposite wires to other connectors or led strips. Then peel the adhesive backing off and put or press the led where you want, and it is done.
#14. How to Use LED Strip Light Connectors?
The connectors help to manage all the led light strips to run in sync. It avoids lights to flicker and go off unexpectedly. But you need to how to use connectors on led light strips at first. For this, you need to connect two strips end-to-end to make a longer length. Then run a gap in between two strip lights. Then click the power to the strips and make remote connections around corners.
By using connectors, you can avoid the use of solder iron. Though soldering is the most reliable option yet, it takes a lot of time. There are two types of connectors; 2 pins and four pins. 2 pin connectors are used for fixed color led light strips, whereas four pins are used for connection points on RGB or color-changing strip lights.
#15. Where to Cut LED Light Strip?
While cutting the Led light strip, you need to follow the cut line on the strip between the copper dots. You will find the pair of copper dots on the back of the led light strip. These sots indicate where each led light connects to the next one. Here you can find a dotted cut line running through the copper dots. This cutting is essential as if you miss the line or cut through or before the copper dots, resulting in no electricity conductivity to the following section. To cut it in one, go using a pair of sharp scissors. Then connect the quick connectors when the top is facing upwards.
#16. What LED Light Strip Color Is Best for Sleep?
According to recent studies, red color is the best color for your bedroom’s bedtime lighting. It is probably because the red color is the closest to the natural sunset color. So it naturally soothes our eyes and tends us to rest and sleep. The red color light during sleeping time can reduce depressive symptoms. Our retina has some light-sensitive cells named ipRGC. These cells can detect any light to help our brain regulate our body’s clock. These cells are most sensitive to blue lights and less to red light. So naturally, you will feel drowsy in the red light bedroom than a blue light one. But if you do not prefer red light for your bedroom, you can choose yellow, pink or other colors that come close to the color red.
#17. Are LED Light Strips Bad for Your Eyes
Yes, continuous exposure in blue led light strips can cause you itchiness, redness, and dryness in the eyes. You may feel a headache too. A lifelong exposure of the retina and lens to the blue Led lights can increase the risk of cataract and other age-related macular degeneration. The problem of headache happens if your led light strip flickers too much. The problem occurs, especially if you spend time in blue led light during evening or night time. They will cause you awake and alert and harm your retina in the long run. So it is better to put them away from your study table where you need to look at one thing continually.
The Bottom Line
So led strip lights are the best lights to decorate your home or office or any particular section you want. They are light, safe, flexible, and long-lasting. If you limit the time so that your eyes do not get overexposed to them, then there is no other matter with led lights. It is better than other lights, which also damage our eyes.
