The Ultimate Guide to Buying Cabinet Lighting

For years the only lighting options available for cabinetry and furniture were the tried and true incandescent or fluorescent fixtures. The choices today include lights that are not just economical to use but are also good for the environment. Review this guide to buying cabinet lighting so that you can make an informed decision as you choose lighting for your cabinets, furniture or showcases.

Task vs. Accent Lighting

In this lighting buying guide, it is important to distinguish between two different types of lighting: task and accent lighting. Task lighting, as the name suggests, provides lighting for tasks like reading, cooking, playing games or working on your computer. The lights are usually brighter in nature to prevent eye strain and are directed at work areas like kitchen counter-tops, desks and computer stations to make it easier to focus on a particular task. Additionally, these lights never have distracting glares or cast shadows that would interfere with a workspace. Although portable lamps can achieve task lighting, home designers often use recessed or track lighting for task applications as these types of lighting blend nicely with home décor.

Accent lighting, on the other hand, focuses a higher concentration of lighting on particular area or subject so as to create a visual centerpiece or point of interest. For instance, accent lighting may be used to highlight a sculpture, painting, display case or architectural feature. In order to properly highlight a point of interest, the accent light pointing to it should be about 4 times brighter than the background light. Accent light fixtures usually need to be able to swivel to point directly at their target, but some recessed and track fixtures are available that are suitable for accent lighting.

To help compare brightness in this lighting buying guide, we've determined which lights are considered intense enough to be used as task lights and which are suitable only as accent lights. The lights were tested at a distance of 18” above a work surface, which is the typical height of a standard kitchen upper cabinet above a countertop. Keep in mind that as the distance increases or decreases from the 18” used in the test, the light intensity will increase or decrease respectively. Look for individual Lumen ratings in the charts to compare intensity from fixture to fixture.

Light Quality Key

- Cool White: A blush, white light

- Warm White: A yellowish, white light

- Lumens: A unit for measuring the amount of brightness that comes from a light source

Light Bulb Types

In this part of our guide to buying cabinet lighting, we’ll focus on comparing four very popular light bulbs; LED, Xenon, Halogen (premium and economy) and fluorescent bulbs. The Chart below grades each bulb based on three different categories, each with their own different measures of quality. Refer to the descriptions below the chart for more information on each specific type of bulb.

Bulb Comparison Chart

Bulb Comparisons		LED	Xenon		Halogen		Fluorescent
					Premium	Economy
Light	Color Clarity	Excellent	Very Good		Good	Good	Fair
	Light Color	Warm & Cool White	White		Warm White	Warm White	Warm White
	UV Emissions	None	Yes		Yes	Yes	Yes
	Heat Emissions	Negligable	Medium to High		High	High	Low
Energy	Energy Consumption	Very Low	Medium High		High	High	Low
	Wattage	1 to 3 Watts	18 Watts	10/20 Watts	10/20 Watts	10/20 Watts	7 Watts & Up
	Replacement Bulb Costs	Non-Replaceable	Medium		Medium	Medium	Low
	Lamp Life (Approx.)	50,000 Hours	8,000 Hours		4,000 Hours	2,000 Hours	10,000 Hours
Other	Bulb Base	Diode	Wedge	Bi-Pin	Bi-Pin	Bi-Pin	Twist-Socket
	OK to Touch	Yes	No		No	No	Yes

 

LED (Light Emitting Diode) – These light fixtures are steadily taking the lead in kitchen cabinet and furniture lighting applications. They are incredibly efficient and emit virtually no heat as 80% of their consumed energy is used for light. These lights are generally more expensive than halogen or xenon lights, but the fact that they operate at full brightness for up to 50,000 hours and use only 1 watt of energy per diode mean they pay for themselves many times over. Choosing these as your display cabinet light bulbs will help both the environment and your pocketbook in the long run.

Xenon – These light bulbs don’t have any filaments inside them. Instead, light is created by an electrical current channeled through xenon gas in an arc. These light bulbs last much longer than halogen lights (up to 8,000 hours of lamp life), use less energy, but cost a little more than an economy halogen light. Xenon bulbs have medium to high heat emission levels.

Halogen – These light bulbs are brighter and last longer than incandescent light bulbs. They also last up to 10 times longer than fluorescent bulbs. A halogen bulb is actually similar to an incandescent bulb except that halogen gas in the bulb rejuvenates the filament and keeps soot from being deposited on the insight of the bulb. These bulbs are generally less expensive than LED’s and have lamp lives of up to 4,000 hours. One disadvantage of using these as your display cabinet light bulbs is that they burn very hot and may not be a good fit in some applications.

Fluorescent – These light bulbs convert electrical power into useful light more efficiently and cooler than an incandescent lamp. That’s because the actual light is produced by electricity exciting mercury vapor in a glass tube. The lower cost of energy usually offsets the higher initial cost of a fluorescent fixture, making them a great way to save money while illuminating your cabinet. Smaller compact fluorescent lights (CFL) have been developed in sizes that make them popular for use as display cabinet light bulbs, as well as in kitchen cabinets and furniture. However, because of mercury in the light, it’s important to remember that fluorescent lights must be segregated from general waste for recycling.

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