cabinet lighting - brands

[andrew whicker]

Hi,

I'm looking for under cabinet puck lights.

I found a Canadian brand, Dals, which looks high quality (instructions, specs, catalog are all professional) vs the std Chinese knock off (anything on Amazon basically). The prices are a lot different. I know nothing about lighting. Is the reputable brand significantly higher in quality or is this the situation where they are made the exact same, but with different logos?

The price difference:

Dals, Wi Fi w/ remote, 3 pucks (SM-UPK3): $110

Knock off, no Wi Fi w/ remote, 4 pucks: $35

Just FYI, I'll probably go w/ Dals because I like nice stuff. I think even the photos on Amazon show lower quality remotes, etc.

[Mark Bolton]

Ditch the puck lights and run LED strip lighting. Way more cost effective, less expensive, easier to install. Puck lighting is kinda 15 years old. You can buy 16m rolls of LED tape in pretty much any color and a transformer, a bag or two of plug connectors for cab connections, and you can install them in the shop and they are plug and play in the field. I always include a hidden rotary dimmer under a cab somewhere because most people find a brightness they like and they run on/off from a switched receptacle.

[Malcolm McLeod]

Ditch the puck lights and run LED strip lighting. ...

+1, try www.superbrightleds.com. I used them on a 3-tier illuminated bar display shelf w/ touch dimmers (1 up / 1 down): easy, fast, good selector tools (I was ignert of usage.)

[andrew whicker]

I don't like the look in this scenario. I like the cones of light look.

[Jim Becker]

I believe Lee Valley has LED puck lights...at least they did.

[Frank Pratt]

I've used a ton of the Lee Valley LED lighting & it is of solid, consistent quality. I know the OP doesn't want the tape look, but I'll offer an important tip. Don't mount the tape directly to the cabinet surface, particularly for all but the lowest power tape. The aluminum extrusions they sell to mount the tape on are not just for looks. They act as a heat sink, which greatly extends the life of the LEDs. I've seen tape that was stuck to the cabinets begin to fail within a couple of years. The LEDs get dim & have some really weird color shift.

[Tom Bender]

Connections to the tape lights can be unreliable. I tried and tried to solder with no luck till I tried a little paste type flux. Presto!

[Paul F Franklin]

I've used Armacost lighting strip lights quite a bit and have had no issues; they also sell puck lights. Lee Valley's strip lights are from Armacost; not sure about the puck lights.

[Jim Becker]

Connections to the tape lights can be unreliable. I tried and tried to solder with no luck till I tried a little paste type flux. Presto!

I never had any unreliability issues with the tape I bought from Lee Valley...the clips worked very well if the tape was trimmed correctly and square.

[Jared Sankovich]

I prefer recessed puck lights to strips or led tape (for counter lighting.)

https://www.hafele.com/us/en/product/recess-surface-mounted-down-light-monochrome-round-loox-led-3010-24-v/0000008d0001f9fa00020023/

[David Zaret]

i use the 24V LED lighting from Richelieu - it's high-quality, and mixes-and-matches with various LED tapes, channels, pucks, etc. it's worked quite well for my projects.

[Phil Gaudio]

I've had good success with Hafele lighting for kitchen under-cabinet applications, and I just installed a few in an enclosed cabinet (see below). These are the standard puck lights, and Hafele lets you choose the beam spread and color temperature as well as the wattage. There are so many options that, admittedly, it can seem overwhelming.

https://i.postimg.cc/fLc6WsWN/IMG-3143.jpg (https://postimg.cc/YGSX8Jmn)

[Rob Sack]

Having used everything from the original Hafele sunlight halogen system to puck lights to LED strips, I find the LED strips inside the aluminum channel and plastic snap in lens the best. My only complaint is that I have yet to find a system with a reliable connector system. Any recommendations?

[Craig Mascolo]

I've used a lot of puck lighting on cabinet projects over the years, but switched to LED strip lighting on all projects a few years ago. They provide great light for tasks and accenting and lend a high end touch to all projects requiring lighting. However, stay away from the cheapies (on Amazon, et al) and go with established LED companies like FlexFire.