Recommendation points
For several years now, LED ceiling lighting has been an integral part of almost every renovation. Many do not dare to do this work on their own, considering it very difficult. But is it really so? In this article we will help you make your own LED ceiling lighting.
So, let’s begin. We have just finished renovating one of the rooms. The ceiling cornice has a complex shape.
Important! Experts in LED backlighting strongly recommend putting an outlet into the eaves plasterboard box, into which the power supply or transformer will be connected in the future.
We decided to follow the advice and preliminarily brought such an outlet into the plasterboard box of the cornice.
Necessary materials and tools for our work
RGB LED Strip
Ceiling lighting experts note that LED strips have several advantages over neon tubes:
- LED strips do not get very hot, unlike neon counterparts.
- LED strips are much more durable than neon tubes.
- Neon can only shine with one color, while LEDs can change color (you need to use RGB tape to change color).
- Neon tube is several times more expensive than LED strips.
There are many different options among LED strips, but experts recommend using SMD3528 or SMD5050 LED strips. SMD3528 tapes – less bright than SMD5050, but cost almost three times cheaper.
This work uses SMD3528 tape.
Power Supply
The power supply must be selected directly for the type of tape and the operating current. The operating current of the SMD3528 tape is 0.4 A per meter. If your tape is no longer than 2 meters, then a 12 volt power supply with a current of 1 A is sufficient. If your tape is 5 meters long, then a power supply of at least 2 A is required.
Controller
If you want to make the LED ceiling light in one color, then you don’t need a controller. In our case, the LED ceiling lighting will be multi-color and multi-mode. The big plus of most controllers is the presence of a remote control.
Getting started
We are trying to collect a “working sample”. To do this, we connect in one circuit: the power supply, the controller and the LED strip. This is not difficult to do. You just need to connect all the plugs together.
Connecting the controller and tape.
We connect the power supply and the controller.
We plug the power supply into the outlet.
Making sure the whole chain works.
Next, we measure the length of the tape we need. You can cut the LED strip only in certain places. They are marked with a special strip.
Cut the length of the tape you need.
Since the LED strip on the back side has an adhesive base on which it will be glued to the cornice, the base must be cleaned of dust.
Remove the protective film from the LED strip.
After that, you can proceed with the installation of the LED strip on the edge of the plasterboard cornice..
Next, connect the LED strip and the controller.
And connect the power supply to the controller.
It’s time to insert the power supply into the outlet and bring the controller’s IR signal receiver for the remote control to a place invisible to the eyes, but at the same time in line of sight of the control panel.
We turn on the backlight using the remote control. To do this, press the ON button on the remote control and make sure that everything works.
With the remote control, you can change the color of the backlight. To do this, just press the button of the color that we want to turn on. Test the backlight in several modes.
In addition to color, using the remote control, you can control various modes of illumination.
Now you know how to make your own LED ceiling light.
The cost of the kit: a power supply, five meters of LED strip and a controller will cost you from 1,000 to 2,000 rubles, depending on the manufacturer and the store where you can purchase this kit.
