Under Cabinet Lighting
by bluegillman



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  • bluegillman

  • What brand of lighting do u cabinetmakers use under the cabinets?

  • How many do u put under one or space from one light to another?

  • How many "hockey puck" lighting does it take on one transformer?

  • Dimmers?

  • Where is it located?




  • Lou Miller [Re: bluegillman]


  • I use either Juno Trac12 lights or Progress Hide-a-lites.

  • I prefer the Juno myself, but I offer both to my customers.


  • General Comments:
  • I install light rail moldings on the bottom of my wall cabinets and the lights are tucked right behind the molding, fastened to the bottom of the cabinet.

  • They end up about 10-11" from the backsplash and they run the entire length of the kitchen.

  • The switch is almost always put somewhere in the backsplash at the same height as the outlets.

  • I use Seagull transformers and I install them in the sink base cabinet.

  • There's a reset button on the transformer, so access to the transformer is a must.

  • The transformers come in different sizes and they are based on wattage.

  • You design your system first and figure out how much wattage you'll need and then buy the transformer accordingly.


  • Once you see this type of lighting, you'll forget all about hockey puck lights.

  • There's absolutely no comparison between the two.

  • The system for the kitchen I'm doing now cost about $400.

  • It's worth every penny though as the look you get is awesome.

  • I've done some kitchens that were really incredible with elaborate cabinets, counters, etc.

  • I get as much, if not more positive feedback from customers on the lights as I do anything else.




  • Joe Lyddon [Re: bluegillman]

    Blue & Lou...

    Is it OK with you guys if I add the main text of this thread to my Collection?

    I don't think I have anything on Lighting yet...
    This is SUPER information!

    Thank you!



    bluegillman [Re: Joe Lyddon]

    Sure, you're welcome to it!   I like to see what other like about the lighting the best and which brand is their all time and the consumer's favorites.   I'm hunting for one and want it to look the best!



    LearningFast (newbie1) [Re: Lou Miller]

    Lou, great information!   Do you happen to have any pictures of a typical light rail on the bottom of your cabinets?   How tall is the rail?   I imagine this is so you can have a single track rather than through the cabinet sides?
    Thanks again!

    PS.   Sorry you were not able to make the wood meetup in S. Jersey on Saturday.   I was looking forward to meeting you.
    Tom



    Lou Miller [Re: LearningFast (newbie1)]

    You'd think I would have some good pictures, but I really don't.   I'll take some of the kitchen I'm working on now when it's done (about another week and a half).   I should take more pics, but I don't since all of my customers know each other, there's really no need.


    Here's a pic of a kitchen I did a few months back.   This customer did not want any lights though.

  • I did install a typical light rail molding though and you can see it in the pic.   It's about 1 1/4".

  • I let the doors come down 1/2" past the cabinets though so you only see 3/4" of the light rails.

  • It's more work, but I think it makes the light rails look nicer when you see less of them.



  • Just my opinion.   Almost all of the cabinets I make are frameless.   On framed cabinets though (it's been a while) we always would just make a notch in the cabinet sides right behind the frame for the track to run continuously with the Juno lights.


  • For the Progress, we would just order the correct size unit for the cabinet and have a bunch of individual units (just make a small hole (3/8") for the wires).   I always just used a router to make the notches for the Trac12 lights after the cabinets were mounted, it only took a minute or so.


  • I was really bummed about not making the meet.   I was looking forward to meeting everyone as well.   Dave's a great guy, I hope you all had a good time and continue to buy from him.   You all have to try and meet him at his mill though.   The prices are much better, and it's fun watching that saw slice up those logs.



    bluegillman [Re: Lou Miller]

    Talking about lighting...   I looked in your site about your work.   I liked view of the top of the cabinet that is "covered" and the white painted birch kitchen, I notice the microwave dim's depth at amost 14 and it looks like you made the cabinets flush with it so is it at the depth 14 inches?



    Lou Miller [Re: bluegillman]

  • In the Birch kitchen, they are 13" deep.

  • In the Oak kitchen, they are 13-3/4" deep.

  • Add the doors and you get 13-3/4" and 14- 1/2".

  • I installed mass produced cabinets for a lot of years and never liked the typical 12" deep wall cabinets.

  • I always felt that interiors should be a little bigger.   So I've always made mine deeper than normal.   How much depends on the layout of the room.

  • I don't think either micro is flush with the front of the cabinets, it's probably just the way it looks in the pictures.   Especially the birch kitchen because everything is white, so it's hard to tell in the picture where things end.   IIRC, the micro in that kitchen sticks out about 2" beyond the doors.




  • bluegillman [Re: Lou Miller]

    You got the right answer to what I wanted to know.   Yep the microwave looks flushed in the photo.   I, too, didn't like those 12" deep cabinet, I'm building mine at 13.1/2 deep with the doors at 14.1/4".   I just didnt like putting those cereal boxes on top of the ref.




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