Hi all.
We’re fitting a new kitchen and want to fit plinth lights, under cupboard lights and lights on top of the cabinets.
Usually these just switch on at a plug, but is there any way we can wire them together and have them all switch on at the same time from a light switch?
They will all obviously be led’s.
I’m a bit clueless so many thanks in advance.

Yes it can be done., ……but pretty much all electrics these days need to be done by a sparks and if your having a new kitchen fitted and your changing the electrics….then it needs to be signed off also

Don’t worry, the electric work will all be done by an electrician. Just really wanted an idea before I ask him, so I know whether it can be done?

Just give consideration to whther you want them all coming on with a single switch – splitting them into two switches (say plinth on one switch and under/over cupboard on another) would give you more lighting flexibility.

If can be done. You can either add round pin lighting sockets and plug the various transformers in or hardwire the lot. I’d go for the sockets as it adds flexibility. You can also put multiple switches in. Its handy to be able to switch the under cabinet lights on from the worktop.

Edit, echoing the above, I presume you mean a single switch point rather than all from one switch. Pretty wasteful and inflexible to have them all on one single switch.

Yes, it can be done. Look on eBay for LED lighting strips for under cabinet / plinth lights. They’re labelled by the LED type (5050, 5030 etc which refers to the LED size (5×5, 5×3 etc).

Be wary of using a small transformer, you’re looking at ~15W/m for the brightest LEDs. You can get a range of sizes:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/LED-Strip-Light-LED-Driver-Power-Supply-Transformer-AC-110-240V-DC-12V-24V-/301610568178?var=&hash=item46396409f2

Yep. This is what we’ve done across the house – we rarely use the main lights in the lounge and dining rooms so our side lamps are all plugged into sockets that are controlled by wall switches.

They should be onto round-plugs and sockets though.

Well, Mrs Squad wanted them all on one switch so they’d all come on at once.
To be fair, she will probably just want them all on at the same time, but its nice to know that the original idea is at least possible.
I’m of the thinking that she can have whatever she wants after putting up with our old kitchen for eleven years.
Poor girl.

but pretty much all electrics these days need to be done by a sparks and if your having a new kitchen fitted and your changing the electrics….then it needs to be signed off also

Not quite. The building reg “part p” was relaxed a couple of years ago. You don’t need to register additions in a kitchen any more, only new circuits, so unless he’s fitting a dedicated circuit for the lights he’s fine. But……. It still should be to current regs and be tested and a minor works very issued ( which doesn’t need to have NICEIC or the like on it)
IMO plinth lights are awful things, the strip led under/up lights are nice when fitted.
Easiest way is to spur from a s/o to a switched fcu then run a radial circuit to each point that the transformer needs plugged in.
Best option is to run them from the light circuit but usually causes a lot of damage.

Don’t discount IKEA led strips. We’ve just re-done our kitchen. We used led strips from ikea under the wall cupboards all flush fitted with decorative panels either side. The cables are hidden and run off a plug and multi socket transformer. Wireless switch.

Only thing is…when the power in the house goes off..and comes back on the lights automatically turn on..

We have the high end ikea stuff (utrusta) wired in to a lighting circuit, so comes on when you flick a switch by the door (like the main lights do, though separate).

Just work out where your units will be and so where the lights need wired in, then tell your electrician and they’ll sort it out. However, if you don’t know what you’re about maybe decide on the lights first so they can spot any problems if you can’t.

E.g. I have two runs of top cabs, the lights I have just need power at the left-most unit then they daisy-chain together. So I had the wall switch wired to two wires coming out the wall just above the base of the top cabs at the left-most edge, so the wires were in the right place for the lights and hidden.

Well, Mrs Squad wanted them all on one switch so they’d all come on at once.

Well, you could have them wired separately but initially onto a single switch. They could then be easily split onto a two gang switch when she realises she was wrong. 🙂

Do you really think she’d admit she was wrong??

mugsys_m8 – Member
Don’t discount IKEA led strips. We’ve just re-done our kitchen. We used led strips from ikea under the wall cupboards all flush fitted with decorative panels either side. The cables are hidden and run off a plug and multi socket transformer. Wireless switch.

Which model did you buy? I’m looking on the Ikea website now and can’t see a wireless switch version.

Omlopp. Think the switch and transform ers are called something else. There is likely a kitchen lighting guide. At least there was in France. Really rate it esp flush fitted with chippie panels underneath the cupboard and the lights in all the drawers… if you send me your email can send you some photo’s. Can’t be bothered posting them on a website to post them here. Sorry!

mugsys_m8 – Member
Omlopp. Think the switch and transform ers are called something else. There is likely a kitchen lighting guide. At least there was in France. Really rate it esp flush fitted with chippie panels underneath the cupboard and the lights in all the drawers… if you send me your email can send you some photo’s. Can’t be bothered posting them on a website to post them here. Sorry!

Thanks for the reply. Email address en route.