Need kitchen caibnet lighting help

[Dick Keats]

Building our retirement home. SWMBO wants lighting on bottom of upper kitchen cabinets and I prefer European style cabinets without a face frame. Would much appreciate any suggestions for some kind of lighting configuration or type that won't look awkward considering there's no face frame to hide the lights and/or wiring. May build the carcasses myself and farm out doors and drawers so if there's some way I should build them to alleviate my problem, please advise. Many thanks in advance. Dick

[RBM]

If you don't mind the extra work, you can build a double bottom in a European style, with a 1" space between the layers, and install recessed halogen puck lights with remote transformers. I've done it a few times and they look great. If you don't mind a fairly thin self-contained halogen fixture, Juno makes the absolutely best ones I've ever used. They're called something like "pro halogen", or Xenon, if you prefer. These fixtures come with jacks built in on both sides, so you can snap an entire row together without seeing cables or connectors. They work particularly well on European bottoms

[Art]

Definitely get the lighting no matter what. We have some cabinets with and a few without and without sucks when you are trying to do something without under cabinet lighting.

[Phisherman]

You'll need about a 1" overhang (or valance) to effectively hide the lights. You don't want any glare hitting you in the face. There are now LEDs which take very little space. Rope lights might be what you want, but I'd give LED a strong consideration for less heat, compact size, availability and long-term cost. Some types of lighting may be harsh, eerie or leave weird shadows, depending on what you have, so maybe a temporary setup will be worthwhile.

As a side note: I built a 13-foot window valance so I can put indirect lighting on top of it. After much experimentation it turned out that a cheap string of multi-colored Christmas lights gave the best results.

[ransley]

warm white T8 flourescent are great and 75% more efficent than halogen or incandesant, In a kitchen you generate alot of heat, and halogens are hot and hard on the AC and bill. I use them under and above cabinets. With no board hanging down all lighting will be visable.

[RBM]

[Dick Keats]

Thanks to all for the excellent responses. Dick

[Art]

We have 12 recessed fixtures in a fairly small kitchen. They are no substitute for under cabinet lighting especially as you get older.

[aemeijers]

Part of that problem is that most upper cabinets are set way too low, so that 5-5 housewives can reach into them. Hard on tall people like me.

-- aem sends....

[Dick Keats]

Perhaps I should have mentioned that exterior walls are 10' high. Kitchen, dining and family room are one big area with a 5/12 pitch cathedral ceiling. Dick

[dadiOH]

1. Build the cabinets with the bottoms about 3" above the bottom of the sides and back.
2. Put a valence strip under the bottom so that it is flush with sides and back.
3. Install cabinet(s)

1. Drill a hole thru the back under the bottom and feed thru romex

2. Wire in a single bulb fluorescent fixture and attach it to the back. Decide on the fixture to be used before building the boxes as some of them require more room than others.

[Stormin Mormon]

Some years ago I got a short fluorescent for under my cabinet, over the range. Makes a world of difference. About five bucks at Walmart. Or fifteen bucks at Home Depot.

I've not tried the new LED under the counter lights. They may be OK. I like fluorescent, though.