1.Cove Lighting

LED has greatly improved the installation of cove lighting because the dark patches (between fluorescent tubes) have been eliminated.  However it still requires a quality LED product to work well – the colour, uniformity, power and dimming must all be good.

From a design perspective – the important thing is to prevent reflections & flare off the LED onto adjacent surfaces.  The size of the upstand shield and the area to allow the light to spread are important and these will vary with finishing materials – the darker or more reflective may need more space.

Until recently LED coves were purely decorative features, but nowadays they can make a useful contribution to the ambient lighting.

(C)Owl Lighting

2. Ambient Uplighting

Now that we have higher power and better quality linear LED more ambient uses are possible.  There are many occasions where linear is taking over from downlights as the main source of ambient lighting and not just in rooms without flat ceilings.

The quality is always an issue, because there are so many low quality inexpensive products now on the market.  Quite often it will be necessary to combine a good flexible LED with a channel/lens combination that will provide the right optical control.

Bedroom design (C) Figura. Lighting design (C) Owl Lighting.

3. Under shelves or cupboards

Linear can sometimes be a better option than individual lights for under lighting situations.  For task lighting the appearance is usually more crisp.

Ideally the LED channel should be recessed or hidden but still allow to light the entire target surface.  Reflections of the LED should be avoided by using a sufficiently diffuse cover and careful horizontal positioning of the channel.

Kitchen design (C) Figura. Lighting design (C) Owl Lighting

4. Invisible Light

In many buildings linear LED can be recessed away out of sight.  When positioned well it can combine a strong feature effect with useful ambient light to become the main source of lighting.

5. Backlighting

Linear is ideal for backlighting splashbacks in kitchens or other luminous surfaces where a high degree of uniformity is wanted.  It can also be an instrument for displaying objects in sillhouette relief to great effect.

All photos/projects (C) Owl Lighting.

If you would like project design advice or help in specifying & purchasing some linear LED please get in touch on : 01962 738689, info@owl-lighting.co.uk