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LFI International 2010

Are you planning to attend LIGHTFAIR INTERNATIONAL 2010 to learn about Phantom Lighting Projectors or Cabinet Lighting Products? Come see us next year in New York to view our new LED lighting fixtures. See you there!

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Phantom Lighting - Tips from the Manufacturer

Original lighting fixture manufacturer specializing in fine art lighting, art lights, picture lighting as well as custom cabinet lights, shelf lighting, cove lights and low voltage display illumination. - See The Light, Not The Fixture!

Thursday, June 18, 2009

 

Under Kitchen Cabinet Lighting

Architects and builders order Phantom TL series linear strips anytime they need a source of under cabinet kitchen lighting capable of meeting all the complex demands of custom kitchen cabinet lighting. Our diversity of trim and lamping options makes this unique task light adaptable to the under surface of any cabinet, and its exceptionally small size makes it very easy to conceal behind the front lip of the cabinet.

We built this versatility into our under kitchen cabinet lighting fixtures because we know how important countertops are to custom kitchens. Just as they function as much needed work areas, counter tops are also foundational design elements. Builders will go to exorbitant lengths and invest expense to install a marble or granite counter that sets the entire tone for interior kitchen design. Because this is such an important room, the appearance of kitchen countertops often plays a pivotal role in establishing home sale price.

The two greatest enemies of countertop aesthetic are reflective glare and shadow. Glare creates white spots that can irritate the eyes of people handling utensils such as knives. Shadows make it hard to distinguish between shades of color, which in turn makes it hard to see food products clearly. Uneven kitchen undercabinet lighting diminishes the aesthetic of custom stone work that characterizes many modern kitchens. To combat these enemies, architects must use under cabinet kitchen lighting fixtures engineered with better trims and more precise angles of light distribution. They must also turn to any number of both traditional and non-traditional festoon lamp designs in order to find the very best color temperature to match to the particular material and design of the countertop they are illuminating.

Phantom lighting strips are intended to function as linear templates that can be customized to specific lamping and trim requirements on a case by case basis. For example, beam distribution angles range from 88 degrees to 166 degrees, depending on which trim you select. Because our under kitchen cabinet lights mount on the forward under surface of the cabinet, the light shines backward across the countertop. While this does not reflection, most of the light that is reflected travels away from the eyes and illuminates the backsplash. This is a much better method lighting a counter than using puck fixtures, which are notorious for creating white spots beneath cabinets. A concealed source also results in more attractive presentation than one produced by visible fluorescent fixtures. In spite of the energy-saving qualities of fluorescents, they invariably create an eyesore by shining glare toward the viewer, and by visibly protruding below the cabinet surface.

A better aesthetic luminance that also saves on energy costs is the new Phantom LED festoon lamp. It is capable of producing a lumens output equivalent to a 5 watt xenon lamp, yet it operates at only 1.7 watts. Its patented heat sink technology draws forward throw heat away from the cabinet and the counter, making this a truly cool-burning source of illumination. Capable of reducing energy costs by as much as 60 percent, the Phantom LED festoon gives homeowners he option of leaving their under kitchen cabinet lights on as decorative luminaires for extended periods of time. Our warmest color temperature, the 2800K, is a close approximation to xenon, and one that is highly favored by builders who install marble and granite countertops. Cooler counter top colors, such as white and off white, are often lit with our 2950K series LED cabinet lighting.

For architects who prefer color temperature ranges between 2600-3000K, Phantom also installs xenon lamps in its linear strips in order to provide that traditional, luxurious lighting effects that xenon has always been famous for. Although the lamp life is much shorter than that of LED (7500 hours as opposed to 40,000 to 50,000 hours), dimmers on our cabinet lights let users offset normal power consumption, driving down operating costs and extending lamp life as a result. Dimmer controls also offer the added aesthetic matching decorative and task lighting levels to precisely compliment general kitchen lighting.

Phantom under kitchen cabinet lighting strips are custom-made to fit the exact specifications of every cabinet undersurface. Trims and lamping options are based on cabinet surface area, material build, color, and decorative pattern. These options are chosen with the help of a Phantom Lighting specialist who knows your industry and can help you match our technology to functional and decorative expectations of your clients.

Our in-cabinet lighting supply facility is located in Houston, Texas. We then distribute these nationwide through our network of lighting suppliers that encompasses all 50 states into cities like Keahole, HI (KOA), Dallas, TX (DFW), El Paso, TX (ELP), Duluth, MN (DLH), Charlevoix, MI (CVX), Montrose, CO (MTJ), Telluride, CO (TEX), Dubuque, IA (DBQ), Mason City, IA (MCW), and Chicago, IL (MDW). We also service clients internationally, with lighting manufacturer representatives working out of Canada, Mexico, Central America, and South America.

We invite you to contact us toll free 800-863-1184 to obtain more information on all of these options. You can also request literature on our main website, visit our mobile website, or read through the many informative summaries and FAQs located on our lighting blog. All of these resources contain a wealth of information about our custom; low-voltage lighting products that are the dream come true of art lighting designers and cabinet lighting builders on two major continents.

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Countertop Lights & Counter Top Lighting

The Phantom TL light series under the cabinet lighting fixtures are an exceptional source of countertop light for any task needing to be performed in the kitchen. We aim to provide the architect, the builder, and the lighting designer with complete freedom of choice when it comes to countertop light. Each counter top fixture is custom cut to match the precise dimensions of a cabinet under surface. Due to their impeccable engineering, Phantom under cabinet lighting fixtures can also perform important aesthetic functions beyond their obviously practical purpose.

Phantom countertop kitchen lights are dimmable, and they are better able to evenly distribute illumination across counter top surfaces than are standard under cabinet lights. Color temperature options range from the warm LED 2800K up to the cool 5000K in LED, xenon, or incandescent choices. Lamping options range from the traditional incandescent and decorative xenon, to a revolutionary, patented LED festoon lamp that has been engineered to carefully approximate the color temperature and decorative appearance of xenon.

We cannot stress enough the importance of countertop lighting solutions. The kitchen counter is quite possibly the most important surface area in the entire room. Food is prepared here, and many cooking tools and appliances are also showcased here. It is absolutely necessary that we properly illuminate the countertop so that any person who enters the kitchen can clearly see variances in colors and safely handle utensils such as knives. A good many lighting manufacturers advertise all types of fixtures that to give the best and cheapest source of counter top light. Most of these fixtures are energy saving fluorescents that have been designed specifically for the do-it-yourself (DIY) home improvement hobbyist. These lights are fine for the smaller kitchens we normally find in homes, hotels, and apartments. In the more sophisticated domain of custom in kitchen cabinet lighting, however, a more contemporary and chic quality of countertop light is required.

This is because of many reasons. To begin with, larger homes have larger kitchens simply because of design proportions. If each room in the home is larger than its equivalent in a much smaller house, then common sense tells us that the kitchen is also going to be larger. A larger kitchen will have considerably more countertop surface area, and light from generic fixtures will not adequately light its entirety. Shadows will still show up beneath cabinet corners and along the corner of the backsplash. If the light is not positioned correctly, or if it has too wide a beam angle (as most retail under cabinet lights do), then it will cast reflective glare back into the eyes of the person working in the kitchen.

There are other considerations that must be taken into account when you choose and undercabinet 12 volt light fixture for a high-end kitchen. Every kitchen countertop in a custom home will be much more than a functional work area. It will be a work of ornamentation in its own right, often crafted from the finest cuts of marble and granite. Both the type of lamps used, and the color temperatures of the lamps themselves, must be carefully chosen in order to match the countertop colors and designs. Otherwise, the multi-dimensional elements of marble and granite often will look as though they have been flattened out beneath the light. Custom stone work also requires illumination that is carefully angled so it will direct reflected light away from the eyes. Ideally too, it will be adjustable to match surrounding general room lighting. This prevents the counter top surface under the cabinet light fixtures from appearing too dark or too light in relation to the rest of the counter. It also makes the room look bigger and much more vibrant for events like cooking parties and family dinners where the kitchen functions as the hub of gathering and entertainment.

When all of these factors are considerate together, architects and builders freely admit that the best source of countertop light installation in a custom kitchens is the TL series Phantom strip light. With special glare shields that shine the light at an angle across the countertop toward the back splash, forward-mounted Phantom fixtures direct light away from sensitive eyes. This better illuminates the intricacies of the rich colors and patterns of stonework. Precision lighting control is also available through our technology through dimmers that allow luminance to be set to levels appropriate to any occasion.

Our undercabinet linear lighting manufacturing facility is located in Houston, Texas. A network of nationwide lighting supply sales agents fans out throughout all 50 states into cities like San Juan, PR (SJU), Isla De Vieques, PR (VQS), Fajardo, PR (X95), Erie, PA (ERI), Killeen, TX (ILE), Sheridan, WY (SHR), Casper, WY (CPR), Parkersburg, WV (PKB), and Escanaba, MI (ESC). We also service clients internationally, with lighting manufacturer representatives working out of Canada, Mexico, Central America, and South America.

We invite you to contact us toll free 800-863-1184 to obtain more information on all of these options. You can also request literature on our main website, visit our mobile website, or read through the many informative summaries and FAQs located on our lighting blog. All of these resources contain a wealth of information about our custom; low-voltage lighting products that are the dream come true of art lighting designers and cabinet lighting builders on two major continents.

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