Hotel guests are quick to develop their first impressions, and lighting plays a crucial role in this process. Even if a hotel’s interior design is well planned, ineffective lighting will throw a wrench in the entire presentation, leaving guests feeling uncomfortable and uninvited. Advancements in LED chip technology have allowed for a whole range of attractive, efficient, cost-saving options for hotels, hostels and guest houses worldwide. In this post we will explore some of these options for hotel lighting with LED strip lights in particular—focusing on lobbies, bedrooms, bathrooms, bars and restaurants, as well as pools and patios. Hotel Lobby Lighting Hotel lobby lighting strongly impacts a guest’s initial impression of a hotel, setting the stage for a positive experience throughout his or her stay. For luxury hotels or those seeking a sleek, modern feel, indirect cove lighting is an excellent choice. The technique involves running LED strip lights in ledges or recesses along the top edge of a wall or ceiling mounts, to shower indirect, evenly distributed light across the lobby. The technique is popular because of the high quality, even application of light it produces. It also conceals light fixtures, giving the lobby a more elegant, simplified feel. For lobby wall decorations and artwork, use high CRI LED strip lights as accent lighting to render colors as vividly as possible, providing a particularly stunning presentation. Hotel Guest Room Lighting Guests at your hotel will remember the atmosphere of the rooms, and lighting is sure to play a critical role. For hotel room lighting, as with hotel lobbies, indirect cove lighting is a great option because of the luxurious, elegant, and evenly distributed light it provides for your guests. Setting up LED remotes and dimmers in the room will give guests control of the lights’ temperature and...

The latest in a long line of creative Flexfire LEDs customers, Nick Hopkins wanted to complete a DRL (“Daytime Running Lights”) modification on his 2004 Suzuki GSX-R motorcycle. After some research, he decided to use our UltraBright™ Design series Bright White LED strip lights for this distinctive DIY motorcycle LED mod. To install the lights, he started by cutting the LED strips to size. He then soldered the strips together and set them in a plastic fiberglass casing he made himself. As a finishing touch, he plastidipped the fiberglass casing in black to match the color of his bike. The 12v DC lights were then wired to the battery (which also runs at 12v DC) so they would come on every time Nick starts the engine. Daytime Running Lights are generally installed for safety reasons. Once installed, DRLs automatically switch on whenever the engine is engaged, increasing a rider’s visibility on the road. For a number of reasons, Flexfire LEDs strip lights are the best solution for motorcycle DRLs. First, they’re highly energy efficient, so they won’t tax your bike’s battery; also, they’re made of top quality components, meaning you can rely on them to function years into the future. Finally, they’re incredibly bright, making them a safer option than other low quality alternatives. Our high quality LED strip lights are the brightest on the market, built to the quality standard you’d expect and trust. They are rated to last for 50,000 hours of continual use, meaning they’re likely going to last for the entire lifetime of your bike. In Mr. Hopkins’s case, he was so pleased with the results that he shared a picture on our Facebook page. “Everyone can’t believe how bright they are,” he commented. We’d like to thank Nick for trusting Flexfire LEDs with his...

Many people come to Flexfire LEDs with an interest in using LED strip lights for an indirect lighting project. Using indirect light is a vast aesthetic upgrade over cold, direct overhead light, and by using LEDs you will save on energy costs while living a more responsible and sustainable lifestyle. Here then are four indirect lighting ideas to add focus, texture and layering for your next home lighting redesign. Above and Under Cabinet LED Lighting Does your kitchen lack good lighting? With LED strip lights, also known as “tape lights,” adding beautiful, bright, indirect lighting to your kitchen is easier than ever. With our strong adhesive-backed strips, kitchen light remodeling is now a DIY project. Our experts can help walk you through the installation process, so you can easily attach lights where you want them, without any visible wires or components. Adding strips to a kitchen will add character, color and effective task lighting to the space you use to prepare and enjoy meals on a daily basis. For under and above cabinet lighting, we suggest our UltraBright™ Architectural series, which comes in three different color temperatures of white — warm, natural and bright. Under Counter LED Lighting Indirect, under counter LED lighting is a great way to add lighting appeal to commercial and residential spaces. Popular in bars and restaurants, the technique is also used at home to add flash, personality and warmth to home bars and kitchens. Adding RGB remote-controlled or single color strips  is great for parties and giving the lighting setup a creative flare. Also, consider adding light strips under the counter kicker for floor lighting in kitchens and bathrooms. Flexfire LEDs’ UL listed UltraBright™ and ColorBright™ series LED strip lights come in a variety of colors and light temperatures to match...

“There’s nothing quite like the pleasure you get from plants and flowers,” he said to himself. “They certainly do cheer you up.” ― Charmian Hussey, The Valley of Secrets Over the years we’ve had many customers come to us with questions about DIY LED grow lighting. Taking care of plants is a pleasurable activity that can provide food for a family or offer a portal to nature within the home. Not only that, but being around plants actually increases memory retention and emotional stability. LED lights provide a rich, full spectrum light, are extremely energy efficient, provide even, directional light distribution and emit very little heat — leading to a less expensive garden with richer results. Those interested in indoor gardening should follow these steps to build a DIY LED grow light guide using Flexfire LEDs strip lights. DIY LED Grow Light Parts: UltraBright™ 24v Architectural Series LED strip lights* Aluminum bars for heat dissipation Adhesive pads Silicone RTV silicone Nylon ties Solderless LED strip connectors (strip-to-strip and strip-to-power) Female coaxial connector with screw terminals for wiring 24v LED strip light power supply * Even when working in an indoor environment, consider Outdoor 24v Architectural LED strip lights to protect against humidity and also allow for easier cleaning DIY LED Grow Light Directions: Start by cutting the strip lights to match the width dimensions of your project. Check for markings after every third chip to locate the appropriate place to make your cut. After that, peel off the paper over the adhesive backing and attach the strips along the aluminum bar mounting. The aluminum will act as a heat sink, protecting your plants from excess heat and extending the lifespan of the LED chips.   From here, attach solderless connectors to the strip lights. For added stability, tie down...

Chickens raised using an intelligent poultry LED lighting system have been found to produce higher quantity and quality of eggs, develop into maturity at a faster rate and enjoy an improved standard of health as compared to chickens raised under traditional light sources. Using LED-based technology chicken farmers can: Lower lighting costs Increase musculoskeletal development and weight gain Induce earlier maturity for hens destined to lay eggs Increase egg output and quality Regulate reproduction cycles Increase length of reproductive life Furthermore, farmers can adjust the color of the LED lights to promote certain outcomes. For example, using red light, farmers were able to stimulate sexual activity and reduce the amount of feed necessary to produce each egg — even though there was no difference in the size, or quality of the egg. The red LED lights were able to increase egg production by up to 38 per hen while decreasing food consumption by 20 percent. Green lights promotes chicken growth at early stages of development, while blue light promotes growth later along the life cycle of the chicken. Blue and green light improved feed conversion (the efficiency at which an animal converts animal feed into desired output such as eggs or meat) by up to 4%, and therefore reduced cost per pound of the chicken by up to 3%. Why is Poultry LED Lighting Superior to Traditional Poultry Lighting? Visible “white” light is actually composed of a range of colors, which can be viewed by refracting light through a dispersive prism. Incandescents, the most common form of poultry barn lighting, are missing many critical portions of the full spectrum found in sunlight. For instance, an incandescent bulb produces a highly diminished amount of both greens and blues. CFLs produce only narrow bands of color in...

Looking to increase your boat lighting’s functionality and/or “bling” factor? If so, you’re not alone — we here at Flexfire LEDs get calls all the time with questions about installing LED strip lights in boats and yachts. So many in fact, that we’ve decided to share a few ideas and address some of the more common issues with this sort of installation. Whether you’re running a skipper or a barge, taking your boat out for pleasure or for fishing, LED strip lights are a great solution for low energy lighting that can be fully customized to meet the individual size and lighting demands of your boat. The first thing to consider when looking into LED strip lights for your boat is to determine whether the lights will be exposed to environmental elements such as water or sand. If you’re considering LED strips for your deck lighting, or perhaps outside of the hull, make sure the lights are rated for outdoor use and water protection. Each of our LED strip lights has an IP rating that specifies the amount and type of protection it receives from the elements. IP ratings consist of two numbers — the first number refers to the amount of protection against solid objects, and the second refers to liquid protection. The numbers for solid object protection run from 0 (no protection) through 6 (full protection), while the numbers for liquid protection run 0 through 8. A fully waterproof LED strip light would thus have a rating of IP68. For deck accent lighting, we suggest our colorful, customizable and versatile IP65 Outdoor ColorBright™ LED strip lights, which come in static red, green and blue, as well as remote-controlled color changing RGB. Many people call us looking to generate the attractive indirect glow they’ve seen on other boats. To achieve this...