By Dave Donovan
There are two choices when considering under cabinet lighting. They can either be plugged into an outlet or it can be a hard-wired system. Of course, the hard-wired system is much more involved as far as installations go. This article provides step-by-step instructions for a hard-wired installation. Instructions for installing a plug-in system can be found here.Choosing the lights that will fit your kitchen best is one of the first steps with any under cabinet installation. You can choose from bright fluorescent lighting or small, circular halogen lights. The fluorescents give off a lot of bright light that really comes in handy when preparing food. The halogens are not quite as "white," and they work beautifully as accent lighting when the kitchen is not in use.
The tools and supplies you will need for the hard-wired installation are:
- Drill with keyhole saw
- Screwdrivers
- Wire strippers
- Electrical tape and wirenuts
- Lamp cord and pressure connectors
- Drywall saw
- Wire fish
- Voltage tester
1. First, you will need to decide where the switch will be located. Are you going to install a brand new box, or are you replacing a current outlet? For this exercise, we'll be replacing an existing receptacle. Find the breaker that supplies power to the outlet and turn it off.
2. Lay out the lighting as explained earlier. Next, take the fixtures apart and screw them into their locations.
3. For a hard-wired installation, you will need to pry the backsplash away from the wall where the lights are being installed. Once the backsplash is off, cut a channel along the wall with the drywall saw, from under the box where the switch will be to the area where the last light will be. Use the drill and keyhole saw to drill a hole through the studs for the wire to travel.
4. Underneath the cabinets, use the drill and keyhole saw again to drill a hole where the wire for each light will be coming from. You may need to use the wire fish to run the wires down the wall from one light, through the channel and to the next light.
5. Starting with the last light in the line, begin running lamp cord from light to light. Leave about 12" of cord at each opening. So, at the last light, there will be a length of cord 12" long hanging out, and the next light will have two cords hanging out (one entering and one exiting), and so on and so on until you get to the "first" light after the switch. It should have one length of cord coming from the switch box and one leaving to the "second" fixture.
6. On the lamp cord inside the fixture, separate the wires and strip about 3/4" of insulation off the wires. At the first fixture, connect the wires with the wire nuts. The black fixture wire gets connected with one wire on the lamp cord with the plug on the end, and one wire heading to the next fixture. Likewise for the white fixture wire. Re-assemble the fixtures.
Note - The lamp cord will normally be one color for both wires. Follow the lamp cord from connection to connection so you keep the black fixture wires connected to the same strand of lamp cord.
7. At the outlet where the switch is going, double check that the power is off and remove the receptacle. Wire nut the white wire and the lamp cord wire that connects with the white fixture wires together. Screw the black wire that was on the outlet onto the bottom terminal of the switch, and the black wire that goes to the fixtures to the top terminal.
8. Wrap the switch with electrical tape, covering the terminals. Screw the switch back into the box. Install the switch cover and turn the power back on. Hit the switch and see if the lights turn on.
Now, replace the drywall that you had to cut out for the channel and put the backsplash back where it belongs. That's all there is to it. You no longer have to make casserole in the dark!
< Back to Part 1: Plug-In Under Cabinet Light Install
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