LED Strips - Whats the deal?
You've probably seen all sorts of videos or posts about LED strips. But what are they, why are they such a big deal and where to get them?
WHAT ARE LED STRIPS?
An LED strip light is a flexible and long strip of LED lights that you can stick where ever you want to add light and effect. You can usually get the strips with an infrared controller that allows you to change the brightness, colour and mode such as flashing, still or fading.
LED strips usually have cut lines in which you can cut it down to size for your certain project. They are completely flexible and can be bent around objects, again making them perfect for any project. They can be hidden away in most places such as behind desks or under counter tops. This is because of the think profile they have. To stick them to your required surface, all you have to do is peel the 3m tape from the back to reveal the glue/tape side of the strip. Additional protection can be added to make the strips water and dust resistant or proof.
There is also different types of strips. For example, there is standard strips which I will talk about mostly and there is also ones with a USB connector on one side so that you can connect them straight to a device with a USB female port such as your computer or monitor. This means that as soon as the device turns on the strips get power and also turn on.
EXAMPLE OF THEIR USE.
The first example of the strips being used is in gaming, work and office set ups. They can be put in places such as behind computer monitors or on the back of a desk. A YouTuber named Marzbar (Alex Brooks) is known for using them all over the place.
As you can see in this picture he has tonnes of colours and lights around the room. He has strips mounted to almost all of his equipment and it gives it a glowing colourful effect. Some people think he has gone over the top however this is just an example of what awesome things you can produce with such a simple thing.
Next, you can use the strips in other parts of the house such as the kitchen, I love this effect as it can give your kitchen a much more modern feel as you can see below. This shows how thin and easy to use they are as you can put them in thin places such as under counters and you still cant see them.
There is tonnes more examples such as garden, stage lighting, building signage and even hand rails/walkways however you get the point so I will just input pictures for you to see the great things you can achieve with such a simple strip of light.
HOW TO CUT, CONNECT AND STICK THEM!
So, now that you know what they are and what they can be used for, you need to know how to use them.
1. Unroll amount of LED strip that is required for your project. Cut the strip using the dotted cutting lines to make sure it is all the correct size.
2. After that, connect the starting end where the connectors are to the Infrared box, then the box to the power supply, make sure that the strip is working by plugging it in.
3. Once this is done take the backing off the tape then stick the strip to your required surface, be that your desk, monitor, TV or anything else.
It is as simple as that. If you have some spare of the LED strip then you can buy additional connectors etc to use it up. If you find that the tape is starting to lose its stick then you may want to use staples to keep them up or even cable management kits such as tie wraps.
WHERE TO GET THEM?
So the best place to order LED strips would be Amazon or Ebay. They are the cheapest of all the strips however you can get some really good quality ones. This is where I have got all of mine from. I will link some different ones that you can try.
Price: £7 - £25
