RGBW LED lights make this kitchen shine

This impressive Northamptonshire kitchen project is a great showcase for the benefits of 4-colour (RGBW) LEDs over traditional RGB colour-changing lights. Choose cosy warm-white light from dedicated LEDs or a perfect crisp pure white by mixing red, blue and green lights – it’s up to you!

At the heart of Simon’s kitchen lighting installation is a combination of InStyle’s 10-watt and 20-watt RGBW LED tapes. These lights use quad LED chips – that’s to say, LEDs that house four separate diodes of different colours (red, green, blue & white) which can be mixed to produce any shade of light you wish.

Traditionally, 3-colour RGB LEDs could be used to create white light by mixing their red, green and blue outputs equally. This method produces a very cool, crisp white light which is great for business/retail locations, or domestic applications like bathrooms or swimming pools, but often doesn’t feel ‘warm’ enough for living rooms, bedrooms or dining areas.

This is where 4-colour RGBW LEDs come in. Our new strip lights offer a significant advantage of over traditional 3-colour LEDs – each LED houses an extra light chip that outputs white light, from a choice of shades and tints. (our support page on colour-changing LEDs has more information.)

Simon’s kitchen project uses RGBW LEDs with dedicated warm-white chips, which give the room a rich, homely feel in the evening. But in daylight, he has the option to choose a cooler, purer light instead, by mixing red, green and blue the old way. Dedicated warm-white LED lights at night Pure-white LED mix in daylight

Controlling the mix

To control the LEDs, Simon fitted two multichannel LED receivers, which he paired to a wall-mounted InStyle 4-zone controller. He also installed a wifi receiver/adaptor, enabling lighting control via a smartphone app (Android or iOS).The LEDs are split across two lighting zones, which can each be mixed and controlled independently. “All the photos are of both channels same colour, but we can control the under worktop lighting separate to the uplighting,” Simon explained.The project used nearly 30 metres of LED tape, all pre-cut and soldered to length by InStyle’s specialist electricians, and the whole installation is powered by just two Meanwell LED transformers (320-watt and 150-watt, both IP-rated water resistant).

Feature lights

A central feature of the kitchen is its cut-out skylight ceiling, which houses a striking chandelier-style hanging light. RGBW LED uplights are installed around the cut-out, which can be used to create fantastic effects on the hanging glass beads.

The project also includes a variety of other feature and highlight effects, in addition to the kitchen’s primary lighting: Coving, countertops and ceiling lights all in sync Detail of coving LED feature-lights Skylight LEDs enhance the room in daylight The view from outside Downlights in daylight Countertop downlights & twin fitted high-chairs Counter-top downlights at night “I used mini trunking for the uplighting,” Simon told us when he talked about his approach to the project. “Against the white upstand, it is hardly noticeable and the tape fits like a glove. I glued it to the wall and held it in place with tape for 24 hours to ensure it stayed perfectly straight without bowing. “All of the power supply and receivers are concealed under the plinth, so easy to access if they need maintaining. The power supplies are isolated at the main light switch in the room, which is also next to the wall controller. This way, we are not using any power on standby when not in use. “