Can I mix Fluorescent and LED ?

[Paul N]

I have three Aurora Fluorescent linkable (linked) under cabinet 'strip' lights (c.21cm each) under the kitchen cabinets and over the sink area (but not directly above) put in by the builders in 2006 when it was built.

The middle Aurora strip light has failed and needs replacing - the Aurora company has been sold on and now only do LED linkable lights.

Do I replace all three with Led linkable strip lights or can I replace the middle fluorescent under cabinet strip light with an LED linkable so it will go Fluorescent - LED - Fluorescent.

Thank you for your time.

Paul

 

[SJD]

Couple of things to watch out for:

1. If there are 3 lights under a row of cabinets, often they are linked one to another with cables designed for the job. Over the years, the style of the plug/socket has changed slightly, so a new plug won't always fit an old socket. So you might find you can't just link them with the manufacturer's cables. Of course, if they are all wired separately, this may not be an issue.

2. If mixing lights, watch the colour of the light output. LED link lights tend to come in 3000K or 4000K, but also you can get ones now that are colour switchable, often they will do 2 or 3 colours (e.g. 3000K, 4000K and maybe 5000K). It will look odd if you have one light a different colour to the fluorescents. The fluorecent tubes will often have their colour marked on as a suffix (e.g. /840 means 4000K)

Personally I'd just replace all 3, they only cost £10 to £20 each depending on the size (length).

 

[Paul N]

Couple of things to watch out for:

1. If there are 3 lights under a row of cabinets, often they are linked one to another with cables designed for the job. Over the years, the style of the plug/socket has changed slightly, so a new plug won't always fit an old socket. So you might find you can't just link them with the manufacturer's cables. Of course, if they are all wired separately, this may not be an issue.

2. If mixing lights, watch the colour of the light output. LED link lights tend to come in 3000K or 4000K, but also you can get ones now that are colour switchable, often they will do 2 or 3 colours (e.g. 3000K, 4000K and maybe 5000K). It will look odd if you have one light a different colour to the fluorescents. The fluorecent tubes will often have their colour marked on as a suffix (e.g. /840 means 4000K)

Personally I'd just replace all 3, they only cost £10 to £20 each depending on the size (length).

Thank you for your quick and excellent response - I hadn't thought about the cables changing over time.

I'll replace all three.

Thank you once again.