How to Light Kitchen Cabinets on Top

Well-lit cabinets are more likely to be clean.

Kitchen cabinets are one of the most prominent features of any home, and their appearance and quality shapes the environment of a kitchen. This, in turn, really impacts the feeling of a home, as the kitchen is often the most important room of a home. Lighting improves the look of kitchen cabinets and is practical as well, helping you to see that the top of the cabinets is clean and well organized. Lighting on the top of the cabinets creates a nice, soft glow.

Things You'll Need

• Pencil
• Flat shelf lighting
• Drill
• Drill bit
• 1/2-inch wood screws
• Carpentry stapler

Instructions

1. Position the lights in the desired location on top of the cabinets with the bottom of each light flush to the top surface of the cabinet and the light bulb pointing up at the ceiling. Test the lights to verify their arrangement is even and produces an attractive lighting display. Mark the location of the screw hole attachments with a pencil. Pre-drill the holes for the screw attachments using a drill bit smaller than the screws.

2. Arrange the electrical cord along the top of the cabinet and attach the individual lights to the cabinet top with wood screws. Tighten the wood screws lightly to make sure the plastic casing of the shelf light does not crack.

3. Straighten the electrical cord along the top of the kitchen cabinet. Secure it in place using the carpentry stapler, being careful not to allow any of the staples to pierce the cord itself. Remove and re-staple any staples that puncture the cord, then seal the punctured area by tightly wrapping it out to 1 inch on either side of the hole with electrical tape. Continue to secure the cord until it reaches its power source, either within the wall or through the wall outlet.

Tips & Warnings

• Lights should be arranged within the cabinet so that the dishes are evenly and attractively lit. Larger cabinets may require two or more lights in each cabinet.

• Lights installed in lower cabinets may need to run up through the upper cabinets. In this case, the cord can be installed in the corners of the cabinets, where it is not visible from the outside perspective.

• Lighting can also be wired to an automatic switch which is installed near the hinge, which turns the lights on and off when the cabinet doors open and close, saving money and producing a very calming effect.

• Staples which puncture the electrical cord can touch the inner wires and conduct electricity. Thus, the lights should never be connected to a power source when the stapling is being done.

References

• Ask the Builder: Under Cabinet Lighting
• Budget Lighting: How to Install
• This Old House: How to Install Undercabinet Lighting