Lighting
Under-Cabinet Lighting
Light on the counter instead of on your own shadow.
Under-Cabinet Lighting — what's involved
Overhead lighting puts you between the source and the counter, which means you work in your own shadow. Under-cabinet lighting is the fix: a light source below the wall cabinets, in front of you rather than behind, lighting the work surface directly. It is a small job with a disproportionate effect on how usable a kitchen actually is.
The difference between under-cabinet lighting that looks built-in and under-cabinet lighting that looks added is entirely in the concealment — the fixture set forward and behind the cabinet's face rail so no diode is visible from a standing position, and the wiring run through the cabinets rather than stapled along the wall. Electric Shock hardwires it wherever possible, because plug-in strips mean a visible cord and a receptacle doing a job it was not intended for.
Under-Cabinet Lighting
Photos of this work will appear here as jobs are documented.
Under-cabinet and task lighting
- Hardwired LED bars and linear tape in aluminum channel under wall cabinets
- Concealed wiring routed through cabinet backs and into the wall
- Dimmer, switch or occupancy-sensor control, on its own switch leg
- Colour temperature matched to the room's other lighting
- In-cabinet and glass-cabinet display lighting
- Toe-kick and open-shelf accent lighting
- Replacing old fluorescent or halogen under-cabinet fixtures with LED
The Under-Cabinet Lighting process
Find the power
Under-cabinet lighting needs a supply and a switch. We identify the nearest suitable source and the least invasive route, which is often through the cabinet run rather than through the wall.
Position for concealment
Set forward and behind the face rail so the source is hidden from standing eye level, and far enough from the backsplash to avoid a hot line of reflected glare on a glossy tile.
Run the wiring out of sight
Cable is routed through the cabinets and behind the backsplash where possible, so the finished job shows light and no hardware.
Control and match
Its own switch or dimmer, with colour temperature matched to the recessed and pendant lighting so the kitchen does not read as two different rooms.
What you get out of it
No working in your own shadow
This is the entire reason to do it, and it is immediately obvious the first evening.
Invisible hardware
Correctly set back, you see a lit counter and no fixture at all.
Usable low-level light
Dimmed under-cabinet lighting is a much better kitchen night light than turning the ceiling on.
Under-Cabinet Lighting questions
Still not sure? Send us the details and we'll give you a straight answer before anything is booked.
Hardwired or plug-in?
Will I see the individual LEDs?
Can this be added without taking the kitchen apart?
Often booked alongside this
- Recessed & Can LightingRecessed cans laid out properly and retrofitted into finished ceilings with minimal damage.
- Lighting Design & RemodelsWhole-room lighting plans for remodels — layers, switching, dimming and control zones.
- LED & Cove LightingHidden LED runs in coves, trays, coffers and soffits — light with no visible source.
Need Under-Cabinet Lighting?
Tell us about the property and what you're trying to achieve. Quotes are free and there's no obligation.
Start with a free quote
Pick Under-Cabinet Lighting from the service list below and tell us what you need. Photographs of the panel, the room or the equipment help us answer far more precisely.