Illuminated stairs: advantages and features, system options

How to highlight the steps so that it is convenient, beautiful and economical. Personal experience of the craftsmen of the FORUMHOUSE portal

A comfortable and beautiful staircase is one of the main elements of the interior of a two- or three-story country house. In addition to beauty, the stairs must be safe, especially when children and elderly people move along it at night. For this, the steps are highlighted. How to make a LED staircase lighting system with your own hands and what do you need to buy for this? All the answers are in our material!

What is staircase lighting for?

At first glance, it seems, of course - for beauty! See how the stairs look spectacular in the evening or at night with lighting.

Beauty is just one of the advantages of backlighting. Proper staircase lighting simultaneously solves several important tasks at once.

henc

FORUMHOUSE member

The staircase connects the two storey spaces with each other. It turns out a high-rise transition. When a person walks this passage, he should feel safe. The longer the transition, the better it needs to be illuminated in the dark. Lighting improves the aesthetic perception of the staircase. Lighting can enhance the spatial effect of a staircase, for example, connecting a staircase to rooms or, conversely, separating them.

Let's show how it works with examples.

Competently selected and installed staircase lighting focuses attention on it and makes it the central element of the interior in the house.

With the help of illumination, you can "hide" the staircase or visually change its dimensions.

Although, not all homeowners make a staircase with LED lighting in a cottage.

Smith2007

FORUMHOUSE member

I think that all these flickering on the stairs will not lead to anything good. The light coming from the bottom up will attract the attention of children. They will play on the stairs. Yes, and I feel uncomfortable when the light hits my eyes. At home, I made the staircase lighting like this - I mounted 4 LED lamps with a power of 0.5 - 1 W each on the ceiling. The light falls from top to bottom. The lamps turn on by a timer when it starts to get dark. Very comfortable at night.

ChookER

FORUMHOUSE member

And I have been illuminating the steps of the stairs for two years. It is very convenient when you go down at night.

Do you want to make a staircase in your house with a lighting system? Below we will talk about several options for lighting steps.

Where to start making stairs with lighting

Take a sheet of paper and write down your wishes for the highlight on it. For example, you liked a photo from the Internet or a video showing illuminated stairs. You take them as a basis and customize them to suit your needs. Let's say you want to:

• The steps were illuminated when you step on them.
• The illumination of the steps was turned on step by step, as you descended or climbed the stairs.
• The entire staircase was illuminated at once.
• The backlight was turned on by a key on the wall or, automatically, by a motion sensor.
• The backlight worked constantly or turned on only at night.
• The backlight flickered, burned in one color, or shimmered in several color shades.

Think ten times before choosing the last option. It is one thing for commercials with multi-colored illumination of steps, and quite another for observing the end of the light on the stairs at home.

There are many scenarios. You have to choose your own. Assess your strengths and capabilities and only then proceed with the installation of the staircase lighting system.

Ideally, the staircase lighting system is laid down at the stage of its design, and not left for later, on the basis of the principle: "I'll do it somehow."

Three examples of making staircase lighting

We have collected the best ideas of the portal users, who independently assembled and installed the staircase lighting system.

1. Concrete staircase lined with wood.

Transfer

FORUMHOUSE member

Wooden steps at a monolithic staircase protrude 30-40 mm. When ordering boards on the steps, they chose a groove in widthLED strips. A ribbon of white glow was cut into pieces 1 m long. I put the lighting through the step. Before finishing the walls, we made grooves and laid in them a corrugation with a diameter of 16 mm, from step to step. I hid the transformer in a technical box. Power supply of the tape is 12 V. I turn on the backlight with two switches, above and below the stairs.The LED strip is glued flush into the steps, so the light does not blind the eyes.

When gluing LEDs into steps, especially wooden ones, remember that they need heat dissipation. This extends the life of the backlight. Use an aluminum profile to dissipate heat.

Transfer offers another staircase lighting project using wall-mounted luminaires.

Important!For such illumination of the steps, take "blinds" lamps so that the light can be directed at an angle downward. So he won't hit you in the eye. Mount three lamps on each wall.

Don't make your stairs very bright. Otherwise, the light will hit your eyes. It is unpleasant.

2. Budget lighting of a wooden staircase.

Lorrer

FORUMHOUSE member

I have a simple wooden staircase in my dacha. I glued an LED strip at the bottom of the steps. The light is directed downward. The backlight turns on by a motion sensor when you approach the stairs. When viewed from above, the tape is not visible. When you go up, the diodes are noticeable. Ideally, it was necessary to cut grooves in the steps and close them with a diffuser.

3. "Smart" staircase lighting.

Portal user with nickname vmirny made with his own hands automated staircase lighting based on a photosensitive machine and a time relay.

vmirny

FORUMHOUSE member

I put 17 pieces. LED lamps. The lamps are in the wall. The installation step is 1 m. The light-sensitive automatic machine and the time relay switch on the lighting. The system works like this:

• In the evening, the light-sensitive machine turns on the backlight. It burns for about 24 hours.
• After 24 hours, the backlight turns off the time relay until 6 a.m.
• In the morning, the backlight stays on until 8-9 hours. When it gets brighter, the machine turns it off.

At first I installed only a light-sensitive automatic machine, but did not want the backlight to stay on all night. So I bought a time relay. The price of the automation issue is 5 thousand. rub. If at night you need to go down or climb the stairs, I turn on the chandelier that hangs above the stairs.

DIY staircase lighting: blitz – Questions and answers

How does automatic staircase lighting work?

Install motion sensors in front of the first and last rungs of the stairs. When you cross the range of one of the sensors, the staircase lighting will automatically turn on.

At your choice, you can configure different modes of operation of the backlight: turn on the light sequentially, change its brightness, etc.

What equipment to choose for staircase lighting?

You can buy a ready-made kit and assemble the lighting of the steps as a designer. The system includes:

• motion sensors;
• controllers;
• relay;
• LED strips;
• transformer;
• wires for connecting the system to the mains.

The advantage of the system out of the box is the ease of installation.

You can buy separate electronic boards and LEDs for self-assembly and programming of the backlight system. Here you cannot do without the skills of electrical installation and soldering.

How to install LEDs on stair treads?

Manufacturers offer many options:

• plastic staples;
• in the invoice profile;
• built into the steps;
• in the embedded profile;
• in the profile embedded in the railings;
• in the profile built into the railings;
• in the corner external and internal profile.

conclusions

Any home craftsman can make a lighting system for the feet of the stairs in a country house. The market offers from the simplest to the most sophisticated lighting options. For their installation, if you choose ready-made solutions, you do not need specific knowledge or skills. It is enough to follow the instructions in the instructions. Experienced DIYers can assemble "smart" systems tailored to their needs.

Got something useful, caught fire? Put your finger on!

Learn more in the topic Staircase lighting.

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In the video - installation of electricians and "engineers" in a country house.

Did you do the backlight?