Rope Lights

Rope or cable lighting is a great way to add indirect lighting to either interior or exterior areas. These lights come in a small diameter tube that you can add to or cut down in length. When used for deck lighting, hide them under a railing for indirect perimeter or accent lighting. Inside, use them under cabinets or behind crown moldings. Look for them at the home center. They come in kits and various lengths.

- Stephen Corwin

(If anyone has these, or uses them, let me know...we are thinking about them around the arbors.)

-- Anonymous, July 18, 2001

Answers

I never bothered with them, I just use the plain christmas lights. A string of one hundred for less than 4 bucks. I'll let you know how long they last. We have two strings up on the patio that we put up in 1989. yes, 1989. I took them down for Andrew, but put them right back up afterward. Still working.

A friend from work always puts them under the kitchen cabinets in her apartment. Great nite lite, and helps with close lighting on the counter when the kitchen light is behind her head, which it is at our house since the light is on a ceiling fan. You can't help but block the light on what you are doing on the counter. We also, because they were free, put three 3' flourescents on top of the cupboards. With the white ceiling they are 'overlybright' and tend to light up the kitchen and the patio outside.

I have also used the christmas lights [oh, did I mention they were white bulbs? anway..] around the inside of the closet doors to help in there as well. We plug them into extension cords, and then put a cord switch on the extension cord. [Outside they are plugged into outlets that are on a switch]

I have yet to do it, but think of it everytime I stub my toes, but I have always wanted to put them under the edge of the bed frame. With dark carpet they would light up anything around the bed but not reflect too much and make the bedroom bright at night. Since they are low voltage most of them could remain on, depending on where you put them.

I have considered putting the white ones, or maybe blue, around the whole house, behind the lip of the eave so they are out of direct sight and sunlight. The glow they produce at nite on the house is rather neat. Our house is painted grey, so I think the blue would be kinda neat. It's just that it would shine in the windows too, but so does the moon and the streetlight [orange, yuck!] And besides, isn't that what window blinds are for???

I wonder if the lights in those rope tubes would be okay under water. Be kinda neat to light up the pond at night with those. Just put them uder a rock ledge but below the water surface. Hmmm... And the part that comes out of the water could be wrapped with electrical tape to block those that You don't want to shine... Hmmmm maybe I should try that.

-- Anonymous, July 18, 2001

Barefoot, DO NOT put lights under water!!!

Git, can you tie him up for a while until this notion passes??

-- Anonymous, July 18, 2001

Helen, the rope lights are inside plastic tubing, sealed except for the very ends, and possibly even those.

I was considering putting the middle of the tube under water, and taping the ends that come out of the water so they don't show lite. This would create a possibly interesting effect under water, especially if they blink.

The ends, which would be the most likely place to leak water in, would be outside the pond.

Besides, the lights are rated for indoor/outdoor use.

I guess you have to see the product to understand what I am saying...

-- Anonymous, July 19, 2001

Yeah, Helen, pass me the duct tape. . .

Gardenerssupply.com has solar-powered pond lights and they come in several colors. Solar fountains too.

-- Anonymous, July 19, 2001

Mailman, I use the white christmas indoor outdoor lights and have the low voltage lights as accents around the whole house. I thought about the tube rope light for the ponds, too.....

I am very careful with electric and water....that's why I was asking!

oh, yea..we have the pedistool waterbed, and I "tacked" up the lights under there..NICE effect! haven't done it at this house, but when we had the mirrored canopy it was awesome!

-- Anonymous, July 19, 2001

mirrored canopy...[tapping finger on chin]...hmmm...

-- Anonymous, July 19, 2001

That SAR--looks so innocent in that photo, doesn't she?

-- Anonymous, July 19, 2001