Recently, light elements, in particular tapes, are very often used when tuning a car. They are used to illuminate discs, underbody, vehicle interior. Workers of an auto repair center are well aware of how to connect an LED strip in a car, but if you decide to act independently, then you should familiarize yourself with the following useful information. I want to note right away that an important plus of LED tapes is that they are prepared as much as possible in order to carry out their installation on their own. In addition, they not only look spectacular, but are also economical, very durable (they work about 5 thousand hours) and are made of waterproof material.
Step 1. How to connect the LED strip: select the installation location and the length of the strip
First of all, decide on how often your car you want to install LED backlight. After that, you will need to determine the length of the tape that you need. Remember that such a product can only be cut at multiple intervals (for example, the SMD 3528 Q60 tape is cut every five centimeters). When calculating the length, this must be taken into account. You should also know that the width of the tapes with LEDs does not exceed two centimeters with a thickness of two millimeters, and the standard length of the tape in the reel is five meters.
Step 2. How to connect the LED strip: which strip to choose
From which place for installation you have chosen, depends on what tape you need to purchase. So, for the illumination of the bottom, LED strips of waterproof material are used, on which a transparent coating of silicone is applied. Such a tape can be selected either single-color or multi-colored, on which LEDs of three colors are installed. The latter option is very popular because, due to the mixing of these three colors, the tape is able to emit any shade and color.
For illumination under the hood, you need an LED strip with heat shrink. And in order to highlight the bottom of the front seats in your car, you will need a tape with LEDs on a self-adhesive basis. In general, LED strips, due to their length and flexibility, can be attached to where your imagination allows.
Step 3. How to connect the LED strip: select the power supply
Based on the fact that LED strips come in various voltages (5, 12 or 24 V), you need to purchase an appropriate power supply unit for the tape. To do this, it is best to seek the advice of a professional to minimize the risk of an unsuccessful purchase.
Step 4. How to connect the LED strip: we carry out the installation and connection of the strip
When you have purchased all the necessary goods, you have to prepare the selected surface for the installation of LED strip. The mounting location should be thoroughly degreased (for example, using alcohol). In general, it is best if the selected surface is solid, which helps to avoid damage to the ribbon circuit board. In the event that you have to mount on a metal surface or any other conductive, insulate the tape.
If the tape does not need trimming, then immediately proceed with its installation. Using the adhesive layer on the back of the LED strip, this is very easy to do. After removing the protective coating, press the tape to the surface.
Now you need to connect the tape to the controller and power supply. This is done using tape wiring. Each wiring has its own designation (G, B, V +, R) on the conductive path. We connect (in accordance with the polarity) to the four inputs available on the controller with the same designations (G, B, V +, R).
Now we connect the power supply to the network (220V) using two wires to the N- and L + connectors. We connect the “plus” on the block to the “plus” on the controller and the “minus”, respectively, to the “minus”. The voltage polarity cannot be confused in any case, since this can lead to damage to the tape and equipment failure.
Now you have learned how to connect an LED strip in a car. And if we take into account the fact that today almost every owner of a car can afford to buy such a product, then feel free to go to the nearest point of sale of auto products or open the page of the corresponding online store.
And good luck on the road!