Integrator nixes the Romex in this smart home, running low-voltage cabling to power and control 77 LED fixtures from LumaStream.
Michael Buckner, owner of Audio Intersection in Canton, Ga., finally took a chance on low-voltage lighting, recently installing 77 LED fixtures, all powered and controlled over 18-gauge wire—not a Romex in sight.
He was quite pleased with his first LumaStream job, which is a good thing because it was installed in his own house.in the foothills of the North Georgia Mountains.
Prior to this job, Buckner had attended LumaStream training in Saint Petersburg, Fla., after a year of watching several low-voltage lighting vendors enter the custom-electronics channel.
The emerging category was enticing for a low-voltage integrator like himself, but it would take guts and training to wire and install lighting in a whole new way.
“It was my view that a premium low-voltage LED lighting solution with panelized remote drivers was an attractive proposition for a custom home integration specialist,” he says, “and I was excited for the opportunity to experience the process for the first time while building my personal home.”
Goodbye Romex, Hello 18-Gauge Wire
“It was my view that a premium low-voltage LED lighting solution with panelized remote drivers was an attractive proposition.”
For prewire, the techs ran a lightweight 18-gauge stranded wire to each fixture—a far less onerous task than hauling heavy Romex around. The wires terminated at four 12-channel power supplies connected to a single electrical circuit—a pretty efficient process.
Buckner says his lead technician, even as a LumaStream first-timer, breezed through the installation, likening the process to working with audio components.
Buckner used two different types of LumaStream fixtures: 75 of the trimless adjustable 4-inch round downlights, and two aluminum wall sconces for the kitchen. Lights are controlled with Lutron HomeWorks QS Palladiom keypads in 11 rooms of the house.
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