Unlike standard fluorescent tubes a cold cathode lamp has no cathode heater, has no flicker on start up and is not a fixed length. The sort of situations one would employ cold cathode lighting include, ceiling cornices and domes, wall wash effects, back lighting of panels and counter fronts, in fact anywhere soft subtle effects are required.
Cold cathode is available in a whole variety of colours and the tubes can bent to fit virtually any shape.The electrode configuration allows you to butt the tubes together giving completely seamless light output. The pictures below show cold cathode in use in not only in commercial premises but also domestic situations.
Low Voltage Cold Cathode:
In a low voltage installation the transformer used never exceeds 998 volts output. Anything below 1000 volts is deemed low voltage within the electrical regulations. With this type of installation there is no fireman’s switch required. These transformers only power one tube per transformer winding (we use dual output transformers where possible). The transformers whether wire wound or electronic have full dimming capability and are particularly compact. The electronic type transformers are mounted adjacent to the tubes and the wire wound variety can be mounted some distance away. The individual tubes used in low voltage installations are limited to approximately 2000 mm in length and are 20 mm diameter. We can produce smaller diameter tubes but the overall length you can run on one transformer reduces accordingly. With a low voltage installation there is no likelihood of arcing or buzzing from the HT cables and tubes. This is the system that has become the industry standard throughout Europe.
High Voltage Cold Cathode:
Here a transformer with an output of up to 10000 volts runs several lengths of cold cathode tubing, each tube being up to 3000 mm in length. When this type of installation is used there must be a fireman's switch used to cut all power to the transformers in the event of fire. The transformers must be fully protected for earth leakage on the HT side, to meet the latest European EN 50107 standard. High voltage cold cathode is usually the choice for outdoor applications.
Cold Cathode
For more technical information cold cathode lighting please go to our page titled Cold cathode what you need to know.