Dancing in a Barn with LED Lights

My wife and I are part of fairly large group of people in our local area and enjoy dancing in the old Regency style of England's 18th century. A smaller segment of our group also enjoys Civil War era dancing as well as Contra and Square dancing too. Interestingly enough, this group likes to hold barn dances because the atmosphere of the farmhouse barn adds something special to the environment. But there's a problem in doing so if the group wants to remain authentic: lighting.

Historically, the old farm barns were not well lit before the age of electricity. Even at that, lighting in the barn was not considered essential so a couple of oil lamps were all that they used. Since that's no longer practical today our barn dancers are left with the choice of continuing with poor lighting or introducing some sort of electric lighting without ruining the atmosphere. What's the solution? LED strip lights.

LEDs are the perfect solution because they can be used safely in even the oldest of barns. As long as there's an electrical outlet available the lights can be hung and used without the worry of starting a fire. For example, the typical 24V LED light strip puts off very little heat when compared to incandescent light bulbs, and properly encased in plastic tubing or epoxy there's very little risk of combustion. Not only that, they provide enough ambient lighting without destroying the mood of the barn dance.

Our group decided to try a handful of single-chip LEDs around the doors and windows and three chip LED strips hung overhead for the main lighting. It didn't look as realistic as some of the old lighting techniques of the early 20th century but it was still decidedly better than bringing in incandescent floodlights. All in all, the place looked pretty decent and a good time was had by all.

Our experience with the barn dance just goes to show that there are far more uses for LED strip lights than just Christmas decorations. Whether you choose an SMD5050 or 3528, you'll get a great looking light strip that makes just about any room look better. And by the way, you don't have to settle for just white lights either. You can get LED light strips in a multitude of colors to suit any need. Best of all, they are cheaper than incandescent lights and use less electricity. How can you go wrong?