How to Re-Waterproof Your LED Strip

Today we’re going to talk about how to re-seal your waterproof LED strips. There are many lighting applications for LED strips, both indoors and outdoors. Outdoor uses range from patio mood lighting for homes, resorts, and country clubs to concert lighting or adding a colorful flare to a theme park.

If you’re installing LED lighting in an outdoor location, you’ll want to be sure that the installer uses waterproof LED strips and once it’s installed either you or the installer will need to have the know-how to re-seal a strip if it’s accidentally cut or if it needs to be joined with another segment.

Often-times installations require the installer to cut the LED strips into segments and put them back together to create unique and astounding displays. This can cause damage to the waterproof seal and expose the strip to water and moisture which will cause damage and may result in a need to replace the strip, if it’s not taken care of properly.

We can’t do anything about Mother Nature, but we can help you make the most of your investment and increase the lifetime of your lighting.

Do It Yourself: Re-Waterproofing Your LED Strips

What you’ll need:

• Pair of scissors
• A waterproof led strip ( IP67 or IP68 )
• Heat gun or a lighter
• Any color Heat-shrink tubing
• Pair of pliers with a flat tip
• Dielectric silicone ( Note: regular household silicone will short-circuit the strip. )

Now, before we jump into the whole process, we would like to tell you to be careful when handling all items that pose any danger, but most of this is common sense ( i.e. do not run with scissors. ).

But enough with the humor, let’s get down to business. Our LED strips are made so you can cut, safely, after every third LED base. Keeping this in mind – here are the steps you need to follow for re-sealing your waterproof strip:

• Cut into LED strip into segments – make sure there is a cut after multiples of three, or multiples of 6 for dual density.
• Cut heat shrink tubing – cut off about an inch of the heat shrink tubing and set it aside for now.
  Apply the dielectric silicone – put a dab of it on your finger and push it into the opening of the strip to create a barrier.
• Put on the Heat-Shrink tubing – after applying the silicone, slide the tubing over the end of the strip leaving about ½ inch hang off the end. Once it’s on the strip, use the heat gun to heat up the tubing and finally use the flat-tip of the pliers to pinch the tubing together and create the seal.
• Cut of the excess tubing – finally cut of the excess heat –tubing, but be careful not to cut too close and break the seal you just created.

VOILÀ! You now have a re-waterproofed LED strip!

Recap

That wasn’t so hard, was it? Now, for every segment of waterproof LED strip you cut off, you can restore its original qualities, and maybe even better. And it is completely simple to reproduce. Go ahead and pass this on to your colleagues and friends, they will sure benefit from it. And don’t forget to comment or contact us, if you have any questions. We are always glad to help out.