I'm dimming daily, and I love it.

Dimming can save on electricity too.

I don't dim because when i want mood lighting, I light the glassed cabinets which are on a dimmer. My undercabinet lighting is strictly for tasks

Mine are going in today and they won't have a dimmer. It seems to be personal preference and what you will be using them for.

pence, do you have glass shelves on those cabinets so the light can shine thru? I was thinking of having dimmers on my glass door cabs, but the shelves are wood. Does it matter? ;o)

Mine were wired in last night. I chose 2 dimmers - one for the LEDs over the sink and one for the rest of the UCL. With dimmers, you can have it all - an on/off switch for full brightness and the ability to adjust for any reason at all. If costs is an issue, I can send you my research. My LED UCL cost about $350 for these two different lighting zones, including lights, wires, transformers and magnetic dimmers. The dimming added about $120 to the supply costs. With the system I purchased, you could upgrade the switches and transformers later if you decided that you wanted to add dimming after an initial on/off install. But that seemed like a lot of trouble for saving $120.

We plan to use dimmed lights for mood and for a nightlight. We plan to use full lights for tasks. I had a stroke a few years back and have visual problems. Bright lights can make me dizzy and nauseous. So having the dimming will allow me to adjust my task lighting to a comfortable level. I added the maximum amount of lightbars so DH could have a stronger lighting level than I would be comfortable with.

We rigged them up yesterday to test them and they are just spectacular. You can email me at jemzen@hotmail.com if you want more information on the suppliers I used.

Yes, glass shelves are a must, otherwise only that top shelf will show. If its a rather large area, get 3/8" glass shelf, it will hold up better and be sturdier

At what point do you install these? Is it something I should do during the entire process or can it wait... and down the road be added if I want them without too much fuss?

I love my undercab lighting and I am actually thinking
of adding more. It is great to be able to dim or brighten
the lights. People often forget the impact of lighting
on a kitchen space. Not just the cans or celining lights
but the accent lighting inside the cabinets above, and
under all add to the kitchen warmth, drama and style.
~boxer

Here is a link that might be useful: Kitchen Remodeling and Lights

Love my undercabinet lights and the dimmer. I use the dimmer all the time.

We put 24V LED light strips above and below cabinets. The transformer is under the house and controlled by a dimmer. I didn't know if I would like both the under and over on the same switch, but it turns out to be great. We also have recessed cans and pendants, but use the cabinet lighting the most for both task and mood lighting. You can find great deals on these lights if you search around.

After installing under cabinet lights, I find that I'm using them more often than the main lighting.

LED lighting provides more flexible design options and styles than the standard Xenon/ Halogen/ Fluorescent.

Another alternative would be electroluminescent (EL) lighting. However, most EL lighting is monochromatic.

It is always easier to plan for undercabinet lighting and put in at least the necessary wiring when the entire backsplash is not yet installed.

There are entire threads on this in the lighting forum.

We hardly ever use our undercabinet lights. The rest of the lights are so good that I never think to turn them on. The few times when I turn them on I have them at full strength (we have xenon with a switch for either low or high.) Most of the main work areas in our kitchen don't have upper cabinets (the prep peninsula, range, and sinks.)

I did use uc lights fairly often in our old kitchen since the lighting was so poor. With this kitchen, I find I prefer the light from overhead than from below eye level.

We installed undercabinet halogen lights twelve years ago. We put them in not knowing if we would really use them. But we use them every day. When we renovate in the next year or so we will put in the new LED low energy lights. I find that as I age my eyes need the extra light to work in the kitchen, read recipes, etc. This is something I would never have thought of twelve years ago! Makes me wonder what other "aging in place" changes I should make when I renovate.