I would like to get recommendations about our kitchen recessed LED lighting plans.

Our kitchen designer recommended the CREE 4" recessed lights in May. When I went back to the lighting store in Sept they recommended a new recessed LED light from a company called CSL. We just went back to the store again. The CSLs are $205 per can, the 4" CREEs are $170.

I read the garden web on- line lighting blog and Home Depot started carrying a version of the CREE lights recently. They call it the ECO4-575L-GU24. The lighting output is the same as the 6" CREE because it is recessed 1" instead of 2" and the size of the opening is slightly smaller. It is about $40 according to people who are buying it.

Our contractor said he had used the home depot ECO4's, but he found them not to hold up well & now he is using a new construction light from Cooper Lighting which comes in 4 or 6 inches.

Also the lighting store recommends an Ultra blazed LED strip that is $15 per foot to use under our cabinets and inside the edges of a cabinet with glass shelves. You just cut the LED strip into the appropriate length. Has anyone used the LED strips under cabinets and what brand did you buy?

We appreciate your ideas. Has anyone used the Cooper LED recessed cans, the CSLs, or the Home Depot CREEs?

One further question: our dining table is on the other side of the room that has our kitchen. We want to add 2 can lights to illuminate the walls and the table area. How far do you put the cans away from the walls?

Thanks so much.