Light Strips For Pool: Manufacturer Guide & Specs (2026)

Industry Insight: Light Strips For Pool

The commercial and industrial lighting sector continues to evolve with an increasing emphasis on energy efficiency, durability, and compliance with international safety standards—particularly in specialized environments such as swimming pools and aquatic facilities. Light strips for pools have emerged as a critical component in modern pool design, offering both functional illumination and aesthetic enhancement while meeting stringent requirements for moisture resistance, corrosion protection, and electrical safety. In such demanding applications, adherence to certifications like ETL and CE is not just a regulatory necessity but a mark of reliability and performance, ensuring that lighting solutions operate safely in wet and high-humidity environments.

Beauty (STC) Manufacturing Co., Ltd., established in 1998, has been at the forefront of innovation in commercial and industrial LED lighting for over two decades. Specializing in high-performance lighting solutions, Beauty STC has developed a strong reputation for engineering excellence, rigorous quality control, and compliance with global standards. Our LED light strips for pools are designed specifically for commercial aquatic installations, combining robust construction, long service life, and full certification to ETL and CE standards. With a deep understanding of the unique challenges in industrial and public pool environments, Beauty STC delivers lighting solutions that ensure safety, reduce maintenance costs, and enhance the visual appeal of any aquatic facility.

Technical Specs & Certifications

Beauty STC Manufacturing Co., Ltd. designs and produces premium LED light strips specifically engineered for demanding pool and aquatic environments. Our technical specifications prioritize performance, safety, and longevity, directly addressing the critical requirements you outlined. Regarding luminous efficacy, our standard pool-rated LED strips achieve a consistent range of 100 to 120 lumens per watt under real-world operating conditions within the aquatic environment. This efficiency level represents an optimal balance achieved through the use of high-bin Samsung LM301B EVO or equivalent mid-power LEDs, coupled with precisely engineered constant-current drivers and thermal management systems designed to function effectively when submerged. While slightly lower than some dry-rated strips due to the necessary robust encapsulation and thermal considerations of underwater operation, this efficacy ensures significant energy savings over the product lifetime without compromising output or reliability.

Color rendering is paramount for creating visually appealing and natural underwater experiences. All Beauty STC pool light strips utilize LEDs rigorously selected to deliver a minimum CRI (Ra) of 95, significantly exceeding the >90 requirement. Furthermore, we place strong emphasis on the R9 value (saturated red rendering), which is critical for accurate skin tones and vibrant water appearance, consistently achieving R9 > 90. This high-fidelity color reproduction is maintained through the use of premium phosphor blends and strict binning processes during LED manufacturing, ensuring consistent, lifelike illumination that enhances the aesthetic quality of the pool environment.

Waterproofing and ingress protection are non-negotiable for pool applications. Beauty STC pool light strips are certified to a minimum IP68 rating, signifying complete protection against dust ingress and continuous submersion in water under conditions specified by the manufacturer (typically tested at depths exceeding 5 meters for extended periods). Crucially, our strips exceed basic IP68 requirements through a multi-stage manufacturing process. This includes the application of a high-purity, optically clear, platinum-cured silicone encapsulant applied via precision robotic dispensing, forming a seamless, bubble-free, triple-layer barrier over the LEDs and circuitry. This robust potting, combined with fully sealed end caps using marine-grade silicone gaskets and double-overmolded connection points, also achieves an IP69K rating, providing exceptional resistance against high-pressure, high-temperature water jets encountered during pool cleaning or servicing. This level of ingress protection is rigorously validated through accelerated life testing simulating years of submersion and thermal cycling.

Beauty STC’s commitment to quality is embedded in every stage of production for our pool light strips. We utilize automated optical inspection (AOI) and in-line electrical testing to ensure component placement accuracy and circuit integrity before encapsulation. The silicone potting process occurs in a controlled cleanroom environment to prevent contamination, and every batch undergoes stringent submersion testing at multiple pressure points. Our strips are constructed using only halogen-free, UV-stable materials resistant to chlorine, bromine, and saltwater degradation, backed by comprehensive LM-80 and TM-21 lifetime data demonstrating 50,000 hours of L70 (70% lumen maintenance) under submerged operating conditions. This focus on engineering excellence, material science, and rigorous quality control, certified under ISO 9001:2015, results in products renowned in the industry for exceptional reliability, consistent photometric performance, and long service life, minimizing maintenance costs and downtime for pool owners. We stand behind this quality with a comprehensive 5-year warranty covering both materials and workmanship.

Factory Tour: Manufacturing Excellence

Beauty (STC) Manufacturing Co., Ltd. operates a modern and well-equipped manufacturing facility in Jiangmen, Guangdong Province, strategically positioned to support efficient production and logistics for both domestic and international markets. The factory is designed to meet high standards of quality control and manufacturing precision, particularly in the production of LED lighting products including specialized solutions such as light strips for pools.

The facility is outfitted with advanced Surface Mount Technology (SMT) production lines that ensure accurate and reliable assembly of LED components. These SMT machines are fully automated and capable of handling high-volume output with consistent precision, supporting the placement of even the smallest LED chips and electronic components onto flexible and rigid PCBs used in light strips. The integration of automated optical inspection (AOI) systems within the SMT process enables real-time defect detection, ensuring superior product quality from the earliest stages of production.

To guarantee long-term reliability—especially critical for pool light strips that operate in wet and corrosive environments—Beauty STC conducts comprehensive aging and environmental testing. Completed light strips undergo extended aging tests under elevated temperature and humidity conditions that simulate years of operation. For pool-specific products, additional waterproof testing, salt fog resistance, and IP68/IP69K certification validation are performed to ensure safety, durability, and compliance with international standards.

Beauty STC has robust OEM/ODM capabilities, making it a preferred partner for custom lighting solutions. For pool light strips, the company can tailor specifications including color temperature, RGB or tunable white options, length, voltage (12V/24V), control protocols (DMX, DALI, or standard PWM), and silicone encapsulation for enhanced water and UV resistance. Clients can also customize branding, packaging, and certifications (such as CE, RoHS, UL, or TUV) to meet regional market requirements. The engineering team works closely with clients from design to mass production, offering technical support and prototyping services to ensure optimal performance in aquatic environments.

Overall, the Jiangmen factory combines advanced automation, rigorous quality assurance, and flexible customization to deliver high-performance, safe, and durable LED light strips ideal for pool and other demanding outdoor and wet-location applications.

Application Scenarios

LED strip lighting designed specifically for pool applications serves critical safety and aesthetic functions in aquatic environments, but its use is strictly limited to locations with actual swimming pools or water features. Hotels and resorts are the primary commercial settings where such lighting is appropriately deployed, while malls and offices generally do not require or utilize submersible pool lighting unless they contain specialized aquatic facilities like therapy pools or decorative water features—which is exceptionally rare in standard office or retail contexts. Misapplication in dry environments like mall corridors or office lobbies using pool-rated strips is unnecessary, costly, and potentially hazardous if improper installation methods are borrowed from aquatic settings.

Hotels and resorts install pool-rated LED strips almost exclusively within the swimming pool structure itself. Common applications include embedding strips into the pool’s perimeter tile line to create a continuous horizon glow, integrating them within step treads for safe nighttime navigation, lining the base of water features or spillover edges for dramatic effect, and illuminating submerged bench seating areas. These installations transform the pool into a visual focal point after dark, enhancing guest experience while meeting mandatory safety illumination standards for recreational water facilities. The strips must be specifically engineered for constant submersion with IP68 or IP69K ratings, 12V or 24V low-voltage operation, and materials resistant to chlorine, salt, and UV degradation.

Installation demands rigorous adherence to electrical safety codes. Always use a dedicated GFCI-protected circuit with a maximum 15A load, and ensure all power supplies are installed at least 3.7 meters (12 feet) from the pool’s edge per NEC Article 680 requirements. Never splice or modify pool-rated strips on-site; use only factory-sealed segments with pre-molded connectors. Mount strips within waterproof aluminum channels designed for pool use, ensuring the channel’s lens is fully seated to prevent water ingress at end caps. Maintain a minimum 1.2-meter (4-foot) separation between lighting and any metallic pool components like ladders unless specifically listed for direct bonding. Crucially, all installation must be performed by licensed electricians certified in pool lighting with verification of local code compliance, as improper installation risks electrocution or fire. Avoid sharp bends in the strip—follow the manufacturer’s specified minimum bending radius—and never install strips in areas subject to direct mechanical impact from pool cleaning equipment. Finally, verify that all components carry wet-location certification from recognized bodies like UL, ETL, or TÜV specifically for submersion use, as standard architectural LED strips will fail catastrophically in pool environments.

Why Choose Beauty STC Lighting

Transform your pool spaces with high-quality light strips designed for durability, brilliance, and safety. Partner with Beauty STC, a trusted manufacturer of premium LED lighting solutions. Our pool light strips are engineered to enhance aesthetics while meeting rigorous waterproof and performance standards. For collaboration opportunities and custom lighting solutions, contact us at [email protected] and let Beauty STC illuminate your next project.