LED guardrail tubes are composed of high-quality, ultra-bright LED light-emitting diodes, primarily used for urban landscape lighting.
LED Guardrail Tube Principle
It achieves seven color changes through the mixing of red, green, and blue primary colors, using pulse width modulation (PWM) of the output waveform.

That is, adjusting the duty cycle of the LED light, and utilizing the visual inertia of the human eye to achieve a gradual change effect at a very fast scanning speed. A single tube, through an internal control chip, can segmentally change to seven different colors, producing various effects such as gradation, flashing, scanning, chasing, and flowing water. The tube length is determined by the actual effect required; the standard length is one meter. It is UV resistant, waterproof, and moisture-proof.

Installation Steps
Step 1: Install the LED guardrail onto the wall.
Drill holes in the wall, install expansion screws, then install the LED guardrail lights and secure them with self-tapping screws. The distance between the guardrail lights depends on the customer's requirements; generally, it is between 1cm and 3cm.

Step 2: Check if there are waterproof rubber rings on the connectors.
These are usually white or red silicone rings. Then connect the signal wires and power wires of the LED guardrail lights, ensuring a tight connection, and then tighten the nuts. (It's best to apply additional silicone sealant or black tape around the outside for better waterproofing.) Don't leave it loose due to carelessness or difficulty in tightening, as this can cause water ingress and create significant maintenance problems later. Signal cables generally use two-core small male-female connectors; power cables use two-core large male-female connectors.

Step 3: Install the power supply (transformer or switching power supply)
Calculate how many guardrail lights each transformer can power based on the transformer's power and the power of the guardrail lights. For example, a 108-LED seven-color guardrail light is 10W/M; a 144-LED guardrail light is 12W/M. If using a 400W waterproof transformer, it can power 108 lights (36M tubes); a 144-LED guardrail light (32M tubes). If the transformer can power 36M tubes, place the transformer between lines 18 and 19, connect two lines, and then connect several branch interfaces, powering 18 lights on each side.
How to Distinguish Between Good and Bad LED Guardrail Tubes
Various quality problems exist with LED guardrail tubes. One of the main reasons is the low-price bidding strategy employed by the government and other owners, leading to a situation where low prices are king.

1. LED Chips
LED chips are the most important and valuable component of guardrail tubes. High-quality chips must be used, such as CREE, OSRAM, LUMILEDS, PHILIPS, Guangjia, and Epistar. They should also be packaged by reputable manufacturers. Some small LED packaging factories lack anti-static and dust-proof workshops, testing equipment, and some don't even have color sorting machines. Their products are very cheap, appealing to some LED guardrail tube manufacturers. They only care about lighting up; quality is not a primary concern. Brightness and light decay are not considered.

2. PCB Circuit Board
Some LED guardrail tube manufacturers, in order to compete on price, use cheap flame-retardant paperboard or single-sided fiberboard as the PCB circuit board for their LED lights. Because full-fiberglass PCB boards are too expensive. Initially, the effect isn't immediately apparent; with luck, it might last six to eight months, but generally, it will break within a year due to moisture, UV damage, oxidation, etc., rendering the entire LED guardrail tube unusable. High-quality LED guardrail tubes must use double-sided full-fiberglass PCB boards. Although the cost is higher, the quality is guaranteed.

3. LED Guardrail Tube Outer Cover
The outer cover is another way some LED guardrail tube manufacturers reduce costs. High-quality LED guardrail tubes use imported GE or Bayer virgin PC materials for the outer cover. Some manufacturers use outer covers mixed with sprue materials and recycled materials, which significantly reduces costs but greatly compromises quality. Internal stress is difficult to eliminate under temperature shocks, making it prone to cracking. After water gets in, the entire LED guardrail tube will be unusable.

4. Waterproof Sealant
It's a consensus that LED guardrail tubes must be sealed with silicone sealant for waterproofing; only a few manufacturers still use hot melt adhesive. To achieve good waterproofing, high-quality imported silicone sealant must be used. Many manufacturers use domestically produced 704 silicone, unaware that much of this 704 silicone is made from waste glue by small workshops. It's fine for reinforcement and positioning, but extremely unreliable for waterproofing and sealing. The technology for LED guardrail tubes in China lags significantly behind international standards, and the core raw materials for high-end silicone are entirely dependent on imports. Otherwise, why would national key projects insist on using expensive imported silicone even for the most basic building sealant? Some people also use glass silicone to seal the openings of LED guardrail tubes, which does not achieve good waterproofing.