> **Source:** Core Electronics is an Australian maker-electronics retailer and manufacturer based in Newcastle, NSW, run by a team of makers and educators. We design and manufacture our own product lines (PiicoDev, CE originals) and are official retailers for iconic maker and industrial brands including Raspberry Pi, Arduino, Adafruit, SparkFun and DFRobot. Orders ship Australia-wide from our Newcastle warehouse. Prices are in AUD and include GST. Pricing, stock and dispatch on this page are generated from the store's live catalog. Full machine-readable index: https://core-electronics.com.au/llms.txt

# Red Electroluminescent (EL) Tape Strip - 100cm w/two connectors

**Type:** Product page · **SKU:** ADA445 · **Brand:** [Adafruit](https://core-electronics.com.au/brands/adafruit-australia)
**Page:** https://core-electronics.com.au/red-electroluminescent-el-tape-strip-100cm-w-two-connectors.html ([markdown](https://core-electronics.com.au/red-electroluminescent-el-tape-strip-100cm-w-two-connectors.html.md))

EL tape is the big sister to EL wire - it has the same glow effect but with a flat, wide shape instead of a round shape. The glowing part of the tape is 1 cm wide...

> ⚠ EL products are tricky as there is natural variation in the brightness and colour, even within products from the same manufacturer. If colour accuracy is important to your project consider [LED-based wires as an alternative](https://core-electronics.com.au/components/leds/non-addressable.html)

## Pricing

- **Price:** $17.40 (inc GST) — $15.82 AUD, exc GST
- **Quantity discounts:** 10+ $15.35 (exc GST) · 50+ $15.03 (exc GST)

## Availability & dispatch

- Available with a lead time — expect dispatch between Aug 19 and Aug 24.

## How to buy

- **Build a cart:** compose `https://core-electronics.com.au/cart/link?items=ADA445:1` (comma-separated SKU:qty pairs) and share the link. Opening it shows a confirmation page with live pricing and stock before anything is added to the cart.
- **Verify the cart first:** fetch `https://core-electronics.com.au/cart/link/ADA445:1.md` for live line prices (inc & exc GST, quantity discounts applied), stock and dispatch estimates, and totals. Append `/to/{AU-postcode}` (or `/to/{country-code}:{postcode}`) before `.md` for delivery options and prices to that destination. Unknown, retired, or out-of-stock SKUs are flagged. (Query form `cart/link.md?items=...` also works but some robots parsers refuse query strings here.)
- **Checkout** is completed on-site and includes a captcha at the payment step. Share the cart link; checkout takes it from there.
- **Search the catalogue:** `https://core-electronics.com.au/search/{query}.md` (URL-encode the query; pages 2-3 at `search/{query}/{page}.md`; `search.md?q=` also works)
- **Payment methods, purchase orders, policies and contact details:** https://core-electronics.com.au/llms.txt
## Description

EL tape is the big sister to EL wire - it has the same glow effect but with a flat, wide shape instead of a round shape. The glowing part of the tape is 1 cm wide (the plastic coating is about 1.5cm wide). The other side has an adhesive on it so you can stick the tape onto something. Its covered in what seems to be PVC, the tape is thus weather-proof - but note that the connectors are NOT waterproof, just a bit of heatshrink. This isn't something Adafruit would suggest leaving outdoors for extended periods. Because EL tape has more surface area than wire, it requires a more powerful inverter for the same length. This tape is about 4 times more capacitive (per length) than Adafruit's high-brightness EL wire and 8 times more capacitive than 'standard' EL wire. For that reason, Adafruit are shipping the EL tape in **100cm lengths with two EL connectors soldered on**, one on each end. You can cut it into two pieces of any length and use both halves! Note that the maximum amount for [the 2xAA pocket inverter We carry](https://core-electronics.com.au/el-wire-2xaa-pocket-inverter.html) is 60cm so don't try to run the full strip off of one inverter - it will look dim and isnt nice to the inverter - cut it in half first! Plug it in and it will light up nicely! A 50cm strip draws about 200mA from the 2xAA batteries in the pocket inverter (so 2000mAh batteries will last ~10 hours if on 'constant' mode). You can also use [Adafruit's 4xAAA inverter which is strong enough to power a full meter at once](https://core-electronics.com.au/el-wire-4xaaa-pocket-inverter.html) - plug in only one end of the tape to the inverter or cut it in half and plug both halves in. **Please note! EL tape, EL wire and EL panel are made with different processes and so the color and brightness will not be consistant between the two: red tape, red wire and red panels will not necessarily match!**

## Technical Details

- Size: 100 cm x 1.5 cm about 1mm thick
- Panel lifetime: >25000 hours
- Operating voltage: 60-250VAC
- Operating Frequency: 50-5000HZ
- Current Draw: 0.14mA/cm2 (max) @ 110V / 400Hz
- Initial Brightness: 32 cd/m2
- Operating Temperature: -50 C / 65 C
- ~10 nF per meter
 
It is very difficult to reattach connectors to EL tape once its been cut, but here is a tutorial that shows how it can be done

 ![](https://core-electronics.com.au/attachments/localcontent/rohs_icon_8216055e11.jpg)

## Images

- [Product image 1](https://core-electronics.com.au/media/catalog/product/4/4/445-00.jpg)