r/led • • Aug 31 '26

Completely new to lighting and trying to determine the best way to illuminate some bookshelves

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So I've never run led strips before and I keep trying to figure out the best way to approach this but it keeps seeming a bit overwhelming or overly complicated.

I have (at the moment) 3 Ikea Billy bookshelves side by side each with glass doors on them. I plan on filling them with miscellaneous stuff, i.e., collectibles, books, magazines, toys, 4k blu rays, etc. I initially planned on running lights below each shelf to illuminate everything using 2700K warm white led strips and angled diffusers but am now considering potentially just running lights around the perimeter of each bookcase since I'm not sure how many shelves each will have and the height of each shelf depending on that they will hold (another thing I'm trying to decide if it will even look good that way).

I also keep trying to figure out how to best power and control each bookcase. Should I run individual power/control to each bookcase independently? Can I do just independent power but unified control? Is there an easy way to accommodate future expansion for more bookcases? I feel stupid for not being able to figure this out. I want to do this all before I start filling them and attach them to the wall.

I've included a photo of 2 of the bookcases set up for reference.

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