Can I leave the cut strip exposed if I were to cut it in half?

If I were to cut the strip in half and run each half from its own power supply, can I leave the ends that I cut exposed? Or do they need to be wrapped in electrical tape?

The LED strip light ends do not need to be wrapped with electrical tape and can be left exposed. 

Also, instead of running each from a separate adapter, could I buy a 1-2 splitter and run both from the same power supply split in a Y?

We're happy to confirm that the LED strip lights can be connected to the power supply in parallel.

If I did would each have to be the same length?

The segments would not need to be the same length.

Could I do a 1-3 splitter piece as long as the total length was less than 16ft?

The 16.4 ft maximum run is only a consideration when installing connected lengths in series. When installing in parallel, the primary consideration would instead be ensuring that the output of the power supply is capable of powering the strip light segments. 

Also, is there any difference between a 3 ft strip running a 2amp vs a 6amp vs a 10amp supply? Would it change that efficiency or brightness depending on how much extra power the supply had?

As amperage and voltage needs are defined by the total connected quantity of products, we would recommend referencing the ‘power supply selection’ section of the realUV specification sheet. Within this section, you will see the 'Minimum Power Supply Capacity' for each length of strip light product. 

Finally, I have a couple of supplies that mention different amps on the input spec. What does that affect? For example, I think your 10amp supply says 2amp on the input spec if you look at the picture of it.

We can confirm that the 12V FilmGrade™ DC Power Supply for LED Strip has an input voltage of 2A and output of 10A. As discussed above, the wattage and amperage needs of the LED strip lights are defined by the total amount of product being used. So long as your power supplies can afford the required power defined within the specification sheet, we would assume that the installation would function properly. 

When utilizing dimmable power supplies, there may be issues regarding minimum load. 

​When a dimmable power supply is connected to a product that uses a far lower percentage of the available output (such as 5-10%), unexpected dimming issues may arise.

Contrastingly, for an installation utilizing non-dimmable power supplies, we would not expect the minimum load to be an issue. 

Regarding the amperage of power supplies, the input amperage is not as important for product operation as the available output of the power supply. So long as the power required is under the maximum available wattage and amperage, the installation should operate without issue.

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LED power suppliesLED strip lightsLED Drivers

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