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LED strip lights for under-cabinet lighting: 12V or 24V?
We are installing LED strip lights for an under-cabinet application. There are two 8-sections that are approximately 10 feet apart, for a total of 16 ft. Should we use a 12V or 24V setup?
Both 12V and 24V LED strips should work fine, as long as the corresponding power supply voltage is selected.
For your setup, however, 24V may be preferable as it will reduce the risk of voltage drop (lower brightness at the far end of the LED strip). Since you do have a 10-ft span between the 8-ft LED strip segments, the 24V might be a better option.
To further reduce the risk for voltage drop, we would recommend using sufficient wire gauge for the 10-ft wire span. For example, see our 16 AWG wire (PN 7098) available here.
The only significant downside of the 24V versions would be the longer intervals between cut lines. The 12V versions can be cut every 1 inch, while the 24V versions can be cut every 2 inches.
For further reference, we recommend referencing the following:
- https://www.waveformlighting.com/home-residential/advantages-of-a-24v-led-system-vs-12v
- https://www.waveformlighting.com/home-residential/what-is-led-strip-voltage-drop
Question posted under:
LED power suppliesLED strip lightsKitchen lighting
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