Hi all. I am almost done designing new oak bookshelves to replace my $20 Wal-Mart particle board shelves which look ready to collapse. The last detail I'm trying to decide on is whether or not to set up some sort of lights on top. I really like the bright white light provided by my old, burn your house down, halogen floor lamp and since these shelves will be taking up all my floor space, I thought I'd try putting something on top of the bookshelves that would provide something similar.
My best idea so far is getting some 12v Xenon or Halogen lights intended for under-cabinet use and putting 6 or so on top pointing at different parts of the ceiling for a nice diffuse effect. Unfortunately, it looks like that would cost about $100, or $200 if I put it on both sets of shelves. Halogen that runs at 110v looks like it would be a little cheaper, but I'm a bit concerned about having that much heat produced so close to the ceiling/books. I could put one or two 12v fans in there to cool things down I suppose, but I'm wondering if anyone has any other good ideas/experiences in this area, especially if someone knows a way to do this whole thing cheaper. Also, I haven't used these types of lights before, so I'd appreciate input on how many fixtures it might take, or if it's even reasonable to use these to light a regular apartment-sized bedroom (used as an office/computer room, not for sleeping).
Depending on what I end up doing with lighting, the shelves will be 6-7 feet tall. I will probably make the lighting fixture separate from the rest of the shelves using cheap wood so I can change it out or get rid of it later on.