Building lights

You can use a small Postwar transformer or one of the two inner dials on a ZW to provide the power for the lights to be installed in buildings. If you want to independently power the lights in each building, then install and Atlas connectors between the transformer and the lights 

As far as what particular lights to install inside your buildings, since I have not done that, I do not have a specific product to recommend. I look forward to the recommendations made by other Forum members. I expect that LED and/or grain of wheat bulbs will be recommended to minimize the heat generated by such bulbs, and have them last a long time before they need to be replaced. Arnold

For LEDs go to Evans Design website, they offer LEDs already set up to use on AC or DC power. Cost is reasonable.

The one thing I strongly advise is use only LEDs and decide up front what voltage you will use for all building lighting and stick with that.  You can buy making lighting in various voltages like 1.5, 3, 4.5 and 6V and 12V, but life is simpler if you pick one voltage and make all your building light that.  I use 12V.

I buy LED 12V mini-strips on Amazon or e-bay, and use them.  Ifound some which are about 4 inches long each, with adhesive tape already on the base.  Just attached to the inner ceiling of the build and wire up.  In fact is just bought these this morning.  One usually works for each floor of a building, two if its big.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/prod...00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

What Lee said. I use a computer power supply; more watts than most can use and dirt cheap.

Evan Designs makes great stuff.

If your skills allow, a box of assorted LED's and some 1K ohm resistors will make a ton of lights for pennies a piece.

I have a few different lighting circuits running at various voltages on my layout. I think varied lighting levels look more realistic.

These are from ED

These are scratch built

Here’s one of my tricks:  for a small town (9 buildings) , I bought a short string of white LED Christmas tree lights. I drilled holes thru the plywood under each building, and popped a bulb through each hole.  A bigger building can use more than one .  Black tape covers any unused bulbs under layout.  Wires are stalled to plywood underneath . Easy, inexpensive, works great. JohnA 

I use mini Christmas lights that come in strings of 10, 20, 50 and 100.  I find them on trash day or garage sales.  I cut up the strings into pigtails of one or two sockets.  The bulbs in 10 strings of lights are 12 volt.  The bulbs in 20 light strings are 6 or 7 volts.  I use one pigtail for 12v and two sockets, left hooked up in series, for two 7 volt bulbs.

You will not find many strings of 10 bulbs as they are uncommon but the 100 bulb strings are very common.  You can buy packs of 10 bulbs 10 or 20 string bulbs ( 10 v or 20 v) are on eBay or sometimes to Walmart before Christmas and at old style hardware stores.  Ebay  wants $8 for 10 bulbs now which is too high.  Walmart sold them for $1 if they have them.

The beauty of this is the pigtails can be installed in the ceiling of the buildings by gluing or possibly use a thumb tack and the light can not be seen  thru the windows and the ceiling is where most people have lights.

 The second beauty is they use very little power, probably 1 amp for 10 bulbs.  Older large C7 Christmas bulbs used 4 watts per bulb or so.  I know LED are popular now but they cost way more than mini Christmas bulbs and most are bright white or bluish not the pleasing yellowish of mini Christmas lights, like the incadecent bulbs common in most years past.

Charlie

Woodland Scenic Just Plug system, a bit pricey but very easy to use. Go to their web site or just check out YouTube and you will find a lot of information on how it works/installation.

Dave

I strongly second the suggestion of Woodland Scenics light system. It is quite versatile; not only are the lights a simple peel and stick affair, they are also dimmable.....very small; and I believe can buy different coloured bulbs...