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Dimmer Switches work by reducing the power delivered to your light bulb. They do this by trimming a section of a waveform, either on the leading edge or trailing edge of the wave. Manufacturers have designed their LED light bulbs to be compatible with the majority of common ‘trailing edge’ household dimmers.
How does a LED light dimmer work?
How Dimmable LED Lights Work. In the case of PWM, dimmable LEDs work by creating a dimming effect. Unlike traditional lighting such as incandescent, dimmable LED bulbs don’t rely on voltage to dictate their level of brightness. Instead, they essentially rely on a cycle of being on and off.
Do you have to use a special dimmer switch for LED lights?
A standard dimmer switch cannot be used with an LED light as you will never be able to dim the LED light either completely or not very well. LED lights need their own special electronic dimmer switch to have a fully functioning and dimming light.
How do dimmable LED switches work?
Dimmer switches work by controlling the voltage of a lightbulb. The most simple and common forms of dimmer switches simply reduce the amount of electricity that flows through a circuit, thus reducing the amount of bright light.
Is there a difference between a dimmer switch and a LED dimmer switch?
You’re probably going to notice some variance in how your LEDs dim versus how traditional bulbs tend to. The main difference is that you have a smaller dimming range (typically 70-90% range vs. A dimmer for LED lights is specially designed to send power and control signals to each type of electronic LED driver.
Can you use an LED dimmer switch with normal bulbs?
The type of dimmer switch and it’s minimum/maximum load range will indicate the compatibility with LED light bulbs. Trailing edge dimmers work best with LED light bulbs and leading-edge dimmers work best with traditional incandescent and halogen light bulbs.
How does a dimmer light switch work?
A dimmer switch changes the direction of electrical flow every time that it is used to dim or brighten the lights. Ultimately, the dimmer switch controls the electrical cycle for dimming a light. When the switch is turned down low the cycle takes longer to complete, and the light emits a lower level of brightness.
Why do my LED lights flicker on a dimmer switch?
LED bulb flickering can be traced in almost every instance to a non-compatible dimmer switch in the lighting circuit. LED bulbs don’t have glowing filaments. When the dimmer switch goes off and on many times per second, the LED bulb becomes a flickering strobe light.
Why do lights flicker on a dimmer switch?
If bulbs connected to a dimmer are flickering, this is likely the reason why. Loose or poor wiring behind the switch could also cause flickering. Check the ratings for your bulbs and dimmer to be sure they’re compatible. Mismatches here can lead to common fixture problems like buzzing or flickering.
Can you put a dimmer switch on any light?
A dimmer switch can be installed anywhere that an existing on or off switch is in place. Replacing the current toggle switch with a dimmer switch will allow you to change the lights’ brightness, so long as you are using a light bulb that is compatible with the dimmer you have chosen.
Do you need an LED dimmer for LED lights?
A dimmer is required for dimming LED bulbs. In most cases your current dimmer is used to dim halogen and incandescent bulbs. Each dimmer has a minimum power, this power is 40-80W. As a result, the LED bulbs may not dim or only very bad, resulting in flashing.
Can LED lights be dimmed very low?
In general most common mains LED bulbs will not dim below 10% and in a number of cases won’t dim below 30%. This can be a significant problem when you’re trying to create an ambience in a room.
How many LED lights can I put on a dimmer switch?
As an example – if you have a dimmer switch with a maximum rating of 400W (rule of thumb translates to 40W) you can run five 7.1W dimmable LED light bulbs (see example below for further explanation).
Do you need special light bulbs for dimmer switches?
A dimmer switch can only support LEDs, CFLs and other lights that are made up of advanced technology and have a dimming feature. It is that a non-dimmable electrical light should never be used with dimmer switches.
What happens if you dim a non-dimmable LED?
So what happens if you use non-dimmable LEDs on a dimmer? Well, at best the bulb just won’t dim properly. But non-dimmable LEDs are only designed to be either fully powered ON or OFF, which means the circuitry inside won’t be able to handle low or pulsing current levels and will eventually become damaged.
Can you use a dimmer switch on LED Christmas lights?
LED Mini Lights are not dimmable While you can flash most pre-wired sets of LED light strings on and off, they cannot be ramped up in brightness by changing the input voltage.
How do I know if my LED is dimmable?
#1 – If you bought a finished LED fixture or bulb, check to make sure the packaging specifically states that it is dimmable. This should be stated in the description or the technical specifications of the light.
How do I choose a dimmer switch?
Choose a dimmer with a wattage rating that meets or exceeds the total wattage of all the light bulbs the dimmer will control. For example, if the dimmer controls a fixture with ten 75-watt bulbs, you need a dimmer rated for 750 watts or higher.
