Table of Contents
Can you use energy saving bulbs with a dimmer switch?
So do energy efficient light bulbs work with dimmer switches or not? Well you can certainly plug them into your existing light sockets and control them with a dimmer switch.
What bulbs can I use with a dimmer switch?
Incandescent Light Bulbs One of the most utilitarian bulbs, incandescent bulbs work with any dimmer switch on the market. Inside an incandescent bulb, electric currents move through a wire filament, which causes the filament, and therefore the bulb, to glow.
Can any light bulb be dimmable?
The answer is yes, all incandescents are dimmable. They have the largest controllable dimming range from 100% full light, all the way down to 0%. Incandescents produce light by allowing an electric current to flow through a metal filament surrounded by inactive nitrogen and argon gas.
How do you make a non dimmable LED dimmable?
Simply, you can’t dim non-dimmable LED lights. If you use non-dimmable lights in a dimmer circuit, they will either flicker or just run at full brightness.
Why are some light fixtures not dimmable?
Traditional dimmer switches are designed to work on lighting circuits with a high load. In a lot of cases LED bulbs won’t work with traditional dimmer switches because the load on the circuit is not high enough to meet the minimum load on the dimmer switch.
What happens if you use non-dimming bulbs on dimmer switches?
If you use non-dimmable lights in a dimmer circuit, they will either flicker or just run at full brightness. They will likely burn out faster, too.
Is it safe to use a non-dimmable bulb on a dimmable switch?
You should NOT use a non-dimmable lamp in a dimmable circuit as it may cause damage to the lamp and or circuit.
Can I replace a dimmer switch with an LED bulb?
Dimmers present a challenge to ordinary low energy ( compact fluorescent) lamps. There are two options here – to buy dimmable CFLs or some LEDs are now dimmable – though these tend to be quite expensive. The other option is to replace dimmer switches with conventional ones.
Do dimmable LED bulbs save energy?
However, the greater life expectancy and lower energy consumption mean that eventually most dimmable LED bulbs deliver a modest savings. When you’re upgrading to dimmable LEDs, you probably have old bulbs to throw away.
How do I choose a dimmable LED bulb?
Choosing a dimmable LED bulb is pretty straightforward. There’s the obvious physical size, the fitting (screw or bayonet), and the initial (or maximum) brightness you expect – the “equivalents” mentioned above. But there is one other thing to consider – LED color (because white isn’t just white).
How do LED lights dim?
In fact an LED isn’t a bulb, it’s an electrical circuit (called a driver) and a light-emitting diode made from thin slices of semiconductor. LEDs don’t dim in the same way that incandescent bulbs do, but they can be made to look like they do. Analog: One way is to use analog dimming – reducing the current so the LED doesn’t light fully.