Determining Dimmability

I just finished making my daily evening commute from the dining room table, where I currently work from home, to my dining room table, where I will enjoy today’s slow cooker creation. I want to turn down the light level from the sharp, bright light conducive to my detailed computer work to a more relaxing glow supportive of winding down. But I just replaced all the bulbs in my chandelier with LEDs . . . can I still dim?

Gratefully, the answer isn’t “no.” But it also isn’t a resounding “yes.” There are two main reasons: the dimmers and the light bulbs themselves. LED light sources operate much differently than the traditional incandescent lighting set-ups in most homes and offices. While incandescent light bulbs provide a level of light based on supplied voltage and heating up a filament, LEDs rely on a diode that is designed to be on or off. The technology to dim an LED light source is more complex than simply adjusting the voltage to the filament. It involves a complex process of either pulse width modulation (meaning the bulb rapidly turns on and off, not noticeable to the human eye) or constant current reduction (also known as analog dimming) where the dimmer reduces the current resulting in a lower light level, much like traditional dimming, but with current instead of voltage. Always check for the word “dimmable” on the packaging when purchasing your LED light bulbs.

So, you’ve got your dimmable LEDs installed and you turn down the lights only to experience flickering and humming. Not the ambience you were intending. What’s the problem? Well, most likely, it’s the dimmer switch. Though you’ve done the right thing by getting dimmable LEDs, they often aren’t compatible with existing dimmers. If the dimming function worked fine before with incandescent bulbs, that’s because it was designed to work with higher wattage bulbs—not energy-saving, low wattage LEDs. Off to 1000Bulbs.com again, where you will find an array of LED compatible dimmers. Once you get that changed out, you should be on your way to divine dimming!

Important Tip: Not all dimmable LED bulbs are compatible with all LED dimmers. To ensure your bulbs operate properly, look for dimmers that are listed on the compatibility list included with dimmable LED bulbs.

Fortunately, I have an inside scoop on all things LED and had installed compatible bulbs and dimmers. Dinner was delicious! I’ll be turning the lights back up in the morning after my lengthy commute in to work.

You, too, have access to the inside scoop—call one of our 1000Bulbs.com lighting experts at 1-800-624-4488 to determine which bulbs and dimmers will work for you.