What makes a bulb dimmable

When using incandescent bulbs, make sure not to crank up the voltage too high, or the bulb will burn out more quickly, lessening the lifespan. However, incandescent light bulbs have been phased out since to save energy and combat global warming.

Halogen bulbs are perfectly dimmable and good when you want a strong daylight. CFL or compact fluorescent light is not good to use as dimmers.

Adjusting a dimmer switch to a lower voltage, while using a CFL, will shut it off completely. However, some CFLs are compatible with dimmer switches if they have a dimmable ballast. To find out if your CFL is compatible with a dimmer switch, locate the indicator that is usually on the packaging of the bulb.

Always ask the retailer for instructions and other important details when buying a CFL as a dimmer. CFL technology has grown over the years. Not only do these modern CFLs work well with dimmer switches, but they last longer than a traditional incandescent light bulb, which are excellent options for saving, but CFL bulb disposal and recycling is specific.

Some LEDs are dimmable, some are not. Most LEDs offer a rated life between 20, to 25, hours. However, this may differ between different type of dimming systems. Pairing incompatible dimmers and bulbs may only result in lights fluttering and flickering, slow start-up, limited dimming range, and inconsistent illumination. There are numerous types of dimmer switch available, but by far the most popular are leading edge and trailing edge phase-cut dimmers.

Without getting too technical, traditional leading-edge dimmers are designed specifically for high-power circuits and dimming traditional filament bulbs where a variation in voltage is required.

Most LED bulbs require a trailing-edge mechanism to work effectively. 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. A typical trailing edge dimmer has a minimum load of around watts. This is fine when you're dimming 50 watt halogens, but not when you're using 6 watt LED bulbs.

If the load on the circuit isn't high enough, the dimmer won't work. Newer, trailing-edge dimmer switches, are designed with a lower minimum load which helps address this problem. The dimming experience can be different with LED. Since there are a huge number of possible combinations of lamps and dimmer, it is very difficult to produce an LED lamp that works in all dimming environments.

Low-voltage transformers as used with MR16 12V spotlights also add to the complexity. With some LED products, there is a choice of colours, choosing a colour will set the mood of your space. Think of lumens as a "new" way of knowing how bright a lamp is. Would you like to save money and improve the environment? Then choosing LED is a simple choice to make.

LED lamps are easy to install into existing sockets and you can begin to enjoy significant savings immediately. Sign-up to our newsletter and stay up to date with the latest product information and special offers. Terms and Conditions of Sale. As above, if ALL of your light bulbs are made by Philips but require a third-party transformer to convert their voltage, it also needs to be compatible. Dimming LED light bulbs CAN certainly be tricky, but when done properly the benefits are endless, from the improved efficiency and longevity of the light bulbs to smooth, silent dimming that looks infinitely better than its incandescent equivalent.

If I use dimmable bulbs is there a way to still dim the lights? If the light fixture has a transformer in it, such as a 12V transformer designed for MR16 light bulbs, then this would need to be dimmer compatible too. Does it really have to do with the fixture or the bulbs they are including?

I realize that I would have to have a compatible dimmer. To answer your question, yes, you can insert dimmable light bulbs into a non-dimmable circuit, but if you can find non-dimmable light bulbs that are suitable for you fitting they might be cheaper to buy. If a fixture is saying non-dimmable specifically, then it may contain a transformer that is not dimmer compatible — but E12 light bulbs do not require a transformer so that has left us confused.

We think that it may be simply referring to the light bulbs it came installed with but you could try and check … Read more ». What has the uplighter part got to do with it? It could depend upon the type of light bulbs that are installed in the fitting? If the lightbulbs are 12V, such as MR16 spotlight, or G4 capsules, then the fitting will have a 12V transformer built in. This transformer may not be dimmer compatible. Consult with your electrician when he installs the fittings as he should be best placed to advise on this.

I have a normal light switch with normal non-dimmable bulbs , 4 of them. They flicker permanently. I noticed that the transformer is a dimmer transformer — would this be the reason? Do i need to change the transformer?

Has there been any research into this topic? What a lovely explanatory article! Leading and trailing edge dimmers? Never heard of this one before!