What Is Dimmable?

In the lighting industry, lamps in which the brightness of the light can be controlled are called dimmable. Dimmable lamps make it possible to control the level of illumination, change the visual appearance of the space and save energy.

Incandescent lamps, by their nature, could easily be dimmed with dimmer circuits. When it comes to LED lamps, there are two different options as dimmable or non-dimmable.

Dimmer circuits are simple systems that control the light by changing the voltage. This simple structure could work properly with incandescent lamps. LED lamps, on the other hand, have a much more complex structure. LED lamps have a built-in circuit that converts the AC mains voltage to a much lower DC voltage.

In order for LED lamps to be dimmed with conventional dimmer switches (rotary or sliding switch), the driver circuit inside the LED lamp must have a dim function. If the LED driver has a dimmable structure, the brightness of the LEDs will change when voltage control is made from the dimmer switch.

LED lamps have a lower dimming range than incandescent lamps. LEDs can be dimmed to approximately 10 percent of their total light output, while incandescent bulbs can be dimmed to 1 percent of their total brightness.

When dimmable lamps are used, it is recommended that all lamps in the room be of the same brand and model. In this way, each lamp will be dimmed equally when a dimmer is used. When different LED lamps are used together, dimming problems may occur because the driver circuits will behave differently.

Dimmable lamps operate smoothly on non-dimmable circuits (standard on, off switches). Non-dimmable lamps, on the other hand, will not work properly on dimmable circuits. Used in this way, both the lamp and the switch can be damaged.

Dimmable LED lamps are more expensive than non-dimmable lamps as they require more complex driver circuitry. The energy savings and application flexibility it will provide make dimmable LED lamps a better alternative.

Almost all of the LED lamps on the market have dimmable or non-dimmable statements on their boxes. If none of these are present, the lamp should be assumed to be non-dimmable.