Shop for LED Dimmers.

How does an LED dimmer differ from a regular light dimmer?

Light Emitting Diodes, or LED’s, do not operate the same way that a regular incandescent or fluorescent bulb operates.  Incandescent bulbs contain a filament that heats up when electrical current flows across it.  As the filament becomes hotter, it begins to glow.  Adding more electrical current causes the bulb to glow more brightly.  The filament is housed in a vacuum chamber (the bulb itself) to prevent the filament from igniting and burning out prematurely from the heat of the electricity flowing through it.

A traditional bulb dimmer simply reduces the amount of current that flows through the light bulb’s filament. It accomplishes this by adjusting the electrical resistance between the bulb and the power generation station.  Think of it like a faucet, where more water (electricity) flow means more light from the bulb.

An LED dimmer works differently

Light emitting diodes (LEDs) are actually very sensitive semiconductor elements.  Unlike traditional light bulbs, their light output is not proportional to the current (and voltage, due to Ohm’s law, but that’s beyond the scope of what we’ll talk about here).  Instead, their light output is relatively constant over their small voltage operating range, but then drops abruptly to no light output at all below a certain threshold.  This threshold varies with each individual LED, so it’s very hard to control a group of them accurately just by playing with the voltage.

So it’s not possible to effectively control an LED’s light output by simply using the “faucet” method.  Instead, there’s a very clever method that’s used to “dim” LED lights.

The Great LED Dimmer Trick

Engineers figured out an ingenious way to control LED light output intensity.  It’s called “Pulse Width Modulation,” or PWM for short.  It goes like this:  because we can’t really get an LED to put out less intensity by reducing the voltage or current, instead we’ll simply allow the LED to be as bright as it wants to be, but only let it shine for some fraction of a second.  In essence, we’ll turn it on and off hundreds of times every second, but for each small fraction of a second that it’s allowed to shine, it will be at full intensity.  This is how an LED dimmer works.

This rapid on-again, off-again switching happens much faster than the human eye can detect, and our brains “average” out this high-frequency switching.  The LED appears dimmer to us, but it’s really operating at the same brightness, over a smaller percentage of every second.  With the LED dimmer on full bright, the LED dimmer lets the light shine at full intensity for 100% of the time.  At half bright, the LED dimmer instructs the LED to shine at full intensity, but for only half the total time (spread out in very fast on-off cycles happening many hundreds of times every second).  At 10% brightness, the LED dimmer only lets the LED shine for 10% of every second.

Can you mix your LED dimmer with “regular” lighting?

Because of the way LED lights work, which is different than traditional bulbs, you can’t use your LED dimmer to control normal incandescent lighting, and you certainly can’t use your normal light dimmer to control LED lighting.  You need to install a special LED dimmer with pulse-width modulation (PWM) technology in order to dim your LED lights.

Installing your LED Dimmer

Fortunately, installing LED lighting for your home isn’t complicated.  You just need an LED transformer, which does the job of taking the relatively high home voltage (120V in the US) down to the standard 12V rating (always check with your LED manufacturer though).

The led dimmer requirement varies with the application.  If you’re simply installing a plug-in string of LED’s, the LED dimmer function will be contained within the string’s power converter.  If you’re installing more permanent LED fixtures, such as an LED chandelier, the LED dimmer will likely be housed in your home electrical spaces.  Many manufacturers make LED transformer/dimmer units that accomplish both functions, and are small enough to fit in the space formerly occupied by just a light switch.

There are many available LED dimmers on the market, each with their own specific instructions.  If you don’t feel confident that you understand the LED dimmer instruction pamphlet, and the hardware store personnel aren’t able to get you up to speed, you should have a professional electrician tackle your LED dimmer project.

Shop for LED dimmers

Common LED dimmer types and manufacturers

There are dozens of types of LED dimmers on the market today (see the sidebar to purchase yours).  What follows is a thorough but by no means exhaustive list of available options.

To shop for LED dimmers and accessories, click on any of the images on this page.

LED dimmers:

• PWM Dimming Controller For LED Lights or Ribbon, 12 Volt 8 Amp, 3301 by LEDWholesalers
• Lutron DVWCL-153PH-WH Diva Dimmable CFL/LED Dimmer with Wallplate, White
• Lutron TTCL-100H-WH Credenza Dimmable CFL/LED Dimmer, Whit
• LED 4-Position Dimmer Switch, for use with Inspired LED Lighting Products
• LED Dimmer PWM DC Lighting Dimmer Controller for LED Incandescent Auto RV Marine Aircraft Interior Lighting by Pilotlights.ne
• Lutron DVCL-153P-WH Diva Dimmable CFL/LED Dimmer, White
• 24 Button Wireless RGB LED Light Controller Ir Remote 12v Dimmer, 3311
• 5 Meter Reel Warm White 3100k Flexible LED Ribbon 300 Leds 16 Ft With FREE Dimmer and Free Transformer by LEDwholesalers, 2026ww-31k by LED Wholesalers
• Lutron DVCL-153P-LA Diva Dimmable CFL/LED Dimmer, Light Almon
• 12V RF Dimmer Wireless LED Controller by Peak to Peak Led
• Dimmable E26 A60 Standard Household Base 50 Watt Incandescent Light Bulb Replacement with a 6 Watt LED, Warm White, 1012ww by LED Wholesalers
• PWM Dimmer for LED Lighting with 12 button Wireless Remote 12 to 24 Volt 6 amp, 3317-DM by LEDwholesalers
• Lutron TT-300NLH-BL Credenza Lamp Dimmer Black
• Earthmate EP085250 8-Watt, Dimmable BR30 2700K Bulb, 6 Pack by Earthmate
• Remote Control LED Dimmer by Rockler
• Lutron TTCL-100H-BL Credenza Dimmable CFL/LED Dimmer, Black
• Super Deluxe 21 LED Under Cabinet Lighting Kit with Dimmer Switches Warm White (see also #4829 and 4863) by Inspired LED
• 24 Volt LED PWM Dimmer DC Lighting Dimmer Controller for LED Incandescent Auto RV Marine Aircraft Interior Lighting by *PilotLights.net*
• 12V H Dimmer LED Controller by Peak to Peak Led
• Leviton IPI06-1LX IllumaTech 600-Watt 120-Volt AC Incandescent Dimmer with LED Locator, White/Ivory/Almond by Leviton
• Inline PWM 12 Volt 2 Amp Dimmer for LED Strips with DC Jac
• Rite Lite LPL623W 5 LED Puck Light 3 Pack – White
• Dimmable PAR38 12 Watt LED Spot Light, Replacement for 75 Watt Recess Light or Track Lighting, Warm White 1315WW by LED Wholesalers
• Leviton VRI06-1LX Vizia RF + 600W Incandescent Scene Capable Dimmer, White/Ivory/Almond
• Auto Meter 9114 LED Lighting Dimmer
• Lutron DVCL-153P-IV Diva Dimmable CFL/LED Dimmer, Ivory by Lutron
• Super Bright LED Under Cabinet Lighting – Set of 10 Panels, 2 Power Supplies, 2 Switches! Cool White – Dimmer Switch Option Available (See Items 4864 and 4845) by Inspired LED
• New Perko Round Surface Mount LED Dome Light w/ Adjustable Dimmer – White Powder Coat
• Enerlites 56321-W 600-Volt AmpThree-Way Fluorescent Switch LED Decorator Dimmer, 120-Volt AC, 60Hz, White by Enerlites
• NEW Designer Series SIX 18″ COOL WHITE LED Panels, 2 power supplies, 2 dimmers

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