How to Choose Light Dimmer for Your LED Lights

May 14
11:09

2016

Weird Jerry

Weird Jerry

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LED lights are widely used nowadays to replace traditional incandescent, halogen and fluorescent lamps for general illumination. Smart lighting control is a popular trend that combines the latest control technology. When LED lights meet smart control, there should be many more possibilities.

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Since dimming LEDs is not as easy as dimming traditional lamps,How to Choose Light Dimmer for Your LED Lights Articles not all LED lights are dimmable. If you would like to dim your LED lamps, first you have to make sure they are dimmable. Generally when you purchase, first consult the salesman. As technology develops, traditional dimmers such as Triac, 0-10v and DMX now can support LEDs. Also some new control technologies are emerging  including RF/WiFi wireless, DALI, Zigbee and Z Wave that enable more intelligent control of LED lighting.

 

To choose a correct LED light dimmer, you have to figure out some issues first:

 

Firstly, what is the input type of your LED lamps, AC or DC input? If it is designed with AC input, then an controller with AC input and output is required to drive the LEDs. Here Triac LED dimmer is recommended. Of course other controllers with AC design are also workable. If it is designed with DC input, you will need controller with DC design to drive the lights and you have to differentiate constant current and constant voltage as well.

 

Secondly, you have to calculate the total power of all LED lamps that you would like to drive and then decide what load capacity of the controller should be and quantity of controllers that you should use. The total power consumed by LEDs shall not exceed the load capacity of the controllers.

 

Thirdly, which type of control technology to use. As mentioned above, there many types of control technology available in the market including Triac, 0-10v, DMX, RF/WiFi wireless, DALI, Zigbee, Z Wave and so on. For those who just want a simple dimming control for home lighting, Triac and 0-10v are enough. For those who would like intelligent control and to create smart lighting, DMX, RF/WiFi wireless, DALI, Zigbee and Z Wave are better solutions.

 

Fourthly, once the control type is confirmed, you can consult a professional salesman and purchase the one you would like. Generally A dimming system includes a controller that drives the lamps and a control unit that connected to the controller and send control signal to it. Of course, sometimes the control unit and the controller are all-in-one depending on the design. You can choose as per your preferences. A great LED light dimmer can be chosen by you once all above issues are resolved.