Frustrating Experience With Dimmable LED Bulbs

October 25, 2019, 08:34 PM

I installed a new dining room light fixture last year that takes 4 standard sized bulbs and wired in a Lutron LED compatible dimmer switch.

The current set of bulbs have never been right, they would flicker randomly every once in a great while and finally one just burned out so I decided to replace them. Can’t remember the brand, I think they were Walmart Great Value brand.

Ordered a set of 4 new ones from 1000Bulbs.com and made sure they were dimmable and the listing stated “compatible with most dimmer switches”. I get them today and put them in and they BUZZ, and BUZZ LOUDLY.

WTF! What am I doing wrong here?

October 25, 2019, 08:41 PM

kkina

I don't know if you're doing anything wrong, but I have had all the experiences you described as well.

October 25, 2019, 09:37 PM

PASig

I looked up the Lutron dimmer model (Skylark) and there was a bulb compatibility list that was surprisingly short. It looks like Cree bulbs in stock at my local Home Depot are on it, which I guess I’ll try next.

October 26, 2019, 04:53 AM

Rey HRH

I'm glad I'm not the only one with the flickering dimmable lights. To stop them from flickering, i have to have them on full on.

"It did not really matter what we expected from life, but rather what life expected from us. We needed to stop asking about the meaning of life, and instead to think of ourselves as those who were being questioned by life – daily and hourly. Our answer must consist not in talk and meditation, but in right action and in right conduct. Life ultimately means taking the responsibility to find the right answer to its problems and to fulfill the tasks which it constantly sets for each individual." Viktor Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning, 1946.

October 26, 2019, 07:11 AM

PASig

quote:
Originally posted by Rey HRH:
I'm glad I'm not the only one with the flickering dimmable lights. To stop them from flickering, i have to have them on full on.

Which defeats the whole purpose of a DIMMER

October 26, 2019, 07:19 AM

Scurvy

Gotta pair the lights with the switches they work well with.

October 26, 2019, 08:24 AM

UpTheIrons

quote:
Originally posted by PASig:
I installed a new dining room light fixture last year that takes 4 standard sized bulbs and wired in a Lutron LED compatible dimmer switch.

The current set of bulbs have never been right, they would flicker randomly every once in a great while and finally one just burned out so I decided to replace them. Can’t remember the brand, I think they were Walmart Great Value brand.

Ordered a set of 4 new ones from 1000Bulbs.com and made sure they were dimmable and the listing stated “compatible with most dimmer switches”. I get them today and put them in and they BUZZ, and BUZZ LOUDLY.

WTF! What am I doing wrong here?

What is the model number of the Lutron switch?

“I used to be totally into Steve Vai and Joe Satriani and other shredders, and I tried to emulate what they did and really grow as a guitarist,” Mr. Hanneman said in “Louder Than Hell.” “Then I said, ‘I don’t think I’m that talented, but more important, I don’t care.’ ”

October 26, 2019, 08:28 AM

Skins2881

quote:
Originally posted by PASig:
I looked up the Lutron dimmer model (Skylark) and there was a bulb compatibility list that was surprisingly short. It looks like Cree bulbs in stock at my local Home Depot are on it, which I guess I’ll try next.

This is how you do it. There is a website on the small piece of green paper that came with your dinner. Go to that site and select from the ones that have been tested

Home Depot brand EcoSmart (really cheap) are surprisingly decent. Not sure if Lutron has tested them for use with that dinner though.

October 26, 2019, 08:29 AM

Skins2881

quote:
Originally posted by UpTheIrons:
quote:
Originally posted by PASig:
I installed a new dining room light fixture last year that takes 4 standard sized bulbs and wired in a Lutron LED compatible dimmer switch.

The current set of bulbs have never been right, they would flicker randomly every once in a great while and finally one just burned out so I decided to replace them. Can’t remember the brand, I think they were Walmart Great Value brand.

Ordered a set of 4 new ones from 1000Bulbs.com and made sure they were dimmable and the listing stated “compatible with most dimmer switches”. I get them today and put them in and they BUZZ, and BUZZ LOUDLY.

WTF! What am I doing wrong here?

What is the model number of the Lutron switch?

It's SCL-153P-WH. I'm guessing on the color, he may have ivory, but electrically they are the same.

October 26, 2019, 11:06 PM

PASig

I got the Cree bulbs that were listed as compatible with the Lutron dimmer and they buzz a tiny, tiny bit if I get my ear near the fixture but otherwise they are fine. The other bulbs buzzed so loud you could hear them in the kitchen! They also dim from full bright to basically off which the other bulbs weren’t doing.

On another note I saw that the dimmer was marked “Coopersburg, PA”. I never knew Lutron was located like 15-20 minutes away from where I live.

October 27, 2019, 06:46 AM

bigmule

I hear you man.
Cheap ass computer processors from a pile of different sources.
I hate leds for that reason.

The bulb market is total and complete a crap shoot now a days.
Donno How many 4 pack of led bulbs I have picked over the years for clients, none act the same on a dimmer.

Stick with the incan bulbs on those dimmers. Way better light quality anyway.

October 27, 2019, 08:10 AM

hooch

It's probably not a issue with the led bulb. Traditional dimmer switches need a certain amount of wattage to operate correctly with the bulb, leds are mostly below that minimum amount.

October 27, 2019, 08:21 AM

.38supersig

Hopefully your CREE bulbs haven't burned out yet. I had the great idea of changing out some of mine to CREE bulbs and they went quickly. CREE = SHIT.

October 27, 2019, 11:12 AM

az4783054

I'm going through similar frustration, but they're outside on the detached garage. There is a timer switch to turn the three lights on automatically. The original small 40w LED bulbs would flicker constantly or momentarily go off entirely. I tried 40w incandescent bulbs, but they don't last long in the colder weather.

I found some ACE HARDWARE 45w bulbs yesterday. They're larger size, but so far no issue.

October 27, 2019, 11:42 AM

nhtagmember

back in my previous life working for TI and analog power control IC devices, I did a lot of research with a few of the electricals I knew on brands and infant mortality in LED bulbs and we concluded that Cree probably had the best all over performance and longevity

now, that was a about 15 years ago - a lot may have changed, but my casual reading still shows Cree as one of the top manufacturers

October 27, 2019, 03:41 PM

PASig

quote:
Originally posted by hooch:
It's probably not a issue with the led bulb. Traditional dimmer switches need a certain amount of wattage to operate correctly with the bulb, leds are mostly below that minimum amount.

It’s a dimmer switch specifically built for LED’s...