Sales begin to appear dimmer specially designed for LED lamps. I bought and tested the two models: Legrand Etika 672,219 and Schneider Blanca BLNSS04001.
Most LED lamps do not support brightness adjustment, but there is a dimmable bulb, the brightness of which can be adjusted on the idea of a conventional dimmer for incandescent lamps.
Many are faced with the fact that the dimmable lamps do not work well, either too bright shine to a minimum level, or on some levels of the light begins to shiver, or buzz when dimming, or generally erupt and blink. It was found that almost every model lamps in their work with each model dimmer. The first reason for this is that conventional dimmers are not designed for LED lamps, many of which contains 40-60 W and the minimum load is often less than the consumption of the entire chandelier with LED lamps.
Last year I tested ten different dimmers work with fifteen models of LED lamps (ammo1.livejournal.com/996049.html). Only one out of ten dimmer impeccably worked with all the lights, but it was a radio-controlled dimmer specially designed for LED lamps.
Among the hundreds of conventional dimmers with a rotating handle for sale, you can find some models for LED lamps. On their packaging indicated that they are working with LED-lamps, but most vendors and online stores literacy is not indicated.
Such dimmers can be distinguished by several factors:
- a clear indication on the packaging and in the instructions that the dimmer works with LED lamps;
- low minimum power level (typically 5 W), and a low level peak power (100-400 W);
- presence of a minimum level adjusting dimming;
- possibility of dimming switching manner on the leading or trailing edge.
Different bulbs have different work when dimming on the leading and trailing edge. It so happens that when dimming the lamp on the leading edge loud buzzing and almost none on the back of sound. Others at the trailing edge dimming of "going crazy" - flash, flash. Third at the leading edge dimming of the light is too bright even at the minimum dimming and dimming at the trailing edge may fade to nearly zero. That is why the possibility of switching the method of dimming is important for LED lamps.
All of the features listed above, there are two dimmers that I found and bought for the experiment.
Legrand Etika 672,219 worth 1475 rubles, and it is necessary to buy an additional frame. Schneider Blanca BLNSS040011 (the latter figure is color) is from 1425 rubles, and his frame is already complete.
Legrand Etika 672,219 may work with conventional incandescent lamps or halogen lamps with a total capacity of 300 W or dimmable LED lamps from 5 to 75 watts (max 10 lamps). It is driven endlessly rotary-encoder (adjustment from low to high - 1.5-2 turns). Pressing the knob switches the light.
It is possible to connect additional control buttons that you can use as a light switch on and off (short press) and adjust its brightness (long press).
To connect the button has an additional contact, the two contacts are interconnected L.
Method dimming varies microswitch on the side wall.
minimum brightness level is adjusted after a long press on the knob.
Dimmer remembers the state when you turn sets the brightness that was before shutdown.
Schneider Blanca BLNSS04001 works with incandescent lamps and halogen lamps up to 400 W or dimmable LED lamps from 5 to 150 watts. It is controlled by knob-walking encoder 16 and the abutment positions in the end positions respectively only 16 possible levels of brightness. Pressing the knob switches the light. The brightness level and the state (enabled or disabled) is stored even during a power failure.
In dimmer three contacts.
Two L1 and L2 inputs allow you to implement an external light control: if you connect it to the switch, it will include and light off (if the dimmer has been inserted, when switching the light switch turns off if it was off - turn). When this function is not needed, the electricity can be connected to any input.
The front panel has an opening, which is located under the service button.
With this button, and a main handle configured minimum brightness level and a selected dimming method.
Sometimes dimmable LED lamps behave differently when the dimmer is connected to one or more lamps, dimmers so I had 4-6 tubes, included in parallel, because it will be so in real chandelier.
Both dimmer quite work well with different lamps and in a particular mode, each of them worked fine with each set of lamps. Due to the fact that the two-wire dimmer according to the scheme, not all lamps are on at full brightness at the maximum adjustment (they give 95-99%, which is almost indistinguishable from the full brightness).
All lamps manage to reduce the brightness to levels of less than 1% of full brightness, but in some cases, the lights are not on such dark and after turning is necessary turn the knob to the right, so that the lamp lit, and then reduce the brightness when it necessary. However, you can set the minimum brightness at the level of 3-5%, in which the lamp will be guaranteed to be included (there are also such that even included at the level of 0.1%).
With Legrand dimmer strange thing happened. First, it is always switched on 100% brightness and smooth, 5 seconds, reduce the brightness to stored, and then suddenly stopped to do it and started immediately switched to stored brightness. Most likely he has a different switching modes that somehow tuned by manipulating the handle and pressing on it, but the instructions for this word.
Oddities were with Schneider: the manual says that it switches a method of controlling the rising or falling edge of a long press the service button, the light blinks once or twice. In fact, it turned out that the work on the rising edge is activated by long pressing the service button, when the brightness is set to maximum (light blinks three times). Work on the trailing edge turns long press performance buttons when not maximal brightness (light flashing once).
Pros dimmer Schneider Blanca BLNSS04001:
- Works with all LED lamps;
- It is convenient that the handle has an extreme position;
- To change the type of regulation does not need to be removed from the wall dimmer;
- You can control the light by an external switch.
Cons dimmer Schneider Blanca BLNSS04001:
- For the settings you need to remove the front cover;
- Enough tight press.
Pros dimmer Legrand Etika 672 219:
- Works with all LED lamps;
- Smooth adjustment due to the fact that the handle spinning endlessly;
- Support for additional light control buttons;
- To set the minimum brightness is not necessary to remove the front panel.
Cons dimmer Legrand Etika 672 219:
- In mode, adjust the trailing edge with some lights buzzing, and others begin to flash;
- To switch the method of adjustment should be removed from the wall dimmer.
Both dimmers are not perfect, but for the LED bulbs are much better than usual - with each of these two dimmers I was able to achieve a stable dimming of lamps in a wide range.
P.S. If you need one of these two dimmers contact. I bought them just to study and this article. I am in Moscow. I'll give a little cheaper than market value.
© 2019 Alex Nadozhin
In project lamptest.ru I'm testing LED lamps and help figure out which ones are good and which are not.