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Inteon Dimmer (ie 2477D) with LED lights compatibility

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    Inteon Dimmer (ie 2477D) with LED lights compatibility

    First, I tried searching this forum, but apparently the term "LED" is too general and it won't take the search term. I can't think of a different search term, as I'm sure this has been asked before :) Sorry



    I want to know, are there any compatibility issues I need to be aware of if I want to try using an Insteon Dimmer (like the 2477D) with LED lights?

    I have rooms with multiple recessed lights (currently CFL, want to change to LEDs) and for some rooms I want to use dimmers. Each room has ~6 to 10 recessed lights if that matters.

    For example, if I were to use something like [url]http://amzn.com/B00IP6D2D8[/url] ---- or, are there any specific kits that are known to be trouble free with Insteon?

    Thanks!
    Last edited by DrGerm; 08-23-2015, 07:13 PM.

    #2
    Technically Smartlabs or rather Insteon products do not officially support LED lights. Having said this many people have had great success using various brands from Cree, Sylvania, GE, Lighting Science, etc.

    It really comes down to trial and error to see if the selected bulb will be a noise maker / signal sucker. You may even find where hundreds of people have used a specific model of LED bulb with great success and later that same bulbs ends up being an issue.

    You will need to purchase a few and try them in your environment and see. My only suggestion is to purchase as many of them from the same lot because this will save time and effort when you conduct your tests.

    Key things to test for is noise whether the bulb makes excessive hum / buzz when dimmed. Does the load turn on fine but does not turn off properly? Do you see LED blink errors (this is found on newer Insteon products now)?

    Does the bulb dim in a uniform fashion with out light flicker and down to a respectable level say 5% cut off.
    Teken . . .

    Comment


      #3
      Hi DrGerm, some things to consider when dimming LED's

      Check to see if LED Driver/ fitting is suitable for Leading edge or Trailing edge dimmers. It helps if you have an issue as the Manufacturers can say 'not compatible' if you have a problem. (Having said that, I've got Insteon (leading edge dimmer) running some Trailing edge drivers and have had no issues.)

      LED's don't dim the same as Incandescent lamps. Incandescent tend to be linear, where LED's are not. You will find that LED's dim to around 10% then turn off. As Teken has said, you may also have stability issues when dimmed to low levels

      De-rate the dimmer to at least 80% when using Leading edge dimmers. This is due to the inrush of the Capacitors in the driver. You cannot connect 300W of LED to a 300W dimmer.

      If replacing MR16 type lamps (dichroic lamps) with LED's and if using Electronic transformers, make sure there is enough minimum load for the Electronic transformer to turn on. We have come across a lot of installations where the Transformer won't turn on the LED, but swap back to the dichroic and it's fine. Connecting multiple LED's to one transformer can help, but again dimming can have unexpected results.

      The best solution (as far as Insteon product is concerned) is to use a 1-10V dimming system with compatible LED Driver. I would use these in the more demanding applications though. Probably the next best thing to DALI/ DSI without the expense.

      Hope this helps

      Comment


        #4
        According to my experience the Smartlabs and the Insteon products do not support LED lights.
        Having said this many people have had great success using various brands from Cree, Sylvania, GE, Lighting Science, etc.
        It really comes down to trial and error to see if the selected bulb will be a noise maker / signal sucker. You may even find where hundreds of people have used a specific model of LED bulb with great success and later that same bulbs ends up being an issue...

        Last edited by DevinaBove; 10-21-2015, 08:51 AM.

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          #5
          I have found that some LED bulb models may work OK and then the same model acted differently.
          Older Philips EnduraLED bulbs. Original worked differently than the later ones. Phillips changed the driver electronics and the number of LEDs in the bulb.
          12E26A60 was the original and they added a -1 suffix to the part number for the updated one.

          Comment


            #6
            While I've had lots of problems with the software and adding devices, I have no problems with the 2477D switches working with LED bulbs. Most of my bulbs are Cree soft white and they work just fine.

            Comment


              #7
              I use a mix of LED bulbs with Insteon dimmers and so far have had no issues. My Son was trying to use an LED in his Daughters bedroom with an Insteon dimmer and the bulb just kept blinking. He lives in an older house, and what he did was open the wall at the switch and changed the way the switch was wired to the fixture and everything works fine now. So some of these LED issues might be wiring issues, and not Insteon or LED.

              Comment


                #8
                The only possible wiring issue that can be fixed is changing from a 2-wire SwitchLinc Dimmer (2474DWH) to a 3-wire SwitchLinc Dimmer (2477D). In any case, the 2-wire switch is meant for incandescent loads only.
                Message from Forum Admin: stusviews passed away in April 2018. Stu was a huge fan of Insteon and a huge presence on both the Smarthome and Insteon forums, helping thousands of us along the way (he had nearly 20,000 posts to his name). We thank him for his contributions, dedication, and passion for making the Smart Home a reality. He will truly be missed.
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