I am really frustrated.

We had a new home built and when we moved in, I put Lutron Gliders just about everywhere.

Now it's two years later, and so far three dimmers have stopped working the second that a bulb burned out.

For example, there are two recessed lights over the fireplace controlled by one dimmer. There are nine recessed lights in the den controlled by a second dimmer. There are five recessed lights in the kitchen area controlled by a dimmer. In each case, when a light bulb burned out, the dimmer stopped "dimming" the lights, although it still works for basic on/off.

I've had other bulbs burn without the dimmer dying, but this has happened three times so far. The Glyders are rated for 600W, and the bulbs are all 65W, so even the one controlling nine lights was only at 585W. If it was just that one circuit, I would just chalk it up to bad luck. But three of them?

Did I just get a bad batch of dimmers? At $20 each, I'm not keen on replacing them without investigating the root causes. What else could be happening?

 

585 is dangerously close to 600. I know it should theoretically work with 600-watt dimmers, but try 1000-watt dimmers instead.

Are you using simple ordinary BR65 flood bulbs? What brand?

 

Here's what they are: http://www.bulbs.com/products/produc...nventory=11447

That's what the builder put in, and that's what I found at Home Depot when I went to buy new ones. There were a couple of Sylvania 65W bulbs scattered in among the others when we moved in, but those have all been replaced.

I realize 585W is close to the rated limit on a 600W dimmer, but that's still below the rating. And the other two dimmers only had 325W and 130W loads.

 

Should I call an electrician and have them check the house wiring?

Nobody? Please?

 

I'd try different bulbs first. Don't use the long-life bulbs. What happens when the bulbs blow is that you have a momentary short circuit. This short circuit is apparently enough to fry your dimmer. Use regular life bulbs. I prefer Sylvania.

 

Thanks, John, that's interesting. I remember roaming the aisles at Home Depot looking for choices and I think that was the only 65W flood they carried, so I bought 24 of them. But even though they are both Philips 65W floods and they are the identical shape and size, the ones I bought have a slightly different designation than the ones the builder used, and I'm guessing that the builder did not use long-life bulbs (although I don't know how to tell). If that's the case, then none of the long-life bulbs have burned out yet. I don't even know what to think at this point.

Is that realistic, that someone makes light bulbs which cause a short-circuit which will fry a dimmer? That almost sounds like a joke. What homeowner would ever know such a thing?

Do you think Lutron or Home Depot will exchange the dimmers that burned out?

 

Home Depot has a generous return policy. Can't hurt to try. You might also see if Lutron has a customer service line you could call and describe your experiences. Let us know what happens if you do either.

 

Well I was almost right, but they are not long-life bulbs after all. They are just plain old Philips 65W reflector floods.

Is there any chance the wiring needs to be checked?

 

I don't know of any wiring problem that could cause this. At any rate, try different bulbs.