dimmer switches and CFLs

Hello,

My sister in law has moved into a house that has a dimmer switch and a "non-dimmable" CFL in the light fitting. I told her to change the bulb or change the switch but I wasn't sure what would happens if she did not do either of these things. Does the bulb fail or does the dimmer fail or both? And if one or other fails, do they fail safely and quietly or can it be a fire hazard?

Do CFLs come with warnings about this on their boxes? I can't say that I've seen any.

I bought a couple of dimmerable CFLs but was not impressed. I think some dimmers are unsuitable for CFLS because they need a minimum load greater than the CFL. I bought a low load dimmer especially for my CFL. What are the implications of using a "normal" dimmer with CFLs. Do they not work quietly or is smoke and fire involved with that?

Considering the push to switch people to CFLS, it is a shame that these are not made clearer to people.

Thanks, Stephen.

Reply to
Stephen
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Any ideas anyone?

Reply to
Stephen

The CFL will not light or it will just flicker on and off.

Reply to
ARW

The input end of a cfl is a diode bridge and a safety fusible resistor. A r= egular dimmer set at less than full greatly increases peak current in the B= R&R, soon causing the resistor to fail. Its designed to fail safely. If you= 're unlucky a diode may also fail, but again failure isn't dangerous.

NT

Reply to
meow2222

Thanks for the replies. I had worried that it would involve overheating and possibly smoke, so I am glad to hear that this is not the case. I'll pass this on to them.

Reply to
Stephen

It does, but of a part designed to fail safely.

NT

Reply to
meow2222

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