Lighting: the Controlling Factor

That's simply not true. Dimmers are "heat sinks", that's all. The same amount of voltage travels thru the device.

Penny - Lutron does not tell the complete story about dimming incandescents 1) We do not notice dimming until lights are reduced by 20% or more - our eyes adapt and compensate for lower light levels. 2) incandescent light gets more yellow and unpleasant (poor skin tones) as we increase dimming. 3) halogen lamps require 100% operation for the regenerative cycle to work and for long lamp life. This can be accomplished before switching halogen lamps off, simply increase light to 100% for a few minutes. 4) some incandescent filaments will buzz when dimmed, loudly. De-buzzing coils (more money and a change order) might or might not stop buzzing. I think the there-is-no-free-lunch idea we all learn early in our professional careers is a good approach to lighting design. Lutron is the designers best friend in many ways but they do selectively use engineering information. I always advise interior designers to try products in their office or home before specifying for a client. Lutron gives big discounts to designers who wish to try products. I teach lighting at the Academy of Art University, Interior Architecture & Design Program. I am getting very good at taking complex information and reducing it to a short statement. Feel free to contact me should you have questions on lighting, arthurcorbin@gmail.com. Thanks for the continued interesting observations and reports.