VARILIGHT Technical Support

Other VARILIGHT Dimmers

My lights are switching to a reduced brightness

The usual reason for a dimmer switching the lights to a reduced brightness is because it is over-loaded. Please check on the back of the dimmer where the minimum and maximum load is printed. Add up the ratings of all the light bulbs that the dimmer is controlling and make sure they are less than the maximum load printed on the dimmer (see example below*).

If your lighting load exceeds the dimmer's maximum rating then you need to purchase a higher-rated dimmer or replace the light bulbs with others that have a lower rating (e.g. replace 50W bulbs with 35W bulbs).

* Here's an example. In your lounge there are two light fittings both with 3 x 60W light bulbs currently controlled by a single switch. You want to buy a dimmer to replace the switch. In your local DIY shop there are two dimmers available, one with a maximum rating of 250W and the other 400W. In this case the total lighting load is 2 x 3 x 60W = 360W. Therefore the 250W dimmer would not be suitable, you would need to choose the 400W instead.