The interior lighting in our homes is an important thing. The lighting can define a room and it’s mood. A family dinner is a different mood from a romantic dinner for two. Watching a movie is a different experience from studying or reading a book. The interior lighting in your home only has one setting. That setting is “On”. There is no in between. It is an odd thing that most people still let themselves be inconvenienced by this. This is especially outrageous when you realize that there is an obvious solution. The solution is a dimmer switch. A dimmer switch allows the user to control the amount of light in the room. Using a dimmer switch allows you to go from barely any light at all, to complete illumination. This can all be accomplished with the simple twisting of a knob or the sliding of a lever.
Old style dimmers had a very simple way of controlling the amount of light in a room. These dimmers used variable resistors. A resistor is a type of material that does not conduct electricity well. So a variable resistor is just a resistor that you can adjust. The more resistant material that blocks the electrical current, the dimmer the light will be. This style has fallen out of favor because it costs noticeably more energy to light the room the same amount. It is not cost-efficient
The modern dimmer switch is a bit more complex. Modern dimmer switches do not force energy to go through layers of resistance. Instead, modern dimmer switches rapidly turn the light circuit on and off over and over again in order to reduce the amount of energy coming in. The dimmer turns the circuit on and off multiple times per second. The electrical energy is alternating current or an AC. The AC moves in a wave pattern. When the dimmer repeatedly turns the circuit on and off, it chops up the AC wave, which in turn reduces the amount of energy that gets through. The brighter a room is the more energy that is getting through. The more energy getting through means there is a smaller downtown between when the circuit is turned off and when it is turned back on. The inverse would be true if you wanted it to be dimmer.
The installation of a dimmer switch should always be done by a licensed electrician. The wiring needs to match up exactly otherwise, the dimmer will not work. There is always the danger that poor wiring could cause serious problems down the road, so a licensed electrician is a worthwhile precaution. A dimmer switch will give you control of the interior lighting in your home. They offer versatility that is useful in any situation. Installing a dimmer switch is a smart way to take control and to personalize the interior of your home.