Don’t ever ignore your LED light bulb when it starts blinking because that’s an indication there is a problem. A blinking bulb means the power supply is failing, cycling, or there is a problem with the bulb itself. If this continues for long, it won’t work. Call an expert to check where the problem might be.
A lighting expert inspects your LED lights during routine maintenance visits and helps you tighten any loose connection. During this period, the expert can repair or replace the bulbs if need be. LED flickering can also be tied to the driver element within the lamp. All these disruptions in the consistent light stream are annoying as well as causing a distraction. It simply indicates the voltage load or electrical connection problem in commercial facilities or your home.
Find out the actual cause with your electrician expert and solve it earlier before it can cause more problems for you. It’s highly recommendable to deal with quality devices when it comes to electrical wiring to avoid possible power issues.
Why Is My LED Bulb Flashing?
Probably, you must have installed LED light bulbs only to see them start flickering on and off. It does happen, and it is most common when there are voltage malfunctions in your house wiring. When the electrical loads turn on/off in your house, it creates changes in voltage levels that may cause the LED lights to flicker or dim frequently.
Although some other reasons might cause your lights to flicker, blink, dim, or turn on and off. These may include:
Inrush Current From Other Appliances
Specific appliances in your house might need more power when you first turn them on. The voltage drops immediately due to the inrush current of motors in the appliances. If your lights are using the same circuit, it may start dimming. It’s so common in LED bulbs as well as other types of lighting too.
It’s advisable to have appliances such as a fridge, washer, dryer, or stove on a separate breaker. But if this isn’t the cause, then it’s only fair to call an expert electrician to investigate the case.
Loose Bulb Or Loose Wiring
A loose connection or circuit is another common problem that may cause bulbs to flicker though such a case is pretty easy to fix. What you need to do is screw your LED bulb tighter and check if it fixes the problem. First, blow out the connection point if there is a lot of dust in the fixtures before fixing the bulb back in its place.
Loose wiring at the connection of the fixture can cause similar issues. In such a case, you need a qualified electrician to disconnect the power to the fixtures then re-tighten the wiring. Making sure it’s secure and also tight. If the same problem is witnessed in numerous light fixtures in your house, then the electrician will check the junction box or panel and investigate further to ensure everything is back to normal.
Dimmer Compatibility
Your LED lighting might not be compatible with the new dimmer switches or the existing ones. Read the bulb labeling carefully together with the fixtures to ensure they are the right ones for the job while fixing this issue. Remember, dimmers have wattage ratings that vary depending on the king of the light source, be it LED, incandescent, etc. All these affect the number of dimmer light fixtures regarding the wattages of each one of them.
Avoid gang switches in the same back box since the practice de-rate the wattages that dimmers can handle safely. Fortunately, your qualified electrician will know the correct load permitted by referring to the electrician code. Always purchase the quality energy star-certified LED bulb with recognized certification when changing your lightings in your home.
Outdoor Lighting
In the case of outdoor lighting having a strobe light, it might be that it has gotten in contact with water. The result will be bulbs that don’t light up when it flashes or whenever the lamp bead or the drive is broken. When the drive is waterproof and good, it will only break the lamp bead and change the light source.
Normally, the energy-saving lamp and the LED lamp flash after switching off the power. Confirm whether the switch control is the neutral line. Refer to this method if the wiring is correct.
Is A Flickering LED Light Dangerous?
LED lights flickering can be due to various reasons, some of which are harmless, while others are hazardous. So, the major determinant is the cause of flickering in your house. A light fixture or a lamp with a loose lightbulb can flicker, although that’s not a major deal, and you fix it easily.
Even light dimmers without compatible lightbulbs usually flicker when they are set on low, but they are not dangerous. It can be fixed easily by trying a different brand of LED light until it fits. Another rare cause for flickering might be having a large electrical load around your house, like a factory operating next to your location. Generally, this one also is not considered dangerous, but one thing is for sure, it reduces the life of your appliance. In such a case, you should raise a concern with the relevant department.
The most dangerous flickering that you should address as soon as you can is when there is a loose connection in the house between the light and where the electrical service enters the house. Call your qualified electrician to fix if you don’t have advanced electrical knowledge.
How Can I Stop My LED Lights From Flickering?
LED lighting technology has been adopted largely worldwide thanks to its energy-efficient solutions that are more favorable. To avoid further or future LED flickering, you need a basic understanding of the issues surrounding it. Please keep these points in your mind. It will be handy every time you experience flickering;
1. After installing the dimming system, experiment to see if there is a dimming limit level; you should not go beyond.
2.. Normalize using a constant-current LED driver.
3. Make sure the LED product uses a power supply to develop specifically for that job. Avoid using LED strips that are driven by mains alternate channels.
4. Always ensure all your LED products match the power supply or control circuit you are using.
5. Be on the lookout for loose wiring or any other faulty connections. On top of that, ensure all your LED dimmers are not overloaded.
6. Consider the use of a zero-to-10V or digital volt-dimming system as compared to a TRIAC alternative.
Can LED Lights Start Fires?
It’s crucial to note that LED lights have minimal chances of causing the fire. Typically, LED light doesn’t emit its light from the vacuum like other bulbs types do. Rather the illumination is given by solid things referred to as semiconductors. It’s considered one of the environmentally friendly lighting products, energy-efficient, and cost-saving.
Overheating might be the reason that makes a bulb start a fire though it rarely happens with LED lights bulbs. As much as they may feel hot to touch, it doesn’t mean they will start a fire as they generate light at a lower temperature than other lighting counterparts. Unlike the traditional bulbs, which use a filament, it loses a lot of energy via heat emissions, while incandescent bulbs produce heat as infrared radiation.
Traditional lights are used as a source of heat for poultry incubation, heaters for reptiles, and so on because they radiate more heat than others. So, be confident when purchasing LED lights bulbs as they do not cause any harm to your house unless otherwise.
What Happens When An LED Bulb Burns Out?
LED light bulbs don’t burn out like fluorescent lamps or any other bulb but rather degrade and dim over time. Not unless an actual element in the LED lights fails; they can provide you with light forever. Over time, the diode itself starts to emit less and less light as time goes by until it switches off completely. However, LED bulbs can last you up to 25,000 hours, twenty times longer than an incandescent bulb or five times longer compared with compact fluorescent lamp (CFL).
To protect your LED lights, ensure they don’t overheat, use LED compatible dimmers and lastly, choose the proper application.
How Long Should An LED Bulb Last?
LED light bulbs are known to be an extremely long-lasting product you can never go wrong with. Most LED lightings have a rated lifespan of up to 50,000 hours. Meaning they can last even 50 times longer than a regular incandescent bulb. Interestingly 20-25 times longer than a typical halogen and properly 8-10 times longer than standard CFL lighting. When you use it 12 hours a day, it can last up to 11 years, and if you decide to use 8 hours a day, it can last up to 17 years. All this happens when no other obstacles are surrounding LED lights.
Conclusion
Flickering lights should not be confused with blinking holiday lights. It might be a major sign that something small or big is cooking somewhere, and it needs to be taken care of ASAP. Although what causes blinking, flickering, or dimming might be different, it’s a hint that you need to pay close attention to your house lighting before everything falls apart. If you are well averse to electrical issues, you can DIY some small problems. But you should call a professional electrician for a serious issue. They say things happen for a certain reason, so don’t ignore the blinking light bulb in your house for whatever reason.
