You may be reading this article for the first time because you are dealing with LED lighting. Common Problems with LED Lighting can come in many forms. However, you do not need to worry because we got all the answers right here for you.
LED lights are awesome additions to vehicles, homes, and businesses. However, problems can arise that include, but are not limited to, things like flickering, buzzing, or the bulbs do not give off much light, cause glaring, and much more. If you do not get on these problems as soon as possible, you may have damage to your bulbs or circuits soon.
So, without further ado, let us get into solving some of the major problems with LED lighting. This way, you can enjoy them in the way they were meant to be. Additionally, you will be a championing of solving and repairing the issue. Many may flock for your services.
Common Problems With LED Lighting & Solutions
We have brought together the top 10 problems that you may run into when it comes to LED lighting. Each category will explain the problem at the solution for you to take in. Then, you can get to work on the project at hand.
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#1 – Flickering Issues Due To A Loose Wire
One common problem that you might run into is your LED lights flickering for all the world to see. If you have seen strobing lights before, there might not be that much of a difference, unfortunately. With poor quality bulbs, LEDs and floodlights can be seen with the lights going down and up periodically, without anyone controlling them this way.
Usually, flickering happens when the Hz is between 80 and 100. The naked eye can see this, and it may start to be a distraction to people. Over time, flickering lights can do a number on people’s bodies. For example, flicking lights can causing vomiting, fatigue, headaches. The worst-case scenario is epilepsy.
When it comes to a loose wire, the bulb and the circuit are not on the same plane with one another. As these flashing lights take place, know that there is an electromagnetic interference going on that you need to solve. The best way to fix this problem is by inspecting the connections. Some may have a break or a disconnect. To solve the problem, reconnect or replace the wire with a new one, and your LED lights should work well again.
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#2 – Lights Flicking Due To Bad Quality LED Lights
If you purchased cheap and inexpensive LED lights, you may notice flickering issues as well. You certainly will not get your money’s worth here. With bad soldering, your LED chips with gold wire can start to loosen over time. Additionally, if your LED lights have a bad PCB design, you will see a fluctuation of light coming your way at different times.
When looking to solve this problem, you will need to buy better-LED lighting. Reputable brands like Osram Square and CREE XTE would be a great place to start. You will have better soldering technology with no more flickering. What a concept!
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#3 – Loose Bulbs and Bad Dimmer Set-Ups
Sometimes, your flickering light issue has more to do with the fixture being tightened enough. If there is poor contact with the bulbs, the current with choppy at best. After you inspect your LED lights, shut off your bulbs altogether.
Also, kill the power supply as well. This will make sure you are safe when working on the LED lights. No one wants electrical shock. With your room completely dark, use a portable light to help give you light when you are tightening your bulbs. However, if it is light outside, you can use natural light to help you out in this process.
Maybe you have a bad dimmer setup, which is the problem with your LEDs. Depending on your dimmer type, you can pinpoint the problem with your LED lights. The most common dimmers include the Constant Current Reduction (CCR) dimmer and the Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) dimmer.
The CCR dimmer changes up the current of a circuit to give off different levels of brightness. With a power supply of 0 to 10 volts, a signal is sent to tell the lights what to do. With a continuous current, there should be no pulse going on with your circuit. If you have problems with this dimmer, go with a digital set-up to fix any issues.
The PWM dimmer, on the other hand, gives off a pulse where voltage is sent to the bulbs through the duration that they are used. This type of dimmer limits the overall brightness. You will notice the light going off and on quickly when the dimmer is in use.
If you have a dimmer that leaves much to be desire, the electrical system is sending out improper pulse signals. This will lead to the dreaded dimming. So, the problem can be fixed if you get some better LEDs that are digitals at their core. Certainly, do not be cheap here when it comes to LED lights.
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#4 – Broken Power Supply
Are you using LED lights in the backyard of your house? When a power supply has a bad driver, you will see some more fun flickering. Once again, know your product before you purchase it. Look at the driver unit specifically. One of the best power supplies comes from Mean Well for LED lights. Most of these lights do not have a failure rate after the first 2 years.
However, if your power supply does break down, you need to buy something new. With that in mind, just go Mean Well to start. You will not be disappointed at all.
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#5 – Extra High Wattage Issues At Home Or In The Sports Venue
If you are using high-powered machinery wherever you are running LEDs as well, you could start to have some flickering problems. Think of appliances like heaters, vacuums, air conditioning units, etc. Your power supply might not be able to handle LEDs and other things going on at the very same time.
This could be dangerous as well. Things may begin to overheat. With that in mind, a fire could start if LEDs are not handled appropriately in your house. To fix the problem, limit some devices going off at the same time in your home, or get a bigger power supply.
When it comes to sports lighting, LEDs are some of the most common options to use. There are specific LEDs that are meant for businesses rather than residential areas. The trouble with flickering issues in sports is it can affect camera and video shots, which is quite annoying for the spectators and fans.
To fix this problem with sports lighting, go with the LedsMasters’s LED lighting. They use reduction-based dimming, which can handle 6,000 Hz of the best photography in the world. Mainly, you can see these LEDs at football stadiums, basketball arenas, and so much more.
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#6 – Buzzing LED Noise
After flickering, you may be dealing with buzzing noises. This can mess with a musical mix. When a buzzing does happen, there is an overload in the circuit. If you were to use a dimmer that worked with 300 Watt LEDs, but you use 200 Watt bulbs, they will not work together well.
The sound comes from vibrations inside the lamp, and this is as frustrating as it comes. When this takes place, the frequencies range from 100 to 120 Hz. There is an abnormality here, but it is nothing you cannot handle.
First, inspect your bulbs. Next, look at the circuit to see if it is good to go. If you are still having a problem here, you may need to not use some of your luminaries to fix the problem.
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#7 – Wanting More Brightness & Dealing With The Heat
When your light will not get brighter for you, there may be another LED problem on the horizon. Unfortunately, this can happen with LEDs outside and inside. Aging is one of the main reasons trouble arises. The deterioration of an LED light happens after 80,000 hours of use with an L70 bulb. After that amount of time, the output of lumens will fall to 70% of its original brightness. This is no good for LED users.
You may run into situations were your LED lights can handle more hours of life. In today’s day and age, many bulbs range from 50,000 hours to 100,000. This means that bulbs can last for decades. Of course, the quick fix here is the replace the bulbs if you run into this problem.
A loose wire could be a simple problem for buzzing as well. With the power off, reconnect the wire and you should be good to go. Then, your lumen input will be good to go again. Or maybe you have a bad power supply. With voltage and current rates needing to be connected, the best brightness will not happy if you have bad inputs for your LEDs. Buy something quality to fix this problem.
You certainly do not want to have LEDs that give off a lot of heat. Luckily, by nature, LEDs limit heating issues, but LED lamps can still have problems that you need to be aware of. The more heat that is given off of LEDs, the less bright the lights will be. When LEDs are at their best, they hit a temperature of 25 degrees Celcius. However, if the environment of the lights gets up to 40 to 60 degrees Celcius, then the white light drops in brightness by 65 to 80%.
What about the cold? Do fridged temperatures cause problems here as well? On the contrary, colder weather is known to help LED lighting. Some say the light even gets brighter with colder temperatures.
Ultimately, if you are using LEDs in residential and business settings, keep your temperatures lower for best use. However, if you require LEDs for industrial use, things start to change. Industrial plants, like nuclear power and foundries, can have temperatures over 80 degrees Celcius. Still, they are not using a run of the mill LED lights here. These are reinforced LEDs that are required. If not, a regular bulb will be very dim or even break.
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#8 – Dimmer Drama
Maybe you have bought all the right bulbs, have tested them in and out, but you are still dealing with problems. The dimmer is the next place to check things out. If you cannot dim your LED lights, you may be having a problem with the dimmer itself.
Of course, checking the bulb for dimmable characteristics is first and foremost. So, do not buy your bulbs until you are positively sure things will work out for you. If you do somehow buy a non-dimmable LED, they will stay on. But, you will lose brightness. Also, you may be causing a risk to yourself and others because the LED light could be damaged and break altogether.
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#9 – The Glaring Issue
After buzzing and flickering, glare is the next issue. Think about your experiences with a glare before we talk more about LEDs. You know the awful experience. You are out in the sun and you cannot see ahead because the light is blinding. Sure, you may have glasses and a dash visor when you are in your vehicle. But, alas, glare is still in your eyes.
This is the same experience that you will have with LED lights that have a glaring issue. This glare comes straight from the light source itself. Vision can be altered and the living quality becomes limited. Have you tried reading words on a page with a glare reflection? It does not work. Even a white glare can happen on a TV when you watch because of the sun or bulbed lights.
To try to fix this problem before it starts, decide upon the amount of light that you need and do not overdo things. When you overdo things, you get a glare. So, how should you calculate the amount of light that you need? Well, if you are putting lights in a home, think of this method. What is the square meters of the room you want to put LED lights in?
For example, let us say your room is 50 square meters. Times that by 150 lux and you get an amount of 7,500 lumens. Now, for a little more math. Most LED lights have 130 lumens per watt, which means 23 Watts per bulb. With this Watt bulb, you can add 20 to 30% to limit the glare and energy loss that comes with it.
How about LEDs in a garage? The lux level should be 500 because you are working more in there. Most lights are better in this situation likewise. Are you still having a glaring issue? A barn door could help bring outside light in to limit the effect of glare.
You could even create a wall cover for your lights with LEDs. This way, you would see the lights from the side. So, maybe think to do this with lighting like floodlights outside.
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#10 – Pollution From Blue Light
The last thing to talk about with LED issues involves blue light. Blue light has been more and more prevalent, as technology has been a staple for people all around the globe. In its basic form, blue light can be good and bad for a few reasons.
Blue light can help with mood and reaction time as positives. However, your health can be impacted negatively at nighttime. What blue lights do is limit melatonin in the body and your sleep cycle can be affected in the process. Also, retinas can be damaged for the long-term. Did you know that blue light causes pollution, too?
To reduce LED blue light, consider lowering the temperature for color from 3000K to 5000K. Anything over 6000K starts to bring about blue light pollution. But, if you want warm white light, go with 3000 to 3500K for a chill experience. In the 21st Century, life is just so busy. But, with the right LED lights, without blue light, a lot of things can go well for you.
Conclusion
Now that we have gone through the top-10 troublesome issues with LEDs, it is time for you to figure out the problem for yourself and get to work. Most of these things can be done by you in just a few minutes. How great?
Things may take longer, but you will be able to pinpoint the problem and use LEDs the way they were intended. This way, you can enjoy them for all they are worth. They are truly an amazing piece of tech that will be around for years to come. Remember to be safe when working with electricity and everything will go smoothly.