What Causes LED Lights to Flicker?

Sleek backlighting accents in homes usually utilize LED lights. These diverse lights come in many shapes and sizes and can create dramatic lighting for home interiors. However, different issues can cause these lights to flicker, diminishing their aesthetic.

So, what causes LED lights to flicker? In this blog, we’ll discuss the main causes of flickering LED lights and provide useful information on troubleshooting.

If your LED lights continually flicker, call the most skilled electrician in Port Washington from Professional Services. Our top-rated electricians can perform maintenance and repair services on your home’s framework and light fixtures. Call today to reilluminate your home with our skilled electrical services.

10 Top Reasons Your LED Lights Are Flickering

Learning what causes LED lights to flicker can help you avoid frustrating lighting problems. The following are the top 10 causes of flickering LED lights.

1. Dirty or Dusty Sockets

Dust accumulates on every surface of your home, and light bulbs are no exception. Believe it or not, though, the dust and dirt accumulating on the surface of your bulbs can find its way into the socket.

As these contaminants gather in the socket, they can disrupt the connection between the LED light bulb and your electrical framework. This obstruction leads to flickering. Fortunately, routine dusting should mitigate this cause.

2. Loose Connections

After remaining in a socket for many months, your LED lights may move and shift slightly. Over time, this can cause the bulb’s connection to loosen.

Loose connections will limit the electrical flow needed for uninterrupted lighting. Try tightening your bulb to see if this resolves the flickering.

3. Incompatible Dimmers

Installing dimmable LED lights creates an even more dramatic effect. However, certain combinations of bulbs and dimmers may not be compatible.

In these cases, you’re likely to notice flickering. Check that you are using LED dimmers for LED downlights. Dimmers meant for halogen lights won’t work properly and could cause consistent flicker issues.

4. Wire Issues

From loose connections to improperly sized wires in your sockets, many wire issues could cause your LED lights to flicker. Professional electricians will need to inspect your framework to identify the wiring issue at hand. 

5. Faulty LED Driver

If you’re using LED strips within your home, you might notice a small square component where it connects to a lighting outlet. This square is the LED driver, which regulates the flow of electricity to the lights. Lighting strips with a faulty or damaged driver may flicker frequently. 

6. Smart Control Problems

Smart home controls allow you to adjust settings within your property from a phone or tablet at any location. However, these controls require a coordinated effort between multiple home systems.

It’s possible that your flickering LED lights are symptomatic of issues with your smart home controls. Restart your system or cheek for any service alerts to see whether you might need maintenance for your smart home controls.

7. The Ripple Effect

During peak electrical hours, municipal electricity plants place more stringent regulations on the flow of electricity to each property. These adjustments may limit electrical power to your home at this peak time. Since they use less energy, LED lights will flicker from this “ripple effect.”

8. Incorrect Bulbs

Ensure that the LED bulbs you are using remain compatible with the voltage and socket requirements of your light fixtures. Choosing incorrect bulbs could certainly cause flickering.

9. Inrush Overload

When you turn on a high-powered device in your home, some electricity may siphon from other sources to provide the big jolt necessary for these appliances. Since LED lights use less power, an inrush to such an appliance could cause a brief flicker.

10. Circuit Overload

While considering what causes LED lights to flicker, you should also examine your household’s electrical use. For example, running multiple high-powered devices at the same time could cause power surges and circuit overloads. These events will make your LEDs flicker.

Troubleshooting Your Flickering LED Lights

If you notice your LED lights flickering, try some of these troubleshooting options to resolve the problem quickly:

• Tighten all bulbs
• Dust off sockets
• Reset breakers
• Turn off other appliances
• Restart smart home systems

Resolve Light Flickering With Top-Rated Electricians From Professional Services

Are your home’s electrical systems functioning optimally? Electricians from Professional Services offer top-rated repairs, maintenance, and replacements for your home’s energy infrastructure, appliances, and lighting.

Our top-rated experts can tune up your electrical framework and perform services to optimize your property's energy efficiency. With our diverse financing options, every homeowner can receive the electrical services they require.

For more information on what causes LED lights to flicker, call (262) 218-2636 and consult with Professional Services.