Light Dimmers and Electricity Usage

Do dimmers reduce electricity usage as you reduce light levels in your house? In short, yes. Modern electronic dimmers reduce light output by electronically reducing the voltage going to the light bulbs. As you turn down the dimmer, the voltage going to the bulbs is reduced, which in turn reduces both light intensity and power usage. This was not always the case. Before the invention of the electronic dimmer, many many years ago, rheostat dimmers were used by a few people. With rheostat dimmers,... power usage was not decreased as light intensity was reduced. But, don’t worry, all dimmers in poultry houses today are of the electronic type.