Troubleshooting Buzzing noise on Dimmer Switch, 3-way Switch, 4-way Switch, and AF Breaker all at once.

[LMinMaine]

As I tried to summarize in the title, I'm having an interesting buzzing issue in a residential home.

Problem: When Lights are turned on, all 3 switches controlling the same load start to buzz, as well as the breaker the lighting circuit is on. Buzzing stops on all devices and the breaker when the lights are turned off.

Facts Worth mentioning:

• House was wired in 2020, so all wiring and devices are pretty much brand new
• Breaker is a 15amp Leviton Arc Fault Breaker
• Lighting load is (10) 12w LED lights, rated for dimming
• Dimmer switch is rated for 150w

Attempted Solutions:

• checked connections on all switches- everything is good
• I removed the dimmer and replaced it with a normal 3-way switch, when I turned on the lights there was no buzzing.
• replaced with brand new dimmer switch, buzzing came back
• replaced the Arc Fault breaker with 2 different breakers of the same type, buzzing continued on both of them.

In Summary:

So this is where I currently stand. I'm wondering if maybe it's an issue with the wiring in or between the lights somewhere? But when there is no dimmer in the mix there's no buzzing at all. My only idea is getting a more heavy duty dimmer that's rated to dim up to 300w LED loads, but I'm not overly convinced that will solve the issue. Just wondering if anyone has encountered this kind of issue before or has some other solutions I haven't tried yet.

 

[Avo Mk8]

I'd blame the dimmer.
With pretty well all dimmers, when turned up full, you don't get 100% power. The semiconductor device(s) is always in circuit, and in each cycle of the ac waveform it takes a little while before it turns on. This transient in the waveform can cause the buzzing.
Also dimmers tend to have a lower power rating for LED than for incandescent lamps - is yours definitely 150W for LED's?

Try a different make of dimmer, preferably with a greater margin of power. ?

 

[LMinMaine]

I'd blame the dimmer.
With pretty well all dimmers, when turned up full, you don't get 100% power. The semiconductor device(s) is always in circuit, and in each cycle of the ac waveform it takes a little while before it turns on. This transient in the waveform can cause the buzzing.
Also dimmers tend to have a lower power rating for LED than for incandescent lamps - is yours definitely 150W for LED's?

Try a different make of dimmer, preferably with a greater margin of power. ?

Thanks, yes it's rated for 150w LED and 600w Incandescent

 

[Megawatt]

As I tried to summarize in the title, I'm having an interesting buzzing issue in a residential home.

Problem: When Lights are turned on, all 3 switches controlling the same load start to buzz, as well as the breaker the lighting circuit is on. Buzzing stops on all devices and the breaker when the lights are turned off.

Facts Worth mentioning:

• House was wired in 2020, so all wiring and devices are pretty much brand new
• Breaker is a 15amp Leviton Arc Fault Breaker
• Lighting load is (10) 12w LED lights, rated for dimming
• Dimmer switch is rated for 150w

Attempted Solutions:

• checked connections on all switches- everything is good
• I removed the dimmer and replaced it with a normal 3-way switch, when I turned on the lights there was no buzzing.
• replaced with brand new dimmer switch, buzzing came back
• replaced the Arc Fault breaker with 2 different breakers of the same type, buzzing continued on both of them.

In Summary:

So this is where I currently stand. I'm wondering if maybe it's an issue with the wiring in or between the lights somewhere? But when there is no dimmer in the mix there's no buzzing at all. My only idea is getting a more heavy duty dimmer that's rated to dim up to 300w LED loads, but I'm not overly convinced that will solve the issue. Just wondering if anyone has encountered this kind of issue before or has some other solutions I haven't tried yet.

My friend what you have is a dimmer problem which some work and some don’t work on LED lights. I got to ask why you would need a dimmer on 12 watt lights

 

[Avo Mk8]

LMinMaine
Here in the UK it used to be the case that you would need to choose certain types of dimmer (leading edge switching or trailing edge, or some clever intelligent combination) to work with particular manufacturers lamps. Dimmers have got more advanced, but there can still be combinations of bulbs and dimmers that don't work together properly.

Did you inherit this buzzing issue, or has it come about due to changing the dimmer or the bulbs? If the latter you probably need local advice on which manufacturers dimmer would work better with the lamps you have, or alternatively, change the bulbs to a brand known to work with the dimmer(s) you have!

 

[LMinMaine]

My friend what you have is a dimmer problem which some work and some don’t work on LED lights. I got to ask why you would need a dimmer on 12 watt lights

They light up the living room almost too well, the homeowners like to dim them down for reading or watching TV. I've got a similar set up in my living room at home, so I understand the need for it.

 

[LMinMaine]

LMinMaine
Here in the UK it used to be the case that you would need to choose certain types of dimmer (leading edge switching or trailing edge, or some clever intelligent combination) to work with particular manufacturers lamps. Dimmers have got more advanced, but there can still be combinations of bulbs and dimmers that don't work together properly.

Did you inherit this buzzing issue, or has it come about due to changing the dimmer or the bulbs? If the latter you probably need local advice on which manufacturers dimmer would work better with the lamps you have, or alternatively, change the bulbs to a brand known to work with the dimmer(s) you have!

It had been a problem for some time I was told when I arrived. Also in the kitchen of this same house there are 5 of these same fixtures controlled on a dimmer of the same kind and there is no buzzing issue with those. So shouldn't that almost certainly confirm the dimmer does work properly with these light fixtures?

 

[Avo Mk8]

It had been a problem for some time I was told when I arrived. Also in the kitchen of this same house there are 5 of these same fixtures controlled on a dimmer of the same kind and there is no buzzing issue with those. So shouldn't that almost certainly confirm the dimmer does work properly with these light fixtures?

If the kitchen has 5 fixtures and no buzzing, but the 10 fixtures in the living room result in buzzing, that to me tends to reinforce the theory that the greater load (of 10) is nearing the maximum capacity for the dimmer, and you might be better off with a different dimmer for the 10 lamps. In the living room you have twice as much current from the load, so you'd expect a stronger interaction with electromagnetic components (which is where the buzzing comes from) in the circuit.

 

[LMinMaine]

If the kitchen has 5 fixtures and no buzzing, but the 10 fixtures in the living room result in buzzing, that to me tends to reinforce the theory that the greater load (of 10) is nearing the maximum capacity for the dimmer, and you might be better off with a different dimmer for the 10 lamps. In the living room you have twice as much current from the load, so you'd expect a stronger interaction with electromagnetic components (which is where the buzzing comes from) in the circuit.

Have you encountered this scenario where it causes it to make all the other switches and the breaker buzz too? That's really the thing about this whole situation that had me scratching my head about this. But I'll put a stronger dimmer in and hope for the best at this point haha

 

[Avo Mk8]

Have you encountered this scenario where it causes it to make all the other switches and the breaker buzz too? That's really the thing about this whole situation that had me scratching my head about this. But I'll put a stronger dimmer in and hope for the best at this point haha

I have personally had buzzing dimmers, but not to the extent of yours!

I wanted to ask what the 'other switches' are that you mentioned.
Are they also dimmers, because having multiple dimmers on a single circuit/load requires particular compatible hardware.

Are there similar other switches on the non-buzzing kitchen circuit?

 

[LMinMaine]

I have personally had buzzing dimmers, but not to the extent of yours!

I wanted to ask what the 'other switches' are that you mentioned.
Are they also dimmers, because having multiple dimmers on a single circuit/load requires particular compatible hardware.

Are there similar other switches on the non-buzzing kitchen circuit?

The other switches are just a standard non dimming 3-way and 4-way switch.

The non-buzzing kitchen switch is just a single pole switch so no

 

[Avo Mk8]

The other switches are just a standard non dimming 3-way and 4-way switch.

The non-buzzing kitchen switch is just a single pole switch so no

I have to say I don't understand why the 3-way and 4-way switches buzz, unless they are each fitted with some sort of interference supressor with an inductor or similar. Switches of that sort in the UK don't normally have any components other than the switch/contact mechanism, so can't explain why they buzz. They're not illuminated or anything like that?

i don't know what else to suggest other than trying a different spec. and make of dimmer, or getting an electrician in to investigate. You've proven the buzzing goes away when you substitute the dimmer with a normal switch, so to me that's pretty conclusive ?

 

[LMinMaine]

Update:

Installed 300w LED dimmer, still didn't fix the buzzing problem. Home Owner decided to have me remove the dimmer from the circuit to stop the buzzing. Wasn't the solution I wanted for them but this issue was over my head I guess.

 

[Avo Mk8]

Update:

Installed 300w LED dimmer, still didn't fix the buzzing problem. Home Owner decided to have me remove the dimmer from the circuit to stop the buzzing. Wasn't the solution I wanted for them but this issue was over my head I guess.

Thanks for the update, and sorry suggestions didn't help.
The thing that's bugging me is why the light switches, other than the dimmer you replaced, were buzzing.
You might expect the Arc Fault breaker to buzz, and the dimmer to buzz (because they likely have electromagnetic elements in them), prompted by an interaction/incompatibility between lamps and the dimmer, but why would normal light switches buzz?
The only thing I can think of is that the buzzing "normal" light switches did perhaps have some sort of additional feature, eg an electronic element or supressor. I understood they were not dimmers themselves. If they did contain any dimming function that could have explained it.
I guess we'll never know. Very puzzling ?