Doing a kitchen remodel & will have 10 recessed 4" can fixtures. Considering the use of dimmable CFLs & have several questions.

1. Will a standard dimming switch work OK on CFLs?

2. Any recommendation on which brand works best?

Thanks, Tom

Need to check the specs of the dimmer and CFL lamp to be sure they are compatible.

All brands are the same, all Made in China.

Be sure to read the CFL label. Newer ones are dimmable with an incandescent dimmer, some older ones are not. If you opt out of the CFL's and go incandescent, make sure the total wattage does not overload the dimmer. Standard dimmers are rated at 600Watts-10 lamps at 60Watts. I just inspected a house where they had 16X60 Watt halogens on a 600 Watt dimmer. Couldn't touch the metal switchplate without getting burned.

I did some searches on dimmable CFLs to use in the kitchen recessed cans. Found this CFL and LED Lamp list.

http://www.lutron.com/TechnicalDocum...ulb%20list.pdf LED Bulb List.pdf

A new supplier, not on the list, is Pure Spectrum Lighting. Based on the reviews, their CFLs appear to have superior features, especially the instant on full brightness & 100% to 20% dimmable.


Dimmable CFLs | PureSpectrum Lighting

Unfortunately, they don't currently have a fully enclosed reflector downlight.

PureSpectrum's Dimmable CFLs | PureSpectrum Lighting

I bought the 20 watt bare spiral on Amazon.com (currently the only sales source). The cost was less than $6 each.