AC Light Dimmer || DIY or Buy || Phase Angle Control Tutorial

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Parts list (incomplete, see Instructables for more, affiliate links):
Aliexpress:
1 x ATtiny85: s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_dSJ...
1x MOC3052: s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_d7g...
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1x 1206 Capacitor kit: s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_Bfg...
Ebay:
1 x ATtiny85: rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-532...
1x MOC3052: rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-532...
1x HI-Link 5V Power Supply: rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-532...
1x 1206 Resistor kit: rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-532...
1x 1206 Capacitor kit: rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-532...
In this episode of DIY or Buy we will have a closer look at a generic AC light dimmer and find out how it functions. Afterwards I will present you a more modern, digital, DIY design of such an AC light dimmer and build it in order to find out whether DIYing such a circuit truly makes sense. Let's get started!
Thanks to JLCPCB for sponsoring this video
Visit jlcpcb.com to get professional PCBs for low prices
Music:
2011 Lookalike by Bartlebeats
Killing Time, Kevin MacLeod
(incompetech.com)

[@andrew2004sydney]

Great video! I made this in 1992 with an EPROM based micro controlling 8 of these in parallel and accepting dimming values from the serial port. I programmed it all in ASM and every iteration of the development code took 40 minutes in the UV light to erase the EPROM. I also made the PCB by hand with a Dalo pen and drill. Good times!

[@unbekannternutzer8506]

You mentioned not using a capacitive dropper due to insulating issues. However the copper-fill on your board brings the mains too close to the low voltage side. The arcover distance is too low I would say. Many PSU PCBs do not feature any copper fill due to this reason.

[@greatscottlab]

Possible, that is also why Buy wins in the end. I am not a PCB design engineer. That shines through sometimes.

[@unbekannternutzer8506]

@@greatscottlab it still is a great design idea

[@bashaaksema94]

That is not true many pcbs do have a copper fill but they always seperate the mains and output fron eachother and ofcourse use optocouplers. Look up diodegonewild for this

[@TheBigBadButler]

​@@greatscottlab Looking at the way this channel is heading - soldering batteries, creating making mood lights, making dimmers - you should maybe get in touch with people who do 240V PCBs. 240 Volts aren't much of a problem if you consider a few safety rules, like 6mm spacings. Maybe watch a few of BigClive's Videos, too, he always nags about unsafe electronics devices and shows why safe devices are safe. But I guess you already know him... It's not about nagging, more about the fact that I'm gonna build what you show here.

[@unbekannternutzer8506]

@@bashaaksema94 yeah that's correct. As long as you keep no copper distance between traces and maybe even make adequate cutouts everything is fine

[@l_szabi]

11:30 "while the buy version obviously have to follow safety standards" *_proceeds to buy from ebay_*

[@tristaaaaan3473]

only $2 but $18 shipping cost :D

[@varunatik632]

I was looking for this down here XD

[@pieceofpotato7883]

someone need to give this guy a quality highlighter... i mean it's in every single video!

[@greatscottlab]

You don't like my highlighter?

[@wi_zeus6798]

It's actually a high quality German made highlighter but the ink of the other pens if probably water soluble.

[@ftaloYT]

@@greatscottlab I think he thought that the highlighter was wetting the paper too much

[@walid0the0dilaw]

フタロ - P then the paper is probably the problem. High quality paper resists wetting.

[@echobravo5488]

GreatScott! I like it! It’s like one of your trademarks!

[@wunderwaffeyt4077]

1:58 GreatScott!: "in German or phase angle control" English Captions: "in German or face anger control" I obviously laughed at that point

[@toolazyforausername363]

I've been with channel since 100k subscribers, and your content just gets greater and greater with every video. I used to not know anything about electronics, but now i'm starting to take apart printers, and reuse all the components, and I now have the knowledge of arduino programming. Thank you.

[@vijayendirangiridharan6113]

"STAY CREATIVE AND I WILL SEE YOU NEXT TIME" ...this line has a separate fan base!!!!!!

[@TechBuild]

So true!

[@fredrickrari9338]

Very true

[@kodydeville3850]

I am new to this electronic stuff so I am 16 and I just take components off of random circuitboards from broken thing I can find. What does a coil do i found a random core "or what ever it is called" and it didnt have any wire around it. I tried to wrap wire around it and hooked it up to something I didnt get a circuit, nothing happened can anyone tell me what I did wrong

[@spike4850]

Kody Deville more information needed, what were you trying to achieve? Try asking on Arduino forums or reddit

[@kodydeville3850]

@@spike4850 like I said I am new like verry new to this can u start like I depth with what an ardwino does and how I can find them on old circuit boards

[@georgekot6377]

The only thing that truly amazes me is how this channel does not have 10.000.000 subscribers yet ! Keep up the good work.

[@szerocools]

i never get tired of your "stay creative, and i will see you next time!"

[@WillianMai]

I've just rung the bell of your channel, your videos are quite high quality.. We can clearly see there is an effort put on quality! and not just entertainment such as other channels. Great work!

[@Gurux13]

One more benefit of the BUY version is that it doesn't require power and can be used as a light switch, while the DIY version needs mains voltage. In fact, that might make a good video - how to draw current in series with a load, it has a lot of variations to it. Also, the trace separation is soo narrow. I have one PCB that is pretty much the same thing, with a termoresistor and an LED display, but I had to go with big trace spacing and also clean the board very well. All in all, I hate dealing with mains voltages :)

[@ElijahEchekwu]

Cool !! am a big fan GREAT SCOTT!!

[@cobaltdragon_5678]

Congrats for the 1 million subs you deserve it ! Any planned video or project about this ? Love your videos ! A old subscriber from Swiss

[@deltaray3]

You should see if a highlighter marker company wants to sponsor a video. 😁

[@Cahrdek]

PHASENANSCHNITTSKONTROLLE ... jawohl

[@ninaddeshmukh654]

My phone rings a notification Me hoping a boring notification New video from GREAT SCOTT where are my headphones

[@greatscottlab]

I like that :-)

[@ninaddeshmukh654]

GreatScott! thank you so much I very much appreciate that this is my 3rd comment you replied 😁

[@euvo_sound]

@@ninaddeshmukh654 I ilke the comment

[@ninaddeshmukh654]

Jacob#5332 Romero than you I very much appreciate that

[@euvo_sound]

@@ninaddeshmukh654 Thanks!

[@innovation4u336]

You are best teacher in world. I always wait for your next video. Nice work keep up.

[@mmdnaderi7183]

Here we go again another great project from Greatscott!

[@greatscottlab]

Thanks :-)

[@stickz9871]

Ive been waiting for this!

[@wi_zeus6798]

Filling the ground plane in this case doesn't make very much sense since you have galvanic isolated between the high and low voltage portions of the circuit. The filled plane reduces the isolation distance unnecessarily. My biggest concern would be the potentiometer otherwise the case is enough protection. A partial fill would have been better.

[@NightmareQueenJune]

I never understood the reason behind a ground plane. Maybe for interfearence reduction in highly sensitive circuits or when DIYing PCBs with a CNC. But even when etching it makes no sense. Ferric cloride is so cheap that being able to etch more PCBs with the same solution was never a valid argument for me.

[@therealchayd]

I'm glad someone mentioned this!

[@shuashuashua1]

@@NightmareQueenJune Ground planes are just like You said to supress EMI and in most driver IC's, transistors, diodes etc for heat dissipation. For some data traces You can calculate capacity between data line and ground plane to get lowpass filter but I never used it in practice.

[@TheParamotorGuy]

I use ground planes for impedance matching on RF circuits and sometimes for ease of use in DC grounding. For low-frequency circuits such as this, the ground plane should have been avoided.

[@alfblack2]

so love this DIY or Buy series.

[@victoryfirst2878]

I learn so much from your videos Sir. What gets me is the poor quality of purchased dimmers on the marketplace. When I was in school the teacher always stressed making a circuit that produces a pure SINE WAVE. This was the era of incandescent bulbs, halogen bulbs. Since the controlled item is much simpler electrically and electronically, there is less of a need for excessive circuits. Now with the fancy items one can buy complicated dimmers are just part of the scenery. There has to be a way to make a simple and bulletproof bulb dimmer a DIY can make . I look forward to see what you come up with in the future Sir. Nice work too fella. vf

[@sirmiro2]

Thank you! I think I've been nagging about this for years now, so thank you so much for taking the time to do this!! =D

[@kokachifans6646]

Dude! Your videos are so interesting!!

[@greatscottlab]

Thanks mate :-)

[@masonp7258]

Another thing the potentiometer does in these circuits is reduce the power to the load, assuming the circuits were designed for maximum power transfer when the voltage is in phase. Great video I enjoy this channel I think they should show more examples like this in engineering classes

[@dnyaneshvarsalve]

I was always wondering why diac is used with triac. Cleared now. Thank you

[@jovintony7120]

I found a AC PAC unit and i had a problem with it this video help me to debug that devices thank you GreatScott

[@MrBlade2021]

JLPCB is a really great company. I've used them for over a year now and have not received a single defective product yet!

[@owaisy_sehrayi]

the warning At starting this guy gave seems to be a joke for Electroboom viewers😂😂😂

[@greatscottlab]

Well, partly. Mains voltage is dangerous and people should be aware of it.

[@zacharypike6408]

i had a stroke while trying to read this

[@owaisy_sehrayi]

obviously sir...

[@geetanshgautam]

I was about to comment that too

[@Patrik2166]

@Jaakko Jylhä You came from electroBoom? Then you know it is not necessary the current but the amount of time you're exposed to it what kills you and not necessarily the voltage. Wow I almost learned the definition he came up with xD

[@michaeliline6966]

Great video as always, thanks!

[@abeditani8293]

Great Scott ! Your great in DIY 👍 . I will try to do this project as a test for small motor 220v AC/DC 30w and see .

[@arvand26]

Your DIY version is WINNER

[@damani662]

Thanks scott, because of you now i took diploma in Mechatronic and maybe after that i will go to German under German Malaysia Institute further study

[@HobkinBoi]

I think with a better design of the PCB, and with an ESP8266, you could make a wifi controlled dimmer. Then have something like a rotary encoder for local brightness control. A central Raspberry Pi could be used for automation as well.

[@gelisob]

I was also thinking, adding esp-12f module would bring in a great benefit over the Buy versions, because you can then connect dimmer to many smarthome systems. (homeassistant)

[@frarugi87]

Just some piece of advice for when you have to deal with mains voltage. 1) you did not respect clearance and creepage distances. The mains traces are too close to each other and to the low voltage part. I think clearance should be in the range of 3mm, and in the points where you are close to this you should make a slot in the pcb to increase the creepage 2) as others have said, don't use a ground plane in the mains voltage. You are reducing the insulation. 3) in your pcb, clearly separate the mains voltage area and the low voltage area, and possibly use a slot there to further increase the creepage. So draw a line, then put all mains components on one side, all low voltage on the other, and the connecting (hi-link, optocouplers) across. Avoid what you did here between the optocouplers Thank you for all your videos :)

[@spaceyscripter4155]

Another great video!

[@anycatdessai]

For the umpteenth time you deliver info exactly on what I wanted to work on. Thanks a lot.

[@greatscottlab]

You're welcome :-)

[@anycatdessai]

We have these AC motors on ceiling fans in India. Can we run those on these circuits to control the speed? Will the current flow and heating be too much to handle?

[@elmardus]

@@anycatdessai Motors cannot be dimmed since a motor is an inductive load, which will destroy the dimmer. These dimmers are only suitable for resistive AC loads.

[@djquestionthis]

Thank you for your inspiration sir!!

[@electronique_et_creation]

Great video, thank you.

[@padmalayarawal3091]

I love ur every single video...👌

[@asdomega]

Thanks for your summary "buy due to safety" !

[@amalbabu4003]

2$ for pcb and 18$ for shipping .definitely buy option wins.!!!!

[@schweizzz]

It's so expensive because he chose "fast shipping" without it's about 7$ if I remember correctly

[@imnota]

Yeah jlcpcb tries to make you think they're cheap but they rip you off on the shipping.

[@JanCiger]

@@imnota If you consider DHL delivery from China in 3 working days (because that's what those 18 EUR is for) being "ripped off", I think you need a serious dose of reality, mate. They do offer a much cheaper (but also slower) shipping option if you don't like to be "ripped off". Or move to Shenzen, then you won't have to pay for shipping in the first place ... Just for kicks, try to price a similar board, with 3 day delivery, from someone like EuroCircuits or some other non-Chinese PCB fab and you will see how much you have been "ripped off" by JLCPCB. Just beware of the sticker shock ...

[@imnota]

@@JanCiger Bro, don't try to tell me about shipping prices, I know the value of different companies with different origins and destinations. I've ordered lots of stuff on internet over the years so I know the prices. And let me tell you I've paid less shipping for a whole fucking 3d printer by dhl from china to Belgium in like 5 days. YOU really need a dose of reality if you think 18 euros to ship a really tiny package from china is normal. I don't disagree that jlcpcb is cheaper than other places, but they're trying to look even cheaper by putting real low prices and high shipping prices. And they shouldn't do that, that's clickbait, and their products are already at an interesting price points so they really don't need to cheat.

[@ahmedelwan9129]

2$ for 10 pcbs

[@liudas5377]

Great job. I learned a lot. Thanks...

[@moseskioko1299]

You videos are amazing

[@xXELevenXx1]

I am realy looking forward how you deal with the flickering led bowl and try also make a circuit it without with a microcontroller

[@OneEyedWheeler]

Thanks! I thought maybe I don't have enough confidence to do this and hope it doesn't electrocute anybody in the house. Your conclusion confirmed it for me- would be good fun but seems better to buy a factory made dimmer.

[@phinok.m.628]

Since most mains power LED lights have a fairly high capacitance on the input, dimmable ones usually work better with phasenabschnitt. So if you're gonna use a ATtiny anyway you might as well use mosfet based circuit to control the AC since you can turn it off whenever you want during each half wave, you don't need a specific minimum latching current etc. For low power applications like these, mosfets while being more complicated to control AC with definitely have a lot of advantages over triacs.

[@dmkays]

I like the way you can go from an idea to a very professional looking pub board in such a short time. I can use my Laserjet printer and hi-gloss paper to print and etch a board but where I cut the board and drill my holes doesn't look that good, and I can't silkscreen. I look forward to designing my first pcb and having the board made professionally.

[@FufsowyFufs]

Tbh DIY version is better due to its customizability. You could easily add sensors, replace the microcontroller for something with mode features or make it a multiple channel dimmer. I once wanted to make a this kind of dimmer for my bedroom lights and have Wi-Fi capability on it, but couldn't find a commercial product with a good price. Making it by myself was the only option, but up to now I couldn't find much information on it. Thanks Scott!

[@julian23561]

I'll just watch this, be amazed, get inspired, and end up not doing it anyway. Still a cool project, GreatScott!

[@greatscottlab]

Well,....it is something.

[@electromatic138]

great job man

[@Patrik2166]

You should learn how to design a board for AC applications. That's the only problem stopping the DIY option. Unless you're experienced it should be a good project. You just have to keep it in mind that you work with AC and unless you screw it up good then house starts on fire.

[@thewhitefalcon8539]

Seems to me like it's the same as low voltage, it's just worse if you screw up. Engineers for the power grid call 240V low voltage :P

[@petrickoliveira1351]

well, it's been 2 years, but can you send me any docs, videos or tips for AC PCBs?

[@donutplanetstudio8866]

AMAZING ONE🍻

[@MCsCreations]

Fantastic! 😃

[@fmjkevlar]

Great video... a part of me was hoping you would touch on Leading and Trailing edge dimmimg 😁

[@jonmayer]

I was hoping for something different. Guess I'll have to wait for the future video. I hope you can demonstrate a good trailing edge dimming circuit.

[@djaberkharoubi3825]

Hi, thank you so much for this great explanation Just a simple question, this circuit that you just built, is it suitable to use with an inductive load, like a vibratory feeder?

[@moshiurrahmanmeraj6640]

Nice project 👍👍👍.

[@anindyamitra5091]

Well, you have done a great job! I might say DIY is the winner but there is no point for not using a capacitive dropper for the 5v supply, because the circuit will still be associated with mains and so the entire PCB should be isolated anyway.

[@fahadkhan463]

Very informational! I was just wondering have you made the next video on LED flickering? Thanks in advance.

[@Delali]

Thanks for this video Mr. Scott, does your circuit have a power limit for loads?

[@tonpilzosterhase]

Brilliant video! What about explaining a switch mode power supply? I think that could be an interesting topic!

[@diyelectronics5537]

Great project

[@nevius.x]

You should try making one of those laser projectors that you see in clubs, using hdd actuators as galvos or something. Its a really challenging project

[@proyectosledar]

Hi, trailing edge dimmer for the next video. Cheers

[@juancarloslinaje5297]

Me too! ( Deseamos todos que nuestra cantante favorita nos dedique la misma cancion!) 🤪😄

[@electronic7979]

Very good 👍

[@tiborklein5349]

custom PCB: $2 shipping: $18 OOF Maybe you could make your own PCBs at home and make a video about it?

[@imnota]

Hell nah, he's sponsored by jlcpcb, he gets more than enough money to refund every time he gets ripped off by his own sponsor lmao. Ps: Nice profile pic, Robbie's a great youtuber.

[@tiborklein5349]

@@imnota Oh shit, you're right. And it's nice to see a fellow Committed Crew member on a channel that has nothing to do with cars. What other car channels do you watch?

[@greatscottlab]

I paid for both. The PCBs and the shipping.

[@tiborklein5349]

@@greatscottlab Thank you for ignoring my question and replying to someone else instead. It feels good.

[@imnota]

@@greatscottlab Yeah, but jlcpcb pays you to give them a shout out, so not really.

[@abdulhai2201]

I am fine your project thank you

[@sdk2586]

Since the output contains harmonics but at the same time harmonics also help in heating process and work effectively.

[@IzzJohnny]

I would recommend trying to make a trailing edge dimmer using a mosfet instead. You have more control over the waveform using mosfet instead of triac, less audible buzzing, less inrush current, and more friendly to LED lamp circuits when making it trailing edge.

[@GandhiTheDerg]

zero = 1 Mathematicians: Wait, you were not supposed to do that! Great video as always, i really enjoy them!

[@taktsing4969]

awesome video

[@CLeon02]

Hey! I love your videos and admire your work! Big fan if you can tell but just wondering am you make a diy curved monitor?

[@zhirayrshirinyan2370]

Hey 👋, thanks very much vor the videos, this is great one, Im planing to build one myself, but the fact that you've written safety in RED got me thinking 🤔. Just wanted to ask are you planning to make a video about DIY safety features, like voltage spikes handlers, noise suspension etc? Thanks in advance

[@ElijahEchekwu]

Great video, I saw a AC dimmer using a triad, diac , capacitor, and a 100k pot

[@BaronVonBiffo]

Triad? Obviously a Chinese import. ;)

[@ElijahEchekwu]

@@BaronVonBiffo sorry I meant triac

[@rossmckenzie1854]

Atmel/Microchip recommend a 100nF cap placed directly across the Vcc/Gnd pins of the ATTiny85.

[@VoidHalo]

That's just the bypass cap. You should include such a cap on every single digital component as close to the VCC and ground pins as you can to reduce parasitic inductance. They're not absolutely necessary. Your circuit will probably still work without them, but it improves stability and levels out fluctuations in the power supply.

[@muhammadosama3358]

I

[@MegaMohsina]

thank you for your educative video! if I may ask why R2 and R3 have to be equal at scheme in 8:03 ? and why they have to be 47k?

[@Edu_RJR]

thanks for this video

[@antoineroquentin2297]

adding a bit of noise suppression is recommended. the transients produce a lot of harmonics.

[@Snst-404]

Hey @GreatScott! Have you checked out OpenUPS from mini-box?

[@sarfarazsheikh5448]

Nice video thank you for usefull knowledge

[@greatscottlab]

You're welcome :-)

[@sarfarazsheikh5448]

@@greatscottlab thank ;-)

[@whitefields5595]

Please do a trailing edge dimmer as these are more difficult but avoid the high voltage turn on

[@garyjs3]

Extremely informative video as always! I actually wanted to make my own light dimmers, but then I came across digiblurDIY's youtube channel and ended up buying a couple Martin Jerry Smart Light Dimmers and flashing tasmota on them. Fully customizable light dimmer that fits in a single gang switch box! For 25 USD, its unlikely I could make anything for cheaper that I would feel safe installing into my home.

[@user-le5pg7cp5z]

Hello man, great video! Can you, please tell me what solder you use and at what temperature. Thanks in advance!

[@ferihun8858]

I've made something similar but my design is for 12V LED strips. If you're interested I can maybe send you my project files or even a few PCBs. About your PCB design: it's quite good but I'd not use ground plate around the mains traces for obvious reasons.

[@brzydka_i_bestia]

I would say a nice 3D printed case/wall mount would bring the safety aspect up, but not everyone nas a 3D printer. Another thing to worry about is the possibility of microcontroller crashing due to interference making your light suddenly come on at full brightness, or turn completely off. Also why do you need a bootloader on the ATTiny, if not only you program it via ISP, but you also program it only once. Bootloader (especially the default arduino one) only takes up space and delays the startup of your program.

[@edwinclark1859]

Love your videos they really inspire me to do some of the projects you create keep up the great work!

[@greatscottlab]

Thanks :-)

[@ganopterygon]

Excellent video just one suggestion, those last copper planes break safety, you should not have them due to clearance and creepage distances standards for a given voltage, altitude and polution degree, by having them you defeats the purpose of the isolated power supply you are using :)

[@DenshiMoe]

One thing I like about the DIY route is that I could give it wireless IOT potential and make dumb dimmable lights into smarter ones!

[@ejbuendia]

Hello @Greatscott! I wonder if you can make 220V UPS for a wifi router. The power supply is pluged-in and if the power loses it will automatically switch to battery source with the device(router) prevents shutting down. Thanks.

[@viktorkovarik]

When I've seen thumbnail of this video I was thinking it's somehow photo of my PCB which I've created a few months ago because it has pretty much same shape. :D

[@buddygilpatrick1134]

Hi, I was wondering if you could build a dimming circuit that has for 120v or 240v ac but to make it dim it uses 12v dc I have dmx boards for 12v dc that I wanna use to dim 120v but when I use a 12v to 120v SSR it acts like a strobe light when dimming.

[@platin2148]

For a thing that needs higher amperage like 60A/25W what would you use to make a dimmer especially then when you want to control that with a Arduino or something like that?

[@Francirius]

how do u measure the mains voltage with the oscilloscope? i hooked up once my DSO and it died...some people told me that i should have connected with a resistor in the ground wire

[@onthegocode1443]

So cool

[@matejgamingandotherstuff6484]

I have solder, a soldering iron, not a lot of components, a room shared with my brother, a table, screwdriver an electric one, solder wick, and used solder. But I don't have a PCB, Arduino nano, capacitors, LED lights, potentiometers and wire.

[@hardiksarraf9629]

Some day i will be able to understand you videos

[@laurentiudragomir1091]

I'm curious about how you did sorted out that LED flickering which i have been faced, too. I have found a solution which i consider it too expensive..but