Dimmers

[cppoly]

Does anyone know why different dimmer switches are required for different types of loads such as fluorescent, incandescent, magnetic low volatge, etc.?

I would think that all dimming ballast would be able to take an adjustable input from a slider on a dimmer and adjust the light output based on the position of the slider. How can one slider be different than another?

 

[broadgage]

Most dimmable flourescent ballasts can not be dimmed from any standard type of dimmer.
The dimming circuitry is built into the ballast and requires an external signal to "tell" it what to do.
Common types of signal are 1 volt to 10 volts DC or a DMX signal, or DALI. Others exist.