LED exterior flood lights flickering while incandescent pool lights are on

[gkw4815]

Noticed a minor but strange issue today - one pair of LED flood light bulbs on the exterior of our house flicker slightly but noticeably, only while our pool lights are on.

No other incandescent or LED lights inside or outside of our house are affected - only two bulbs in one floodlight fixture. Other floodlights on the same circuit are unaffected. I don't know what model the LED bulbs are - probably whatever option was cheapest at Home Depot.

Pool lights are old-school - 2x 500w halogen bulbs in the pool, 1x 100w halogen bulb in the spa. Pool lights themselves are working fine, don't flicker, no apparent current in the water (incidentally, lights are protected by a working GFCI outlet).

The pool lights are on the same 20amp circuit as our Aqualink system. Exterior flood light is on a completely different circuit.

I have an Amprobe clamp meter that can measure Total Harmonic Distortion. Readings with and without the pool lights on are virtually the same (2.8 vs 2.7%).

Any ideas? Flickering isn't that noticeable, and we rarely use our pool lights. But if it gets worse I guess I'll drag out the extension ladder and replace the LED bulbs.

 

[PoolStored]

Flickering is most likely voltage fluctuations that are loose connections in the wiring or fixture, a faulty bulb, or an incompatible dimmer switch (if you're using one).

Considering they're outdoor lights exposed to weather elements which can affect connections over time; it's best to check the wiring and connections first, and if the issue persists, consider replacing the bulb.

Dielectric grease on outdoor bulbs provides protection on the bulb / fixture connection.

 

[ajw22]

Flickering on LED bulbs is likely due to cheap or bad LED driver electronics.

Easiest to just replace the bulbs.

 

[gkw4815]

Thank you both.

I agree that faulty / cheap LED bulbs are the likely culprit. I installed the light fixture fairly recently (last two years) and it's pretty well protected from the weather, so I don't think water intrusion or corrosion is the issue.

I'm more baffled by the fact that the flickering is only triggered by the ~1100 watt load imposed by the pool lights, on a completely different circuit.