Gallery of Lights
Lamps => Modern => Topic started by: Vince on January 31, 2010, 01:26:34 PM
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Most incandescent 3-way lamps says "Base-down only", but why exactly? Are they made differently than standard incandescent lamp? (Maybe something doesn't stand the heat in the base?)
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I guess the insulation clearance might cause troubles, when at higher temperature: At BU the base take all the hot air from the bulb...
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I always figured it had something to do with the filaments sagging and shorting out each other.
My mom has a bridge lamp with a 3-way socket and has never had any problems with that.
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The filament is close to lower part of the globe area and that is why they designed to burn the base down instead of the universal position. Not like the general bulb where the filament is usually centered at the globe area....
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most of our today's 3 way lamps have vertical filaments. but I remember the old times, and some that I have in my collection that has horizontal filaments....but I got some EVEN older lamps that has filaments that forms in C shaped or a curved upward shapes with a lot of filament supports! I even have some Mazda lamps..that are 3 ways (most are dead actually)
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I do have a 3-way lamp with CC-6 filaments. Some chinese 3-way lamps still have C-9 filaments! I discovered that when I blew up a burnt out 3-way lamp in a microwave LOL ;D (You should try, that's cool!)
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high-wattage incandescent lamps generally expected to be used base up, like reflector lamps and old school 150 and 300W lamps have a heat shield, usually a shiny thin metal disk near the base, inside the glass.
three way sockets are almost never used in any position but base down.
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The reason for the burning position restriction on 3 way lamps is because they can get hot with two filaments in operation, and base up operation can dry out the basing cement and cause the bulb and base to seperate. Some low wattage 3 way bulbs (such as the 30-70-100w) can be burned in any position.
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95 to 99 percent of the 3 way fixtures are usually base down table lamps anyway! :D ;) ;D
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Well I've been dumb enough to buy a base-up 3-way lamps several years ago XD
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Well I've been dumb enough to buy a base-up 3-way lamps several years ago XD
I never knew they sold base up three way lamps :o
All of mine say base down only.