Sunday 18 January 2015

Repair A Light Socket

Salvage your lamp by repairing the light socket.


With lamps, it appears that the light sockets always seem to be the first thing that needs repair. The constant turning the lamp off and on can wear out the switch in the socket. Using a bulb in your lamp that is over the recommended wattage rating can burn the interior socket and damage the contacts so that the bulb won't light. Regardless of the reason, repairing your light socket will salvage your lamp. Does this Spark an idea?


Instructions


1. Unplug your lamp from the wall. Remove the shade and the blub.


2. Remove the harp from the lamp. The harp is the part of the lamp that holds on the lamp shade. It attaches to the lamp by tension placed on the harp base from the sides of the harp. It is removed by squeezing the sides of the harp in toward the socket and lifting straight up.


3. Expose the socket wiring by removing the exterior socket sleeve. Grab the exterior socket sleeve and pull up and away from the lamp. This exposes the interior socket/switch and the socket wiring.


4. Disconnect the old interior socket/switch. Pull up on the interior socket so that you will gain some slack in the lamp wire and access to the screws that are holding the wires to the socket. Unscrew the copper and aluminum screws located at the base of the interior socket/switch and remove the wires from beneath the screws.


5. Install a new interior socket/switch. Feel your lamp wires--one will be smooth and one will be ribbed. Place the ribbed wire under the aluminum screw and tighten the screw. Place the smooth wire under the copper screw and tighten that screw as well.


6. Grab the lamp cord at the base of the lamp and pull the cord away from the lamp base. This will take out any excess slack and allow the interior socket/switch to sit against the exterior socket base.


7. Slide the exterior socket sleeve over the interior socket/switch. Push the socket sleeve down firmly to set it securely in the socket base.


8. Replace the lamp harp, bulb and shade. Plug your lamp back into the wall.

Tags: interior socket, interior socket switch, socket switch, your lamp, exterior socket, socket sleeve, exterior socket sleeve