# Can I use a regular bulb in a three way socket? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 24, 2004, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-use-a-regular-bulb-in-a-three-way-socket/230812 "2004-02-24T02:25:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![chickendoc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/82dd89/32.png) [@chickendoc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chickendoc)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2004, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-use-a-regular-bulb-in-a-three-way-socket/230812/1 "2004-02-24T02:25:10Z")
I bought a three way lamp (by accident) and was wondering if I could use a regular light bulb instead? The three way bulbs cost more than 4x the price of a normal one! Ouch! Thanks ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2004, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-use-a-regular-bulb-in-a-three-way-socket/230812/2 "2004-02-24T02:47:03Z")
Yup. No prob. ---
**Author:** ![74westy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/74westy/32/3950_2.png) [@74westy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/74westy)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2004, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-use-a-regular-bulb-in-a-three-way-socket/230812/3 "2004-02-24T03:17:59Z")
As twickster said, no prob. I have many tri-light lamps in my house but no tri-light bulbs. What is a little strange is that instead of the normal two way off/on of a regular lamp or the four way off/low/med/high of a tri-light, you end up with off/off/on/on. I.e. you may have to hit the switch twice to change the lamp’s state. You get used to it fast though. Someday, when you have a better paying job, if you have a light on a dimmer switch that makes a noticable humming noise, try replacing the bulb with a tri-light. I have heard that the dimmer will work as before but the bulb will not make noise. ---
**Author:** ![Popup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/94ad74/32.png) [@Popup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Popup)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2004, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-use-a-regular-bulb-in-a-three-way-socket/230812/4 "2004-02-24T12:51:34Z")
> [@74westy](#): > > …if you have a light on a dimmer switch that makes a noticable humming noise, try replacing the bulb with a tri-light. I have heard that the dimmer will work as before but the bulb will not make noise. Why would that be? For the dimmer, it would still only be a resistive load, and I can’t see how it could be ‘aware’ that there now is a ‘three-way’ bulb. (That said, we don’t have ‘three-way’ bulbs this side of the Atlantic, so I can’t test myself.) ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2004, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-use-a-regular-bulb-in-a-three-way-socket/230812/5 "2004-02-24T14:07:18Z")
A good bulb can mask a cheap dimmer. If you have a humming bulb in a dimmer set up, you have a cheap dimmer control or one that ain’t working perfectly. An old fix is to get a 3-way bulb or a bulb built for vibration resistance (such as a garage door opener bulb). Three way bulbs have beefy filaments, lime the vibe resistant ones, and could eliminte the humming caused by a cheap dimmer control switch. ---
**Author:** ![chickendoc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/82dd89/32.png) [@chickendoc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chickendoc)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2004, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-use-a-regular-bulb-in-a-three-way-socket/230812/6 "2004-02-24T18:42:18Z")
Thanks for the info guys ---
**Author:** ![Will\_Repair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a698b9/32.png) [@Will\_Repair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Will_Repair)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2004, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-use-a-regular-bulb-in-a-three-way-socket/230812/7 "2004-02-24T22:22:07Z")
I have a question about your question. Why did you ask and not just try it? ---
**Author:** ![chickendoc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/82dd89/32.png) [@chickendoc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chickendoc)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2004, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-use-a-regular-bulb-in-a-three-way-socket/230812/8 "2004-02-25T02:12:34Z")
> [@AcidKid](#): > > I have a question about your question. > > Why did you ask and not just try it? Because I didn’t want to risk frying my wiring or burning the house down if it didn’t work. You never know about these things… 🙂