I have an old lamp that appears to have a new base (it is shiny brass) and good wiring, but when I turn it on, there is a perceptible delay before it actually lights. Chaning the bulb (incandescent, needless to say) has no effect. The delay is a fraction of the second, but clearly perceptible. Could this be a defective switch (the switch is one of those push buttons on the lamp base)? I cannot imagine what else it could be or, for that matter, how a defective switch could cause a delay. Any thoughts?
The switch is sticking for a fraction of time. Changing the switch will correct this annoyance.
Thanks. Will do. Is the sticking dangerous? Or just annoying?
There are two ways the bulb could be connected to the power source.
In the first, and this is the common method, the switch is directly in line with the bulb and makes or breaks the power supply. In such a connection, there should not be any delay between turning the switch and the bulb getting power.
Alternatively some lamps use a relay switch to connect the main power to the lamp. The incoming voltage is split. One branch is lowered in volatage and this is used in the switch and the relay control. The closing of the relay connects the mains to the actual bulb. In these cases there might be a slight delay between the closing of the manually operated switch and the actual operation of the relay.
There is no relay. We have a bunch of lamps hand made by my father-in-law and he did it in as simple a way as possible. Just the usual lamp base with a push switch. I replaced it and it works fine.
Great. I didn’t even have time to reply to your second question. You worked fast.