A 3-way light bulb is effectively two
light bulbs in one. 3-way light bulbs are specially constructed bulbs that
contain two filaments. Each filament is rated for a different wattage to produce
a different level of light. They are designed specifically to work in 3-way lamp
sockets, which have multiple contact points to control the 3-way light bulb.
When a 3-way light bulb is used in a
3-way socket, the bulb can be controlled to produce three levels of brightness.
When the lamp is switched once the
lower wattage filament is turned on to produce a dim light. When the lamp is
switched a second time the higher wattage filament is turned on to produce a
medium light. When the lamp is switched a third time both filaments are turned
on resulting in maximum bulb brightness.
3-way light bulbs can be used in non
3-way light sockets however the bulb will only operate off of its default
filament setting.
3-way light bulbs are designed as an
alternative to installing a dimmer switch. 3-way light bulbs can be used in a
lamp that is controlled by a dimmer switch, however there are some limitations
and redundancy to doing so.
First, there is no way to send a
control signal from the wall dimmer switch to the 3-way light bulb lamp to
switch between the different filament settings. As a result the 3-way light bulb
will only be able to be dimmed on the particular element that it is set to via
the 3-way light socket lamp.
Second, the dimmer switch provides
the ultimate in brightness level control to a light bulb. As a result, there is
no reason to use a 3-way light bulb in a dimmer switch application.
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