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How to Repair a Table Lamp: Replace a Faulty Socket
A lamp socket itself can go bad, but more often it’s the switch inside the socket. Either way, the solution is replacement. A new socket costs about $5. Regardless of the existing switch type, you can choose a push-through switch, a pull chain, a turn knob or a three-way turn knob that provides two brightness levels. You can also choose a socket without a switch and install a switched cord instead.
The old socket shell is supposed to pop out of its base with a squeeze and a tug, but you might have to pry it out with a screw-driver. The socket base can be stubborn too. It’s screwed onto a threaded tube that runs down through the lamp’s body. When you try to unscrew it, you might unscrew the nut at the other end of the tube instead. This will allow the parts of the lamp body to come apart, but that isn’t a big problem. Just use a pliers to twist the base off the tube, reassemble the lamp body and screw on the new socket base to hold it all together.
The neutral wire connects to the wide plug blade and is distinguished from the hot wire by ribs, color, printing or indentations in the plastic insulation.
When you connect the new socket, don’t reuse the bare ends of the wires. Some of the tiny strands of wire are probably broken. Cut them off and strip away 1/2 in. of insulation with a wire stripper. Using a wire stripper is almost foolproof, as long as you choose the correct pair of notches to bite through the wire’s insulation. Most wire strippers are sized for solid wire, rather than the slightly larger stranded wire used in lamp cords. You can get around this problem by using the next larger pair of notches. Since most lamp wires are 18 gauge, start with the notches labeled 16. If the stripper won’t remove the insulation, use smaller notches. If the stripper removes strands of wire, cut off an inch of cord and start over using larger notches.
An underwriter’s knot prevents the wires from pulling out of the screw terminals when the cord is tugged.
When you connect the wires to the new socket, the neutral wire must connect to the silver screw. To identify the neutral wire, start at the plug. The wider plug blade is connected to the neutral wire, and you’ll find that the neutral wire is distinguished from the “hot” wire. The two wires may be different colors, there may be printing on one or the other, or there may be tiny ribs or indentations in the plastic covering the neutral wire. If your old plug blades are of equal width, replace the plug and cord along with the socket.
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