Lamp turns on at 3am

Ok, we just moved into this new house, brand new, nobody has lived here before. Anyhow, we have noticed that almost every night at 3 am or close to it....this morning it was 3:02 am our bedside lamp turns on. It's a touch lamp and it goes through the stages until it is completely on, like dim, brighter, and brightest as if someone is touching the lamp ????? This morning the lamp was knocked over on it's side but neither of us heard the lamp fall in the night ???? It's very odd and we kind of chuckle it off to maybe electrical current when the AC kicks on but wanted to get others opinion, what could it mean????

reply to post by strangenuhouse08



The best thing to do first would be the most "prosaic" one: consult with a qualified electrician (more than one, if possible).

If nobody in your family is a sleepwalker, you should also check whether anyone - including yourself, obviously - is on any kind of prescription drugs that might cause unconscious actions. Several do; zolpidem (the substance known in the USA as "Ambien", if I am not mistaken) has a proven record of making people do all kinds of things (you don't want to know) while under its influence. And the next day they remember NOTHING.

After that has been ruled out... then we can talk. :-)


P.S. I am well aware that the last possibility may seem - and probably is - unlikely, considering the circumstances described. Still, I think it's worth mentioning.






[edit on 9-6-2008 by Vanitas]

If you suspect that it might be electrical power spikes, a cheap test (rather than getting an electrician out right away, unless you know one that can check it free/cheap) that I would use, is to get yourself a surge protector, and plug the lamp into that. It should handle softening any current spikes, and perhaps it will end completely.

I don't think you should jump to going down the supernatural road just yet, but always remember that just because a house is brand new, it doesn't mean the ground it's built on doesn't have an ancient past!

Switch lamps and see if the anomalies still occurs.
Plug in a digital clock and watch for fluctuations.

Try a florescent bulb.

Call an exorcist.

Well I agree with the people who put test to see if there is a proplem with the electicity.

Or if sombody is sleepwalking.

But I do find it kind of wierd that it is happening at 3 in the morning.
Because from what I hear that is the devils hour.
But dont be alarmed its propably not anything bad.

If it happened to me once, I wouldn't think twice about it. If it happened a second time I'd chalk it up to a coincidence. If it happened a third time I'd set my alarm a few minutes before 3AM and wait to see the show

I had bought one of those touch lamp adapters. Half the time it didn't work. Yeah, I would guess there's some type of electrical problem, like a bad ground or weak connection. Try a different outlet also.

If it was the paranormal, I seriously doubt whether a house is new or not makes any difference when it comes to wondering ghosts. I can't recall ever having been wakened by a light going on or off. I have incorporated music into my dreams though.

Thanks to all the replies....

I have the lamp plugged into a surge protector so that should soften the current and nope nobody in this house sleep walks or is on any meds.


Actually my husband is a police officer and is on a strange shift right now he gets home about 2:30ish, last night (well this morning) we were awake when the dang light came on, on it's own!!!! I joked oh it must be 3 and sure enough looked at the clock and it was 3:02. My husband then tried to talk to whatever made it come on and asked to turn the light back on but of course nothing; however, this morning the lamp was laid over on it's side ???? I'm not freaked out or anything.....to this point nothing bad has happened to any of us and I don't think anything will, it's just very very interesting....know what I mean?

reply to post by strangenuhouse08


Before thinking about surnatural phenomenons, let's start with the obvious. You wouldn't happen to have by any chance a dog or a cat? Our cat spend most of its nights on our bedside tables and managed to knock down our lamps a couple times...

You all seem to be quite logical, and took on a disposition like TAPS (ghost Hunters) Rational first, paranormal second. You are to be commended. If it truly is paranormal, It would be a poltergeist. It is not really intelligent, but a simple entity. Not usually harmful or particularly scary. By all means, preform the tests. But 5ealchris is right. The "Witching Hour," commonly thought to be around midnight, is truly 2-3am (when most ghostly encounters happen). You may wish to take that into account.

[edit on 11-6-2008 by sobek52]

[edit on 11-6-2008 by sobek52]

Change the lamp to one that you have to turn a knob or press a button.

That lamp is haunted.

Well as the first few replies suggest, check the lamp, bulb etc. Just get a new lamp?

3am, the time in which demons mock, oppress, attack, irritate and do their "thing". The 3am thing is just a myth that seems to have some consistancy to it, and seeing i believe in a spiritual realm if i cannot find a natural reason for my 3am clock i will take steps i know.

There is also the myth of it being a witching hour. When certain witches do their spells, hexes, vexes, incantations etc. But i am sure there are those here who will know about the witch and 3am myth.

i have owned a few of these touch lamps that don't use the adapters. How old is the lamp ? I found after about 3-5 years of use they REPEATEDLY would come on and shut off without touching. I was told that If they are placed near something with an excess of static electric charge it could trigger them, though never experimented with it. I used to be able however trigger it with my finger still about an inch from it if I had gotten up in the middle of the night to use the restroom, etc. and unbeknownest , shuffling my feet.Used to call it "using the Force"...lol...was kinda cool. This can explain alot of the problems but if it is coming on at exactly 3 AM everytime then we need to look at maybe a regulated spike in the electrical grid as the electrical companies routinely send spikes through the lines to check for unforseen outages and problems.JM2C
edit for spe

[edit on 11-6-2008 by djvexd]

I experienced a similar occurrence the other day. My television turned off randomly at 3 am while I was on the computer. There is no explanation as to why it would have happened.

Aside from this specific incident I have personally had quite a few other strange things happen revolving around 3 am, mostly involving electronics. Perhaps your incident is related to this.

Like was said already you should get up to see the show.

If it goes on, ask for anyone in the room to turn it off. If it goes off ask to turn it on again. After that do yes no questions.

Is there anyone in the room turn off then on if yes.
Turn off for no.

I would have a smaller light on too so you don't freak yourself out.

Are you trying to communicate.
Are you human, are you male or female adult, child.

If you really got it going you could work out some kind of spelling code.


If it works, you should contact TAPS and get them to check it out!

Edit: nevermind.

[edit on 12-6-2008 by RuneSpider]

My first question when reading the thread title was "is it a touch lamp?" If yes, problem solved. Touch lamps are twitchy and will come on for just about any reason. Oil from your fingers and a slight movement of air, nearby static, nearby electrical wiring, etc. My parents owned a pair of big ones which they eventually changed to a switch lamp due to the random annoyances. I remember getting the blame for leaving them on since I was the last one in the room even though I know I didn't. Curiously enough, my mother who apparently forgot about the anomaly over the years had purchased a desk lamp for my daughter that was a touch lamp. Yeah, she freaked when it turned on in the middle of the night, but after I'd gone in there and showed her scientifically how the thing would turn on even without touching it, she was put at ease and we unplugged the lamp. In short, touch lamps are crap.

Touch-sensitive lamps almost always use a fourth property of the human body -- its capacitance. The word "capacitance" has as its root the word "capacity" -- capacitance is the capacity an object has to hold electrons. The lamp, when standing by itself on a table, has a certain capacitance. This means that if a circuit tried to charge the lamp with electrons, it would take a certain number to "fill it." When you touch the lamp, your body adds to its capacity. It takes more electrons to fill you and the lamp, and the circuit detects that difference. It is even possible to buy little plug-in boxes that can turn any lamp into a touch-sensitive lamp. They work on the same principle.

science.howstuffworks.com...

Originally posted by Cyberbian
Like was said already you should get up to see the show.

My husband and I both saw the "show"....freaked both of us out!!!! We didn't see anyone or anything, we were just talking of course not thinking about the time or catching anyone or anything when all of a sudden the lamp came on as if someone touched it twice.....it's always on the medium setting????


Does anyone know if dogs can see "ghost" I'm thinking about letting my dog sleep on my floor but will totally freak if she starts barking at "nothing" and then the lamp comes on!!!!

Got a web cam and a laptop? or some other way of recording the scene?

Don't know if it helps but loads of mobile phones have a faily goos camera now a days, I know mine runs a symbian operating system and with a bit of googling you can DL a little security camera application, whenever there is movement it will snap a few pics and store to the memory card - also good fun to catch people out and prove it!

I was serious about asking questions. Suppose for a second that it were possible to communicate to "something/someone" by using such a delicately balanced switch.

The premis is that they would need something which required as little exertion as possible in the physical world. And an exertion based upon a tiny electrical field might be ideal if let us say they were entirely an energy phenomina.

If you could get it on film. You might tweak TAPS interest and get them to investigate. I know people suppose that these events are random electrical accidents. But consider the potential if just a few were not.

The only way to prove consciousness is to establish a credible correlation between the timing of questions and the timing of switchings. I would also ask it to not turn the light on for the next two minutes; after you have gotten it to switch several times in a single minute. You need to establish that it is not just flickering. Then go back to questioning.

Unfortunately you will always have only the credability of those who witness it and attest to the validity for you.

I am disappointed that you would resort to the opinion of your dog, rather than take a leap of faith and test the hypothesis yourself through questioning.

I had hoped to come back and see footage of the light answering questions. To be followed by an appearance on a segment of Ghost Hunters.