As I’ve said before, I’ve spent years in the electrical business working hard to help people save money and keep safe.  But I’m not really any different from any other American.  At the end of the day, I get to lay down my work for a while and come home to my wife and children, and I want nothing more in all the world than for them to be happy and safe.  For me, that’s one of the places where being a parent and being a Top Garland electrician can come together.  I have the expertise from my trade to do what any parent would want to do; make your home safer for your family.  Which makes this story I’m about to share with you hit me even harder than it would otherwise.  I can’t think of anything worse than something like this befalling the people I love.

Not so long ago, a mother in Texas was bathing her five and six year-old children when disaster struck.  A hair dryer, plugged into an outlet nearby, was accidentally pulled off a nearby counter, and wound up falling into the bathtub.  The current from the hair dryer quickly passed into the bathwater.  Neither child survived.

What makes the story even more tragic is that the deaths of these children could have been prevented with an investment of less than sixty dollars in equipment and labor costs.   Specifically, installing a GFCI or Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter, could have saved the lives of these children. The home the family lived in was an older home, and as a result the circuit in the bathroom wasn’t equipped with this simple yet incredibly important piece of equipment.

A GFCI is designed to quickly interrupt the flow of electric current when it detects that the current is imbalanced, which is a sign that current’s passing through something other than what it’s supposed to, like a person.  This can be a danger when we’re dealing with outlets close to water; the composition and chemical structure of water make it an extremely effective conductor of electric current.  It doesn’t take very much water, either; unplugging an appliance with your hand in a small amount of spilled water on a counter top can cause you to suddenly complete a circuit to the ground, giving you a very nasty shock.

As you might expect, this means that a GFCI should (and by code, must) be installed anywhere there’s a electric device close to water. This isn’t limited to kitchens and bathrooms either; GFCIs should also be installed on outlets located in garages, near any counter top, near pools and hot tubs, and on any external outlets.

We don’t always think of external outlets as needing a GFCI, but they do; remember, any electronic equipment you use outside interacts with the elements.  Using an electric lawn care device, like a weed whacker or electric mower on wet grass can be dangerous, especially if you happen to run over the cord, which could create a circuit between the electricity and the ground through your body.

One of the most common issues I see where GFCIs are lacking, and could be potentially dangerous, lie where there is plenty of water:  your swimming pool.   Older pools, like older homes, may not have a GFCI installed on the pool light located under the surface.  Over time, the seal that keeps water out of the pool light can break down; if and when they do, it can turn your pool from a fun place to spend time to a place to get to get your goose cooked in the blink of an eye.

Although all outlets like the ones listed above must be equipped with GFCIs according to code, this hasn’t always been the case.  Older homes, like the one where those two children were killed, may have been built before these regulations were put in place.  If you have any question whatsoever I strongly recommend that you contact a Top Garland electrician as soon as possible to perform an inspection.

You may think that, because your air conditioner has not been in use for some time, you don’t need routine maintenance prior to the cooling season. This is why so many homeowners are caught off-guard when they find that their AC systems are not in prime working condition when summer rolls around, though. By allowing a qualified technician to thoroughly inspect and meticulously tune up your AC system prior to the onset of summer, you ensure that you will receive the quality cooling performance that you both desire and deserve.

Electrical fires can be extremely destructive and uncontainable, once they break out. An electrical fault and severe sparking in the electrical installations in one part of your property can easily spread to the other areas very quickly. This means the destruction caused can be extremely high and the fire can pose a threat to the people living or working on your property as well.

When you get the electrical system on your property installed by credible professionals, you can rest assured that there will be no problems and that they will be quite safe. However, if you live on an older property that also has old wiring, it can deteriorate or get damaged over time, and can prove to be extremely dangerous. This is why you should make it a point to conduct routine checks on all the electrical installations in your home.

Most electrical companies also design preventive electrical maintenance contracts based on your specific needs; they will visit your property at pre-decided intervals and conduct thorough checks on all the electrical fittings and installations. This helps identify potential & existing problems beforehand and these can be fixed before they pose a major hazard.

Aside from this, it’s also important that you be wary and conduct some basic checks on all the electrical installations. Here are some signs you should look out for:

If you find that a particular circuit breaker trips once in a while, it may just be an indication that you have plugged in too many electrical appliances and devices all at once into that particular circuit. However, if you find yourself resetting the circuit breaker too often, it’s crucial that you don’t ignore it.

The circuit breaker is built specifically to alert you when something is wrong with the system; this is why you should call in a skilled electrician and get it checked without delay. The constant tripping could be an indication of a much bigger problem.

If you hear buzzing sounds or notice sparking in an electrical outlet or if you detect a burning odour emanating from the outlets, that’s a very strong warning that something’s wrong with it, and that it needs to be replaced as soon as possible. Not only will the electrician check the outlet, but will also check and update the wiring connected to it.

If you experience an electrical shock while operating any appliance or device in your home, it’s an indication that there is electrical current leaking at some point. This could be caused by faulty wiring or even a grounding fault. The electrician will use special testing devices to see where the problem lies and will fix it quickly and efficiently.

Sometimes a light bulb might flicker because it hasn’t been fitted correctly in its socket. However, there are times when this problem is caused due to a loose circuit or loose wiring. It’s the same with other electrical outlets that don’t function as they should.

There are numerous different ways in which an electrical fire can break out in the home and a number of ways to prevent it as well. Today, you will find there are a large number of electrical system protection devices on the market and this can make it a little difficult to decide which one will work best for your setting.

One effective installation you can use to prevent electrical fires in your home is an custom solutions to residential and commercial clients across Sydney.