Planning on an exciting and colorful lighting display this holiday season? Whether you have grandiose plans of intricate illumination design, or you just want to wire up your tree, hanging lights can present a few hazards to the unprepared. Electrical safety may take a backseat for some, but to the experts at Kolb Electric, nothing could be more important! Protect yourself and your home with these light hanging tips.

As you may expect, much of electrical safety has to do with the product being used. Keep these tips in mind when selecting your lighting choices this year:

If you plan on hanging wiring above eye-level, odds are you’ll be using a ladder. Remember these tips when hanging your lights:

Have any questions or concerns regarding your holiday lighting this year? Contact us today at Kolb Electric! We provide industry-leading solutions for all of your electrical needs, and bring only the very best in service and skill to our consumers!

Wall outlets are the primary point of interaction most homeowners have with their electrical systems. Those of us who aren't electricians or contractors may never open our circuit boxes or run a wire through the wall, but we plug and unplug things from our outlets every day. Those outlets don't last forever, however, and they need to be upgraded and replaced at some point to help protect the safety and security of your home and family. Read on to learn when it's time to make the switch.

Don't Take Your Outlets for Granted

Given their steady, reliable performance delivering electricity to our appliances and devices, it's tempting to take our outlets for granted, but they do actually have a lifespan and can become obsolete over time. Especially if you live in an older house, your outlets, and the wires they are attached to, may be deteriorating. What's more, older electrical outlets might not be up to the current standards of your local building code.

So why should you care? Because old outlets can turn into a major safety hazard, most notably as the source of a house fire. Sometimes, the wires connected to the outlets become loose or frayed, creating an immediate fire danger – but this can be prevented by installing new, modern models. When you upgrade to the latest, up-to-code outlets, you can also add safety features like a ground fault circuit interrupter, which decreases the possibility of electrocution. You can also have an electrician install convenient features like combo outlets that charge your USB devices, or kid-safe outlets in areas accessible to young children.

When to Bring in an Electrician

The easiest way to know when you need to update your outlets is to have an electrician inspect your home. There are also other warning signs that can clue you in when it's time to make a change:

Obviously, if you detect smoke or a burning odor coming from your outlet, you should call an electrician immediately – or better yet, the fire department. Fires can spread quickly within your walls before you even realize you have a problem.

If you need a hand upgrading your outlets or other parts of your electrical system, get in touch with an expert electrician today.

On any job site, having the right electrical safety gear is essential. For electrical projects, there are often special considerations, as some tasks can have unique hazards that require special gear.

Eye injuries are serious and for most electricians are a daily hazard. Having, and using, the right eye protection can make all the difference.

Electricians often work at heights, either on roofs, scaffolds, or elevated work platforms. In some locations, even working on a step ladder can require fall protection gear.

When the potential exists to fall more than 6 ft., fall protection gear should be worn. This includes an approved and inspected harness and a lanyard with the correct weight rating. Always ensure that the fully extended length of the lanyard is short enough to prevent the worker from contacting the ground in the event of a fall.

Hand injuries are the most common type of workplace injury, therefore selecting and using the right kind of gloves is vital.

Along with proper knife safety practices, using cut-resistant Kevlar gloves can greatly reduce the potential for cuts and scratches. In cold weather, ensure that insulated gloves are worn. When dealing with potentially hazardous chemicals, use gloves rated to handle the specific associated hazards.

Did you know light pollution is one of the reasons why women in developed nations are 5 times more likely to get breast cancer? That’s only one of the many issues caused by the bright lights in today’s cities and towns.

This short video explores the hidden costs of light pollution:

More problems caused by light pollution include the disrupted migratory, breeding, hunting, and sleeping patterns of many animals. Far off lights can easily disorient migrating birds, making them lose their flight patterns or start their migrations too early. Bright lights along our shorelines distract sea turtle hatchlings from their natural paths to the ocean. 

Chronic fatigue in humans, along with migraines and sexual dysfunction have been linked to higher levels of light exposure.

Not to mention how much bright lights detract from the night sky. Today’s starscapes are faint and dim compared to those of yesteryear.

Working from home is not only convenient but it is economical. Many people run businesses out of their homes and for those of you who are thinking about doing the same – you can too. Change a room in your home into a fully functioning office with our help.

One thing that most businesses have is a phone number. You may not want your business calls being directed to your home phone number otherwise you will have family members answering for you and after-hours business calls you may not have wanted to answer. We can help install a separate phone line in your office so you can have a dedicated, business phone number. This way your business and home communication are completely independent from each other.

When designing and setting up your home office, keep in mind which electronics are going where and how much power they will require. If you have a laser or large sized printer in your office, it may have a heavy draw on your power supply. Ensure that the circuit that your home office is on and the GFCI outlet can handle the load of your printer, computer, and any other electronics you need. You don’t want to trip the breaker and cause a power outage by printing out a document for one of your clients. Have one of our expert electricians review the wiring setup and test the outlet before you set up your electronics.

If you’re having meetings in your office, a proper lighting set up is important. Sometimes your office can be located in an area of the home that does not receive sufficient exterior light. Having a dimly lit room for meetings can disrupt the workflow and make it uncomfortable for all attendees. Assess the light levels at different intervals to see if you require improvements in your overhead lighting. Installing pot lights or track lights can create a comfortable atmosphere and makes it much easier to work.

When you setup your office at home you were likely thinking about economics and efficiency. With our help we can make sure that you are making the most out of your home office and that it is a place of efficiency that doesn’t overflow into your down time.