Home lighting serves two major purposes: functionality and aesthetics. When walking into a dark room, the last thing you want is to have to navigate to the other side to turn on the lights. This can be unsafe and highly impractical. When it comes to aesthetics, the right lighting can change an entire room and its atmosphere. With dimmer and three way switches, you can bring functionality and aesthetics to any room in your home.

Standard switches control a light fixture or set of lights from one location. For larger sized rooms or long hallways it isn’t practical to have one light switch placed at only one end or in the middle of the room. This is where three way switches come in handy. With a three way switch, you can have two separate switches to a single fixture or set of lights. In this way you can strategically place light switches around your home to ensure there is always easy access to light.

Three way switches can be complex and difficult to install. When replacing standard switch it can be easy to mix up the wiring and your light switch will no longer work. This is where a professional electrician helps you out the most. Plan out where you feel more light switches are needed and contact one of our electricians to install the switch correctly the first time and help you avoid a headache and potential safety risk.

When it comes to dimmer switches, not only can they help you accomplish beautiful lighting in your room, but it can also be a practical decision. With a dimmer switch you can adjust the voltage going to your light rather than simply having an “on” or “off” setting. With either a slider or a knob you can adjust your light so it is perfect for reading, movies, or a romantic evening.

Dimmer switches can also help you save money by lowering your electrical bill. By having the ability to lower the voltage to your lights, you can use only the electricity you need and lower the lights to the perfect level. Remember, if you are planning to use LED lights on a dimmer switch, make sure you purchase LED bulbs that support dimming. If you choose the wrong type of bulbs, your dimmer switch will not leave you with the desired effect.

Every year, we see dozens of do-it-yourself jobs go horribly wrong. While our trained and certified electricians can fix the issue, the property owner who tried (and failed) to do the job in the first place probably made it worse. Even if that supposedly simple job sounds easy and you find yourself reasonably handy, you should never attempt to do it yourself. Here are three reasons why you should always hire a professional.

The first and perhaps most serious risk associated with DIY work is injury. Electricity is no joking matter—it’s a powerful force with the ability to change your life in a sheer instant. The current that’s flowing through your walls has the ability to seriously injure you in a split second, and could even kill you in serious situations. You should never take working with electricity lightly, and you shouldn’t even attempt to work with it unless you’ve had extensive training and know how to do so properly.

We hear of too many people who are injured while trying to work with electricity and they fail to notice a hazard or are unaware of a potential problem. Our technicians have all been trained through years of education, practical application, and apprenticeship in order to become a certified electrician. We know how to properly handle electricity and can do so with minimal injury risk.

Are you trying to install a new appliance you just purchased? What about something larger, such as installing a ceiling fan or changing over to recessed lighting? These are all things you should trust to a professional. Not only can a professional do so quickly and cleanly to avoid the mess often caused by a lack of experience, but you can avoid potentially damaging your new purchase as well.

Lack of experience frequently can melt the wires or overload circuits through improper installation, which can ruin your brand new device, and may even void the warranty on it in some situations. If you want your new home appliance installed correctly, trust a professional to do it right the first time.

Hundreds of fires are started by faults in electrical systems every year, such as shoddy connections, low-gauge wire choice, or even loose wires left dangling. These are not only against code, but extremely dangerous and could spark at any moment. Sparks cause fire, which will damage your home considerably. A professional Marietta electrician is well-versed in the ever-changing electrical code rulebook and can do the job you need while adhering to these rules and minimizing your fire risk.

When you are looking for an electrician, look for someone whom you can form a long term relationship with. This is true for homeowners, of course, but also true for apartment managers and owners of investment properties.  As an electrician in Los Angeles, I’ve built up long-term, on-going relationships with property management companies and apartment owners. I’ve found that these relationships save me and the client time and money whenever the client needs electrical work.

Find Recommended Electricians You can get recommendations for electricians from other apartment managers and also from homeowners. You can also search on-line for electrician Los Angeles or electrician Burbank, and so on. If you add the word reviews to your search, you can look for companies that have the best reviews.

Another approach is to search websites that feature reviews. Reviews appear on many websites including Google Places, Yelp.com, AngiesList.com, and CitySearch.com. You may be familiar with AngiesList.com, a paid service. It’s an excellent source of recommendations for contractors. It asks customers to rate contractors, including electricians, and give specifics about how their job went.

When looking at customer reviews, take a look at the big picture. If there are one or two bad reviews among the many good ones, does it seem like it’s just a grumpy customer? Is there a company reply that clears things up or says that it has corrected its employee?

Once you have three or so recommended electricians, take a look at their websites.

Check the Electrician’s Website

• Is it presentable and well-maintained? If the website checks out, it’s time to interview the electrician.

Interview the Electrician When you talk with the electrician, pay attention to how comfortable you are, including your trust level. Ask about:

• Experience with your type of work, including tenant relations • Names and contact info for five clients, preferably apartment or other property managers

Take notes on all this, particularly the License Number. If you decide to go ahead, you may wish to check some of what the electrician has said. If you decide not to go ahead, no need to proceed any further with this electrician. But save the notes so that you can remind yourself later of which companies you’ve already ruled out.

Look and Listen Electricians who are bidding jobs are on their best behavior. If you already notice that an electrician treats you or others in ways that concern you, better to find another with whom you feel more comfortable.

Check It Out • Check the company’s rating at the Better Business Bureau. Ratings run from A+ to F based on customer complaints made to the Bureau. As a note, an “A” reflects the same level of customer satisfaction as an “A+.” The “A+” is earned by an “A” contractor becoming a paying member of the Better Business Bureau, which supports the Bureau in its work.

Call References • Would you be happy to continue to use this electrical company?

Speak with at least three references. Listen carefully for enthusiasm or lack of enthusiasm about the electrician. A competent electrical company will have given you names that they believe are satisfied customers. Clients, past or present, may not feel comfortable saying anything negative. If they express little enthusiasm or say something negative, take this into consideration when making your decision.

Don’t Automatically Choose the Low Bid A bid may be too low. How can that be? An electrician may intentionally omit items that the job requires, only to come back later saying that additional work needs to be done. On the other hand, some electricians may unintentionally bid low through inexperience. Either way, the electrician may ask for more money to finish the job or may leave you with an incomplete project.

Look at the Whole Picture Price is important, but judge the entire picture an electrician is showing you — character, expertise, the ease of working with him or her, and overall value. A large part of an electrician’s value is that he/she gets the job done right and safely without taking too much of your time and inconveniencing you or your tenants. A very competent electrician can save you money by suggesting more efficient ways to do a job or to save on electricity.

If you  are looking for a fully licensed, bonded, and insured electrician in Los Angeles who can work with you and provide you quality electrical services at reasonable prices, please give us a call at (800) 990-9490, 8-5 pm. I look forward to hearing from you and will be happy to provide you with contact info for satisfied property managers. Or you can look at a couple of reviews by property managers on our website.

Advanced lighting control systems (ALCS) utilize electronic circuits with a programmable logic controller to automatically adjust lighting levels.  Program a number of variables and light requirements to get the lighting just perfect. This helps in providing the right amount of light where and when it is needed, hence improving energy efficiency and savings.

Advanced lighting control systems provide benefits like automatic scheduling and dimming. Turn lights off based on room occupancy and level of daylight. In so doing, the ALCS adjusts the light levels to match the requirements at any particular time. For example, when a room is empty, lights dim or go off completely. This saves on utility costs.

The sensors communicate with the lighting control system through wired or wireless connections. In some applications, sensors are integrated into the lighting control. While the wired network requires hand wiring of all the devices, the wireless communications use radio frequencies. Therefore several benefits exist over the wired network.

Wireless technology eliminates the need for wiring and is, therefore, cheaper, easy to implement and modify. It provides more flexibility while reducing the planning time for the electrical system. Wireless lighting controls are ideal for hard-to-reach lights. These include places where there are non-accessible or hard ceilings, basements, and other expensive or hard-to-wire areas.

The controller automatically adjusts the level of illumination based on one or a combination of the following variables.

The controls utilize room occupancy or proximity sensors to check for activity in the room or target area. If there is no activity, the controls automatically switch off or dim the lights. The system will then turn the lights to full brightness when room occupancy sensors detect someone within a defined space.

Different lighting levels are required based on the activity. In some applications such as warehouses, there is no need to keep all the lights on when areas are not in use. The lighting control systems will either turn off or dim most of the lights. Some advanced systems provide just enough light in the open spaces. Yet, more light becomes available near shelves where a worker might be picking up or replacing items.

Additional light is required during office hours when people are working. However, this isn’t necessary during the lunch break, or when offices are being cleaned. A combination of controls may be used here. Take advantage of daylight, dim or completely turning off the lights when more natural light filters into the room.

The programmable controls can be used to switch individual or groups of lights depending on time of day. These programs run 7 days a week. Consequently, there’s a separate schedule for weekdays, weekends, and holidays. In an office setup, a timer ensures that all lights, apart from security lights, are turned off at night, during the weekends and on holidays.

Instead of using the lamp at its maximum rating when new, the controls dim the light in certain cases. This reduces the normal wear and tear. As the lamp ages, its level of illumination will decrease. However, instead of the light level going down, the control will decrease the dimming level and maintain the required level of light.

So instead of powering the light at 100% and wasting energy with excess light that is not required, the controller ensures light is powered at a lower percentage. This ensures that required light is provided, but at a lower power consumption.

Factors considered when implementing a lighting system include the need for flexibility, facility size, floor plans, facility use, daylight hours, and building codes. Other considerations include the cost-effectiveness of the system, the ease of use, visual performance and comfort.

In addition to controlling the lights, the advanced lighting control systems help in determining the occupancy patterns. Moreover, the operating status of part or whole sections and the entire system’s performance is monitored. This provides business owners with an opportunity to evaluate the effectiveness of the installation and make adjustments.