If the department stores are to be believed, the holiday season started about a month ago—which means if your house isn’t already fully decorated, you’re way behind! This year, make sure your holiday lights are safe by following these tips:

Before you buy or install new lights, make sure you know both how many watts the decorations require and how many watts are available in your home (if you’re not sure, ask an electrician at Kolb Electric!). Remember—the lower the wattage, the less electricity your lights will consume and the less they will cost to operate.

Since holiday lights draw so much power, you probably don’t want to plug them into a circuit that you’re using for other appliances—the circuit is likely to blow. Instead, call a DC electrician to install a dedicated circuit for your decorations.

In addition to installing a dedicated circuit for your holiday lighting, you may also want to install a timer for your lights. A timer will shut off your lights automatically, adding security and making sure everything is off in the middle of the night.

Extension cords are susceptible to water damage, so if you plan to use any outside, make sure they are covered so they can’t get wet. Never connect more than three strings of lights either—if you need more length, use a different plug.

Above all, make sure you take ordinary precautions with your holiday lights. This includes:

At Kolb Electric, we want to wish everyone a happy and safe holiday season. And if you need electrical service in Washington, DC, Maryland, or Virginia, call Kolb Electric today!

Building a home from the ground up is an exciting adventure that you will hopefully cherish in the years to come as you live in your new house. Although you may assume the only input you have is in the actual design, the color of the carpet and the kind of cupboards and countertops that will be installed, you actually a little more say in the process. You will need an electrician in Burbank. You have the option of hiring an electrician you are comfortable with. Part of your new home construction includes having an input in the placement of outlets and data lines. At The Electric Connection, you will find a team willing to work with your wants and needs.

Only you know what kind of appliances you have and regularly use in the kitchen. If you have are a regular in the kitchen and you have a lot of appliances that you use on a regular basis, it is nice to have them ready to go when you need them. Talk with your electrician about your Burbank electrical needs. It is possible to install additional outlets during the construction process.

If one of the rooms will be a den or home office, you will need additional outlets and data lines. It is a lot easier to do it during the construction process rather than trying to drill holes and run cable after the house is complete. After you have the plans for your home, take some time to envision the setup for each room. Will you have a large entertainment system along one wall that will require several outlets to run? What kind of computer equipment will you be using? Knowing all of this ahead of time will help your electrician determine the size of electrical panel you will need which can save you money down the road when it turns out you need more than originally planned. Give The Electric Connection a call today to discuss your new home construction project.

Christmas, Hanukkah, Valentine’s Day, Independence Day and even Halloween … No holiday is immune to the spell of twinkling of lights. Since July 2009, we’ve written over 600 blog posts. It comes as no surprise that a large majority of them have centered around a holiday. If you are one of the many folks hauling out holiday lights this weekend, you’ll appreciate this round-up of 6 Popular Holiday Lighting How-To Blog Posts that we’ve accumulated throughout the years.

1.

energy-efficient LEDs. If that’s not enough to convince you, this blog post from 2011 gives even more statistics on the benefits of upgrading your holiday string lights. (Update 2015: This blog post is now part of Winning the Battle on Christmas Lights: Artificial Trees

4. Lights for a Holiday-Ready Home

6. Follow Pegasus Lighting’s board Inspiration | Holiday Lighting on Pinterest.