Nearly every single person living in the United States relies on the electrical grid. It's how electricity gets from the power plant to your home, powering your devices and appliances. With no grid, none of the electrical work in your home will function – no television, no air conditioning and no electric lights. Our grid is changing, however, taking advantage of evolving technology on both the distribution and consumer side of the equation. Read on to learn more about how our electrical grid will evolve to meets the needs of the 21st century.

How to Balance Supply and Demand

The electrical grid is not a single object, but rather a giant network of power plants and transmission lines that spans the entire nation. In order for electricity to flow from the generating stations into your home’s electrical work, the grid needs to be able to meet the demand at any given time and place. This can be an enormous challenge – if there is too little production, consumers can be subject to annoying and damaging brownouts. Ramping up generation to meet variable demand is expensive and inefficient, however.

Some utilities solve the problem with time-of-day pricing, charging more during the day and less at night to smooth out demand. Smart technology, however, will allow us to fine-tune the grid even further to increase efficiency, improve communication and mitigate blackouts or other power outages.

Smart Meters and Dispersed Generation

Smart meters are one of the first steps toward our new grid. These meters track residential electrical consumption in real time and can communicate with the utility company instantaneously. They can allow producers to better predict demand, respond immediately to dips and spikes, and further refine variable pricing structures that incentivize people to use less electricity during peak hours. Smart meters also give homeowners the power to see where and when they are putting the most stress on their electrical work, allowing them to adjust their behavior strategically.

Changes are coming to the generation side as well. Traditionally, the electrical grid is powered by large, centralized power plants, but residential solar installations mean that generation is becoming more widely distributed. Wind generation is also becoming an ever-larger factor in our nation's energy supply. This means that the grid needs to be updated to become more flexible and adaptable, but there is a large payoff in sight – the more dispersed that power generation becomes, the more resilient the grid will be in the event of an outage, with smaller regions able to supply themselves with emergency power if they are cut off from the centralized system.

Makes Tomorrow's Energy Grid Work for You

No one knows exactly what the power grid will look like 100 years from now, but the nation is well on its way to updating its electrical infrastructure to meet the needs of this century. If you have any concerns about how your electrical work will interface with the power grid of the future, or need any other work done on the wiring and circuitry in your home, call an expert electrician today.

A good, reliable microwave can be an important part of any modern kitchen. But is your microwave working a little too well? If you’ve got a microwave that just won’t quit, even when the timer goes off, you’ve certainly got a bit of a problem on your hands. But not a problem that our Electricians in Laurel can’t fix! Here are the most common causes for a microwave that won’t stop, and what you should do about it.

Looking for appliance wiring services in your area? Our electricians in Laurel are always ready to help! Contact Kolb Electric any time online and a member of our team will be more than happy to help!

There’s some good news to be had here, and some quite likely bad news. The good news is that no matter what folks say, you are not going to be radiated to death by your microwave. They’re generally quite safe, even if they’re running with the door open. However having said that, there are certainly risks, and the problem should not be left alone.

The bad news? The odds are pretty strong that you’re going to need a new microwave, or that replacing your microwave is going to be faster, easier, and safer.

So what causes this problem? There are actually very few causes, which lets us narrow things down pretty quickly. It tends to depend on how and why:

In our honest opinion, you either call in a professional, or you get a new microwave. The door switch is a fairly cost-effective repair if you’ve got a pro, but the panel issue is more complex. And while there are lots of “DIY” solutions out there, videos, mostly, we can’t really in good conscience suggest repairing a microwave on your own. Why? Because a microwave carries a potentially lethal charge, even when unplugged. It’s just not worth the risk!

Looking for a certified electrician to suss out your microwave woes? If so, you can always count on Kolb! Reach out to our team today and we can have one of our professionals on the way and ready to help in no time!

During a lightning storm, the safest place to be is indoors. However, there are still several safety precautions one needs to take to stay safe in your own home. The three most common ways lightning can enter your home are through a direct strike, through inner/outer wires and pipes, and through the ground.

To know how at risk your home is during a storm, you can use a guideline that meteorologists call “The 30-30 Rule.” If you see lightning and then hear thunder within 30 seconds, move indoors and take necessary safety precautions. This typically indicates that a storm is fewer than 6 miles away, which is close enough for a lightning strike. Then, stay indoors for at least 30 minutes after you hear the last clap of thunder at the end of the storm.

The following guidelines can give you additional protection against electrical injuries during harsh, stormy weather:

Injuries caused by lightning strikes are more common than most people realize, but the above considerations and safety guidelines can help secure both you and your home during inclement weather.

We love to decorate our landscaping with various ornamental trees, gorgeous flower beds, fountains and various statues. Unfortunately, with the daylight hours already getting shorter, it isn’t always easy to showcase your hard work without adequate outdoor lighting. Homeowners have several choices when it comes to finding the perfect way to highlight various areas in the landscaping. An electrician in Santa Monica has some tips for you to use when choosing the right lighting for your yard. You can call The Electric Connection to learn more about outdoor lighting options.

Solar Lighting

Solar lights are great for those areas of your yard that need soft lighting and get at least 8 hours of full sunlight a day. They are easy to place and are free of wires. Outlining a flower garden or pathway through the backyard or from the driveway to the front door are great ways to use solar lights. However, this particular type of light is not a good idea for areas that are shady or close to the house where they will not get full sun exposure.

Electric Lighting

Electric lights come in a variety of styles and sizes. They can be placed throughout the landscaping, but it will be necessary for you to pay close attention to the Santa Monica electrical requirements. Electric lights in the landscaping are perfect for shady areas that the solar lights are not ideal in. You will need to bury the wiring and have it wired into your home’s main power. A switch can be installed that allows you to turn the lights off and on manually or you can opt to have a timer installed that will take care of everything.

If you would like to have electric landscape lighting installed around your home, give The Electric Connection a call today and schedule your installation.