Smoke detectors (smoke alarms) are one of the most important safety devices in your home. If your home has well-maintained smoke detectors, the chances of your family surviving a house fire are greatly increased. From 2003 to 2006, 66% of fatalities due to house fires occurred in homes without working detectors (National Fire Protection Association).

Most homes have smoke detectors, but many times they are not located properly or are not working due to lack of maintenance. Of course, a smoke detector in the wrong location or one that no longer works because it has a dead battery provides no protection for your family. The Electric Connection, a fully licensed, bonded and insured electrician in Burbank CA, knows the most current code rules for smoke detector placement and they can install or replace your smoke detectors for you.

Maximizing Protection

Your family will have maximum protection if:

Can I install them myself or should I have my Burbank electrician install my smoke detectors?

You can purchase battery-operated smoke detectors from a hardware store and install them yourself. (If you decide to install your own smoke detectors, check your local building code for placing them.) For detectors that are wired into your electrical system, the U.S. Fire Administration recommends that detectors be installed by a qualified electrician. The Electric Connection, a local electrician in Burbank, can often schedule an electrical service call appointment for the following day.

Are they expensive?

Depending on the type of detector you decide on, they can run from $10-$40 each, not including installation costs. You can often get a ballpark price over the phone for installation pricing from a Burbank electrician.

How should they be maintained?

Most detectors start “chirping” when batteries have run down. In addition, the U.S. Fire Administration recommends testing them monthly. They recommend:

Are your detectors properly positioned?

The guidelines given here can help you determine if existing smoke detectors are properly positioned. If you are going to install battery-operated ones yourself, follow the placement requirements of your local building code. In general, it’s recommended that you have a smoke detector:

Within these general guidelines, detectors should be placed where smoke can be readily detected — high up on walls or on the ceiling (smoke rises) and at a distance from windows, fans, and vents that might blow smoke away from the detector.

If the smoke detector is wired into your electrical system, it should not be on a circuit that can be turned off with a wall switch. It’s always best to consult with a licensed Burbank electrician when it comes to hard wire some detector installations.

If a smoke detector is placed too close to a kitchen stove or shower, it can be triggered unnecessarily by steam or normal cooking smoke. Better to move it to a different location that also meets general safety guidelines and your local building code.

If you are uncertain about placement or need help with installation or battery replacement, call a qualified electrician in Burbank, such as The Electric Connection or visit our website.

Ceiling fans are a welcome addition to any room, providing a source of light, circulation, and warm or cool air, at the flip of a switch. Depending on the type, and style of fan you choose, they can add a pleasing, visual element to your living space, but there’s more to choosing the right fan than just looks. Adequate sizing makes all the difference to performance and comfort, while proper installation methods allow for the safe and efficient operation of your ceiling fan. When it comes time to replace your existing fan, whether for technical, or aesthetic reasons, professional installation is recommended, as the warning signs and potential issues may not be immediately apparent.

If you are looking at your electricity bill and trying to determine where your money is going you need to know what appliances are using the most electricity. This will help you make better decisions about where to cut back in your home to truly make a difference on your electric bill. A Pasadena electrician has a list of the top 10 energy users in your home. If you would like to learn more about buying energy efficient appliances or other ways to save on your electric bill, give The Electric Connection a call today.

1-The biggest electricity user in your house is your air conditioning. With the height of summer just around the corner, it is time to start thinking of better, more energy efficient ways to cool your home. You can have a ceiling fan installed by an electrician. Pasadena homeowners can still stay cool without relying solely on the air conditioner.

2-Your refrigerator is next on the list. While you can’t really do without a refrigerator, you can invest in one that is more energy efficient than your existing one.

3-Space heaters, if you use them, are also big electricity users. Consider investing in an infrared heater.

4-Water heaters use a lot of electricity. You can reduce the need for the heater to constantly heat the water by ensuring it is insulated. Reduce the temperature on your water heater a few degrees as well.

5-Lighting is your next issue to tackle. You can save money on lighting by switching to LEDs and CFLs. Making sure lights are off when nobody is in the room and installing dimmer switches are also helpful.

These are just a few things you can do to reduce your electric bill. Making a few changes today can start saving you money on your next electric bill. Give The Electric Connection a call today to schedule your ceiling fan installation.

DC motors are electrical devices which draw electricity (direct current) and convert it into mechanical energy. They have many uses in today’s industries, even though alternating current is the preferred choice for mains power supply. They are especially useful for machines that need to be driven at variable speeds.

If you want to achieve flexibility of loading different electrical appliances in your home, implement the following approaches. The electrical conduits practices recommended here meet NEC guidelines guaranteeing proper load growth for both commercial and residential buildings.

If you expect the load on your house, office, establishments, or other buildings to increase in future, consider using at least 12 AWG conductors. Ensure that they have protection of 20-amp circuit breakers and are designed with a 15-amp load standard each.

In addition, consider implementing these measures on wires and cables to increase the optimal performance of your circuit conductors.

To allow the normal length of lamp cords and other wire cables, the NEC Code recommends more than six feet of distance between the point on a wall and an appliance receptacle. In applications such as kitchen countertops, electricians should wire receptacle outlets some twelve feet or four feet apart.

The biggest challenge here is the difficulty in predicting how items such as furniture in your house will be arranged. Additionally, there may be an inadequate number of outlets at various locations. Evidence for this can be seen in the outlet power strips that today’s equipment use.

In locations where you can expect a huge load, such as computer workstations, offices, and home entertainment, the use of Quadruplex receptacles is an ideal solution. Reducing the number of receptacles that a single circuit uses will limit the installation and use of sensitive equipment. It also positively affects circuit conductors, voltage drop, chance of interaction, and reduces the likelihood of harmonics accumulating to harmful levels.

If your home has a large kitchen and multiple bathrooms, you need additional circuits that go beyond the minimums of the NEC Code. This effectively maintains the high-capacity appliances that characterize these rooms.

In addition, limit the number of use receptacles per circuit. For example, a 15-amp circuit can run 1800 Volt Amps when working at 100 per cent rate. While NEC recommends using circuits at 80 per cent rate, this translates to 1440 Volt Amps.

For some reasons, NEC requires a high number of circuits for use in most commercial and residential buildings. The Code recommends that sensitive electrical appliances, high-capacity loads, and equipment that cause poor quality of power obtain power from individual circuits. This separation eliminates the interference with equipment on a common circuit.

Where individual branch circuits are installed, the harmonicas generated in other circuits are shielded from coming in contact with sensitive equipment. In addition, this prevents the high neutral currents from sensitive electronic appliances to those circuits, effectively eliminating the likelihood of incorrect operation and voltage drop.

Raceways provide the ease of upgrading conductors efficiently and give electricians the freedom to pull conductors through a building. Therefore, let spare raceways and safety electrical material is installed during construction to allow an easy installation of conductors in the future.

As appliances and equipment advance over time, the lighting and switching mechanisms in your house or building should anticipate future modifications. For example, motion detectors and other electronic lighting devices require a small standby current to remain in their optimal state.

Therefore, install the following solutions for safety switches and lighting appliances right from building construction.

These applications are necessary if you want to reduce the load on the circuits in your house. If you have not implemented them yet, call a reputable electrician today to overhaul the electrical conduits. While this protects the electrical wiring from possible hazards, it also safeguards the assets in your house or building.