If your electrical panel has fuses rather than circuit breakers, safety can be an issue. Even some electrical panels equipped with circuit breakers can pose safety hazards and need to be upgraded.

Another reason to upgrade your electric panel is if it’s too small. To say it’s “too small” means it doesn’t supply enough power. One sign of insufficient power is that fuses are frequently blowing or circuit breakers are flipping off. Or possibly, a contractor has told you that your home or business needs more power for a new air conditioner or other installation.

What is an electrical panel?

The power from the electric utility company flows through large wires to your home and into the panel, a large metal box with fuses or circuit breakers inside. The panel controls the flow of electricity throughout the house, cutting the flow with fuses or circuit breakers if power levels rise too high.

If you think of your home electrical system as having branches and twigs like a tree, your electrical panel is the tree trunk. From the panel, the current flows into major electrical branches which dwindle into smaller and smaller branches and twigs, serving every part of your home.

An electrical panel may also be called a:

These all mean the same thing.

How do fuses and circuit breakers work?

If too much power were to flow into the wires in your home, they could melt and a fire could start. If you were to accidentally touch a damaged overloaded wire, you could receive an electrical shock.

To prevent more electrical flow than the wires are designed for, your electrical service panel is supposed to detect the problem and stop the flow immediately. In older electrical panels, a fuse blows. In newer ones, a circuit breaker flips off. Both fuses and circuit breakers are designed to break the circuit and cut the power to wires. Properly functioning circuit breakers (or fuses) are vital for your family’s safety and the safety of your home. Click here for more information about how to get the power back on if a circuit breaker has flipped off.

How do I know if my electrical panel is too small and should be upgraded?

If circuit breakers are flipping or fuses are blowing often, it likely means that your electrical system needs enlargement, including possibly a panel upgrade. Here are common situations which call for enlarging an electrical system:

Fuse Boxes

Older electrical panels have fuses rather than circuit breakers. In the days when fuse boxes were installed, homes needed considerably less power. Many fuse boxes were designed to handle 30-60 amps of power whereas the appliances and electronics in today’s homes often require 100-200 amps of power or more.

Fuse boxes may become overloaded, blowing fuses and shutting down your appliances. This is an inconvenience, and there’s a temptation to buy larger fuses so that they won’t blow so often. But, oversized fuses can allow overloading and overheating of wires. Occasionally, someone will have put a penny in the opening to replace a blown fuse. This can really create a fire hazard because a penny can’t break the circuit.

A little known danger of fuse boxes is that homeowners can accidentally stick their fingers into the fuse opening, possibly while changing the fuse, and be electrocuted. The safe solution is to upgrade with modern circuit breakers.

Circuit Breaker Brands

Specific brands of circuit breakers, especially those installed in earlier decades, have been found to deteriorate with age and pose a safety hazard. You can go to the free website Inspectopedia  and search on the brand of your circuit breaker to check its safety.

If you want to learn more about electrical panels, including some unsafe brands, click here. You can also ask us to check out your electrical panel. Call us 8-5 at (800) 990-9490. The Electric Connection provides free over-the-phone estimates and free home inspections, including checking the safety and sizing of your panel, with every electrical job. We look forward to talking with you.

Kim Hopkins

CEO, The Electric Connection

Today, many property owners opt for home automation systems. This is the “Internet of Things” and the manner in which various appliances, devices, and installations in your home are networked together; it provides you efficient control over various aspects of your home.

In terms of simple appliance control and lighting, this concept has been around for decades. It’s only in the recent years that there has been a sea change in this technology and you can now opt for systems that allow you complete control of your home from any remote location. Using home automation, you are able to control how a particular device will react, and why and when it should react.

Once the system has been installed, you only need to set the schedule. The rest of it is all automated and will be based on your personal preferences. This is why home automation can alert you about the events that you may want to immediately be aware of, such as unexpected access to your home, water leaks etc. All you have to do is grab your Android device or iPhone or any other remote control and alter the settings in your home. If this isn’t convenience, what is?

Let’s take a closer look at what the benefits of home automation systems are:

You are able to automate and control almost every single appliance and device in your home, regardless of where you are. You don’t really have to worry about getting up from your comfortable couch to dim the lights, draw the curtains or adjust the temperature of the room you are in, or in any other room of your house. You would be able to adjust the temperature in all the rooms in your house, just with the touch of a button on your phone.

Your CCTV cameras can be connected to the automation systems and in case there is any trespasser on your property, you would be immediately alerted to it. Your water sensors could be connected as well and you would immediately know if there was a leak, even if you aren’t at home; this gives you the chance to react and safeguard your home very effectively.

Home automation can help you switch on and off lights and sprinklers etc. when you want to, even when you aren’t actually at home. You can also switch on the air conditioning or water heater a few minutes before you are slated to reach home, and that helps save energy too as you wouldn’t have to keep the hot water system running all day. This kind of functionality helps you save on your utility bills.

When you have a home automation system installed on your property, you know you are using the latest technology. While the working of these systems is quite complex, the systems themselves are very user-friendly and this makes for a fun experience. You will find yourself impressing your guests with the various features of the system and enjoy using the automated systems.

If you are considering getting home automation products installed on your property, you would need to hire the services of a skilled and knowledgeable electrical company that will be able to understand your requirements and provide custom solutions. We at AllRound Electrical can provide you the solutions you need at extremely cost-effective pricing. Our experts will work closely with you and provide applications such as automated:

In addition to home automation, we can handle all other electrical requirements you may have. For more information, simply speak with the experts at AllRound Electrical and take their advice on various aspects of home automation installation solutions. The number to call is – 1300 169 263. You can also write to us at this email address.

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