What would our lives be like without electricity? Electricity is a necessary utility in today’s world, required for a variety of work and entertainment tasks and to power the appliances used throughout the home. However, if your wiring is not set up properly, you may be facing an electrical hazard that could cause a family member to become injured or start an electrical fire.

In general, you should follow standard safety procedures around the home to prevent problems, like shutting off the power from the service panel before attempting any electrical repairs and making sure not to overload electrical outlets. Furthermore, any unusual power surge or unusual behavior from your lights and appliances indicates a problem that requires immediate attention from an electrician. The following guide contains just a few indications that your home may be at risk for a major electrical issue.

The GFCI outlet helps protect you and your family members from electrical shocks. You may recognize this type of outlet—equipped with both a “test” and “reset” button—from the inside of many kitchens. These are located in the kitchen because, as we all know, water and electricity do not mix. Water interrupts the regular flow of electrical current so that it may flow through you instead. When the GFCI outlet senses that the electrical current is not flowing as it should, it immediately shuts off. If this type of outlet is missing from your bathroom or kitchen, you should call an electrician as soon as possible.

Another cause for immediate electrical repair is excessively hot dimmer switches. If you have dimmer switches in your home and one or more feels very hot to the touch, this is not normal. It most likely means that the dimmer switch is overloaded, exceeding the maximum allowable wattage.

If the circuit breaker seems to frequently trip for no reason, it could indicate an overloaded circuit or a short circuit. This can be caused by something plugged into an outlet or by the wiring itself.

Electricity is something we can’t manage without, but it’s crucial to take due care while using it. When it comes to electrical safety, you can never be too careful, and it’s important to ensure that the electrical systems, wiring, fixtures and fittings in your home have been installed by a licensed and insured electrician.

The same level of care has to be maintained when you are using any electrical appliance and you must ensure that you don’t overload the system while operating any of them. It’s very common for people to use extension cords in their homes and not many property owners feel these electrical accessories should be included in their safety checklist.

If an extension cord is used continuously under the wrong conditions, it can potentially lead to electrical shock or even an electrical fire. We have put together a few extension cord safety tips:

The other important thing you should keep in mind is that you should never join two or more extension cords together. This can be very dangerous because that can cause a drop in the voltage in the cords; this reduces the effectiveness of the circuit breakers and safety switches in your home; in turn, this can result in an overload.

If this occurs, the strength of the actual current that’s flowing in the cords can damage appliances which can create a fire hazard & potentially cause electrocution. While an extension cord can be quite helpful in effectively delivering power to points where you need it; never forget that using an extension cord is just a temporary measure and shouldn’t be used to provide permanent power.

Some would argue and say that they have been using extension cords for years without any trouble; however, that doesn’t really mean it won’t compromise the electrical safety in your home, when you plug it in the next time. If you find you are using too many extension cords around your home, it’s an indication that there aren’t enough power outlets in your home, to cover your needs.

It’s best to call in an electrician, discuss your electrical requirements and get them to assess whether the existing installations meet them. For more information, simply speak with the experts at Allround Electrical and take their advice on various aspects of CBUS installations. The number to call is – 1300 169 263. You can also write to us at this email address.

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Did you know that proper surge protection could help avoid short circuits and fire hazards?  In fact, using up-to-date surge protectors (suppressors) for your appliances, or even your entire house, could save you thousands of dollars in property damage. These are just a few reasons why surge protection should be of the utmost importance for you and your home this holiday season.

What are power surges?

First, before diving deeper into the different advantages of protecting your home against power surges, it’s important to understand what electrical surges are, and why they’re such a concern. An electrical surge, also known as a “voltage surge”, is an electrical disturbance that can be caused by a variety of spikes in voltage. More specifically, these surges are usually caused by lightning strikes, power outages, short circuits, or tripped circuit breakers. Problems occur when these short spikes in electrical power overload circuits in home appliances and other electronics.

Why is it so important to protect your home against power surges?

For starters, power surges can be very dangerous for you, your family, and your house. Surges are one of the most common causes of house fires, usually resulting from a combination of faulty wiring and irresponsible electronics hook-up by homeowners. This is especially apparent around the holidays.

According to the Cheltenham Fire Department, “when putting up holiday lighting, surge protectors should be used instead of relying on extension cords.” Now, more than ever, people should be cautious about electrical disturbances and the possible danger they pose to their electronics—and even more importantly—their lives.

Even if a power surge doesn’t turn out to be dangerous, it can still be very costly.  As a matter of fact, power surges can pack enough of a punch to short the power supply in a desktop computer, television set, or even a microwave. Basically, anything with internal electronic circuits can be affected by a voltage surge.  That’s why it’s imperative that everyone use surge protectors for each and every appliance in their home.  At the very minimum, one should consider whole-house surge protection, or even just safeguarding higher-priced appliances such as LCD Televisions, microwaves, and desktop computers.

The Benefits of Power Conditioning and how controlled voltage delivery could save you money

Aside from protecting your home from voltage surges, you should also consider the amount of energy that is wasted from many of your appliances. And remember that with wasted energy comes wasted money.

One money-saving solution may be installing power conditioners in your home. Simply put, a power conditioner is a device that delivers clean (steady) power to your devices. It is designed to distribute a stabilized and continuous voltage level which eliminates dips and line static—important for all of you who own surround sound systems in your home theater.

As a consumer, it’s important to be informed about devices and services that can save you money, improve the longevity of your investments (e.g., Flat-panel television, etc.), and even protect your home.

If you have any more questions about power surging, or if you decide that you would like to look into protecting your home against electrical surges, contact our helpful team at ElectricMan Inc. We are here 24-hours a day, 7 days a week to serve you.