Electricians are often looked upon as professionals that have to be called in only when something isn’t working. However, the fact is that a great, reliable and experienced electrician would also be able to provide you advice on the type of fittings and fixtures or electrical installations that would look good and add functionality to your home.

Regardless of how beautifully designed your home is, if it doesn’t have the right type of lighting that can only make the rest of the features and elements look dull and drab. But you can add accent lighting to various areas of your home to add to its aesthetics and functionality. It’s important to plan the lighting well as it helps create enjoyable and beautiful spaces on your property.

Some light fixtures are used only in areas where specific tasks are going to be carried out such as kitchens, study and home office spaces etc. But in addition to this task lighting, your home also needs lighting features that help accentuate the look of various installations in your home; this is referred to as accent lighting. This lighting includes fixtures such as subtle spotlights, or miniature pot lights.

Accent lights aren’t meant to throw bright light and fill the entire room with light; they are used instead to highlight features such as artwork, paintings, pieces of décor or some interesting architectural feature in your home etc.

These lights are soft and add a very comfortable and elegant look to the space. In fact you can use accent lighting to enhance the appearance of the outdoor areas of your property as well. They can be switched on to create a party mood or lend a more casual look to the common living spaces or alfresco areas of your home.

There are a number of benefits to getting accent lighting installed, such as:

While you can use these lights by themselves to maintain a very casual look in a room, they can also be used in tandem with other lighting installations such as track lighting, recessed lighting, under counter lights, floor level lights as well as spot lights etc.

Since accent lights aren’t meant to be very bright, they use less energy; in fact, you can add to their efficiency by using LED bulbs in them – this can make them up to 80% more energy-efficient that standard bulbs.

There are always some areas in a home that don’t get sufficient natural light; you can install accent lights in these areas, and these fixtures look great in basement entertainment rooms as well. You can choose outdoor-grade accent lighting fixtures to add to the beauty of your patio, deck or outdoor kitchen as well. The light that these installations throw lends a very luxurious and relaxing look to these spaces.

There has been a sea change in electrical safety systems for residential and commercial properties and these systems are significantly safer than the ones that existed even up until 5 years ago. Even if you have new installations on your property, you need to make some effort to prevent electrical accidents.

This means you have to ensure that the electrical infrastructure in your home is of a high-grade and that it’s well-maintained. It’s also important to make smart choices with reference to using various heat-producing appliances and extension cords. Here are some tips that will help make your home a safer space:

Electrical safety is about ensuring that every fixture, fitting and installation is updated and in a good condition. The power points are one of the most important electrical components on your property. Since these are the ones you come in contact with very regularly, they do become worn and damaged sooner than the other parts of the system.

Since they are the points of contact for various electrical appliances in your home, there is also the possibility of sparking. This is how they become a very common source of residential electrical fires. If you have noticed consistent sparking from these points or if any of the wires appear to be damaged or loose, it’s important that you call in a licensed and reliable electrician to get these fixed.

It’s a good idea to get a full electrical audit of your property. The electricians will quickly identify whether there is any damaged, deteriorated or faulty electrical system that has the potential to cause a fire. If you find the circuit breakers on your property tripping too often, it could mean that circuit is unable to bear the load of the appliances that are operating on it. If this is left unattended, it too could pose a fire risk.

If you find that you are using too many heavy duty appliances like gas stoves, dryers, microwaves and dishwashers on the same circuit, it’s important to spread them across different circuits. Your electrician will be able to handle this job expertly and will provide advice on what the best option would be.

While power strips and extension cords may seem like a convenient solution, they should never be used a permanent option. Long-term use might be required in areas like entertainment rooms or for computer systems; however these should be checked with regularity and replaced at the first indication of a defect/damage. It’s also very important that you don’t overload the extension cords and power strips.

These appliances can also become the cause of an electrical fire. These can’t be strictly categorized as electrical fires; however, if there is any kind of combustible material in the vicinity of these appliances, the heat that emanates from the latter can ignite the materials and cause a fire.

As a thumb rule, it’s important to keep combustible materials away from all heat and electrical sources. For instance, if you use space heaters it’s important to follow the safety instructions mentioned by the manufacturer. Newer model space heaters have more reliable fire prevention features and its best to consider buying a new one.

We at Allround Electricals are a reliable company with years of experience behind us. Our experts can come and conduct audits and provide preventive electrical maintenance services for your commercial and residential property. For more information, contact our friendly team at this number – 1300 169 263. Alternatively, you can also write to us at this email address.

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As you walk around your house trying to find ways to save a few dollars here and there on your electric bill, you may be overlooking the obvious. Your current light bulbs. You have probably seen the more expensive light bulbs in the spiral shape in the stores but may have passed over them in favor of the less expensive bulbs. Your electrician in Glendale is here to tell you, you may be costing yourself more money by choosing those cheaper bulbs.

The experienced professionals at The Electric Connection can answer any questions you have about energy savings. One of the easiest things you can do is to start changing out your current halogen bulbs for the more energy efficient Compact Florescent Bulbs or what are simply referred to as CFLs. A CFL uses 75 percent less energy than the old standard bulbs.

Your light usage in your home probably accounts for maybe $20 on an average $100 monthly electric bill. So, if you replace each of your current energy hogging bulbs with CFLs, you could potentially safe about $15 on your electric bill. While that is not a massive amount of savings, it will certainly add up. Don’t be fooled by the word florescent. There is no eerie yellow or green glow. They are available in a variety of colors depending on your preference. If you have more questions, you can ask your electrician. Glendale residents may also want to consider replacing outdated lighting fixtures with more modern energy efficient fixtures.

This is a job for a certified electrician. While there, the electrician can install dimmer switches on lights that do not need to be at full power all of the time. These dimmers give you the freedom to have just a little light or a lot, depending on what your needs are. Call The Electric Connection today to learn more about dimmer switches and how they can help you.