Your landscaping is the first thing people see when they arrive at your house and the last thing they see when they leave. Lighting can make or break the way your house looks and feels. A dark, dreary house is going to look uninviting to some, but will look very inviting for those who will take advantage of the darkness. It is important you make your home inviting as well as safe with the installation of landscape and security lighting by an electrician. Pasadena homeowners can rely on The Electric Connection to help them transform their home’s yard into one that is beautiful and safe.

There are plenty of options when it comes to lighting up your yard and landscaping. You can choose to go with nice and bright or low and subtle. Mounted security lights are an excellent option and can easily be installed by your Pasadena electrician. Many of these lights are equipped with motion sensors. As soon as you step outside or pull your car into the driveway, the area will be flooded with light. This means you won’t have to worry about fumbling in the dark while you look for a switch.

Pathway lights and lights that shine on a particularly special point of interest in the yard are also excellent options. These add a layer of safety as well as make it look a little nicer. Solar lights are easily placed, but your electrician in Pasadena will tell you electric lights are a little more reliable. They also stay bright throughout the night while many of the solar lights will fade and become dim by the wee hours of the morning. Electric lights give you full control and will last for years. Give The Electric Connection a call today and get your outdoor lighting installed before spring arrives.

If you’re considering buying an electric car (“electric vehicle” or “EV”), you might have questions. Many of the answers given here apply to anywhere in the U.S. But when it comes to rebates and the electricity rates for charging EVs, the info applies to Los Angeles, where I install electric car chargers. I’ve also included a link so that if you live outside of L.A., you can check which rebates or other financial incentives are available in your area.

Do I need an electrician to install a charger for my new electric car? The most common electric car is still the Toyota Prius, which an electrician can’t help you with. You don’t plug it into an outlet to recharge. The battery is recharged by a mechanism that’s triggered when you put on the brakes. With a Prius, there isn’t a worry about running out of electricity. It’s a hybrid, meaning that until the brakes recharge its battery, the car burns gas in its internal combustion engine.

While at this time, you can’t plug a standard Prius into an electric outlet to re-charge the battery, Toyota has announced that its 2014 model will have this capability. The 2011 Chevy Volt (a hybrid) and Nissan Leaf (all-electric) are “plug-ins.”

Level 1 Electric Car Charger. Plug-in electric cars come equipped with a “Level 1 charger.” This is a special extension cord that you can plug into an electrical outlet which carries ordinary house current (110 volts). You may have a suitable electrical outlet right where you need it in your garage or carport. It can charge a Nissan Leaf, empty to full, in about 20 hours. For a Chevy Volt, it takes about 10 hours. Don’t worry, there’s also a faster alternative, a Level 2 charger.

Even if you’re all set up with an outlet in your garage for your Level 1 charger, if you’re not knowledgeable about wiring, have an electrician check things over. The electrician should make sure that the charging outlet in your garage is on a “dedicated circuit,” meaning it serves no other outlets or switches. The outlet should be a GFI (safety) outlet in working order. And the electrical panel should have enough capacity to deal with the added load of charging your car.

Level 2 Electric Car Charger. Most drivers will want the speed of a Level 2 charger. It’s housed in a container about 18 inches around and hangs on the garage wall, sticking out about a foot. It takes a Nissan Leaf from empty to full in about eight hours and a Chevy Volt in about four. This will allow you to charge your car overnight even if the battery starts from empty. Nissan and Chevy have both partnered with manufacturers and installers of Level 2 chargers. Your car dealer can arrange for purchase and installation of the charger, or you can do it on your own.

What does installation of a Level 2 charger involve? Let’s say you decide to go ahead with a Level 2 charger. The electrical contractor will select a location in your garage or carport where a charging cord won’t get in the way. He will consider the location and size of your electrical panel, existing circuits, and where and how your electricity is metered.

He will give you a bid for installing the charger and, if needed, upgrading your electrical panel for the additional load. An electrician who specializes in charger installations can also tell you about tax credits and rebates. Actual installation of the charger along with any needed upgrade of your electrical panel and/or electric meter will take a few hours to a day or so.

Do chargers require an electrical permit and inspection? If you already have a dedicated circuit for a GFI outlet (no other appliance is served by the circuit) in your garage, it can be used for Level 1 charging and no additional permit or inspection is required.

If you need to install a new circuit or new electric meter or upgrade your electrical panel for either a Level 1 or Level 2 charger, you’ll need a permit and an electrical inspection.

How much does installation of a Level 2 charger cost? Without any rebates, installation of a Level 2 charger averages around $2,000. The price for your installation will depend on the distance of your charger from your electrical panel, whether your panel needs an upgrade, and whether you will be installing a special electric meter. Rebates and tax credits can reduce this price if you install before December 31, 2011. We don’t know yet about financial incentives for 2012.

INCENTIVES FOR ELECTRIC CARS The information below on incentives for electric car buyers focuses on L.A. and California. Here’s a link where you can find out more detail about L.A. and also check out incentives for electric cars in other zip codes.

What financial incentives are available for purchase of electric cars? If you purchase an electric car in 2011, you may be able to reduce your federal tax bill by $2,500 to $7,500 with a tax credit. Converting your Prius or other non-plug-in hybrid to a plug-in can reduce your federal tax bill by 10% of the cost of the conversion. Purchase of an electric motorcycle or low-speed “around the neighborhood” electric cart can reduce your federal tax bill by up to $2,500.

Californians who buy an EV and act quickly enough can qualify for a rebate from the State of up to $5,000 on an electric car and up to $20,000 on a commercial vehicle. These rebates apply to many kinds of electric vehicles, including all-electric, hybrid, motorcycles, and low-speed “around the neighborhood” carts.

What rebates are available for installing an electric charger? A homeowner who installs a Level 2 electric charger can cut their 2011 federal tax bill by 30% of the cost of purchase and installation, with a cap of $1,000 (as a tax credit).

If you are customer of the L.A. Department of Water and Power (LADWP), you may qualify for a $2,000 rebate on installation of your electric charger. To qualify, you need to also install a separate electric meter for your new car. Ask your electrician to see if you will save money with this approach.

Are there any other incentives for electric car owners? Some states, like California, provide a sticker to qualifying electric car owners so that they can drive in freeway carpool lanes regardless of the number of occupants.

Does EV charging receive any special break in electric rates? In Los Angeles and many areas of the country, yes. In L.A., both Southern California Edison (SCE) and the Department of Water and Power (LADWP) offer special reduced rate plans for charging EVs at night, during off-peak hours.

Both power companies encourage people thinking of buying an EV or installing a charger to contact them. Call (800) DIAL-DWP or call SCE at (800) 4EV-INFO. SCE has extensive information on its website at www.sce.com. Both companies are particularly interested in customer plans regarding EVs because they need information for planning power demand.

Are electric car chargers safe? At this time, all the evidence points to extreme safety. At Level 1, the EV charging cord is plugged into a GFI outlet carrying ordinary house current (110 volts), very much like outlets in newer bathrooms and kitchens. GFIs are specially designed to protect people against shocks. Should something go wrong, like the outlet gets wet while charging your car, the GFI immediately shuts off power. Homeowners and businesses have many years of safe experience with GFIs.

Level 2 chargers carry more current, 240 volts. Manufacturers have designed Level 2 chargers for every eventuality and advertise that Level 2 chargers are 100% safe. Of course, nothing is 100% safe. But, so far there have been no reports of someone figuring out how to injure themselves with one.

Do all chargers serve all electric vehicles? Your new electric car will come with a Level 1 charger that is compatible with any ordinary electrical outlet.

The manufacturers of Level 2 chargers have worked out universal standards. Regardless of the make of your electric car, any Level 2 charger will be compatible with it.

Where can you charge an electric car in Los Angeles? Level 2 chargers are currently available for a fee in Los Angeles train stations, LAX, the Bob Hope Burbank airport, the L.A. Convention Center, and other public places. Click here for an on-line map of electric car chargers. You can type in your zip code to find publicly-accessible chargers near you.

Click for more information about charging EVs in L.A. For more about my company, The Electric Connection — all the stuff you wanted to know but were afraid to ask — click here. If you’re interested coupons for electrical work, for example $50 off installation of a Whole House Surge Protector in the L.A. area, click on our coupon page.

One of the most frequent questions we hear is, “What’s the most energy-efficient light bulb I can use?” At Kolb Electric, we’re here to help you choose the best type of lighting for your Maryland, DC or Virginia home, and we want you to be well-informed about the energy efficient options that are out there. If you’re wanting to save even more, here’s everything you need to know about energy efficient lighting.

The two main choices for energy-efficient lighting in your home are light emitting diode (LED) and compact fluorescent lights (CFL). Both are a good choice, and both have unique benefits and drawbacks. Making the decision between the two requires a proper understanding of these benefits and drawbacks.

These two lighting options are so much more efficient and beneficial to the environment that incandescent bulbs have been gradually phased out in the United States. By 2020, all general-purpose bulbs must be able to produce at least 45 lumens per watt, which is a similar efficiency as that of CFL bulbs. It is becoming increasingly difficult to purchase traditional general-purpose incandescent bulbs in light of this phase out, though specialty bulbs are still available.

LED bulbs create light using a semiconductor to generate light energy. LED bulbs use about 1/30th of the energy used in incandescent bulbs and 1/3rd the energy in CFLs. They also last a long time—as much as 35 times the lifespan of an incandescent bulb—so you don’t have to worry about replacement regularly. With the energy savings and longer lifespan, estimates indicate you can lower your carbon footprint by as much as 85 percent simply by switching from incandescent technology to LED technology.

With an LED bulb, you can light your room with bright light and minimal energy use. Also, these bulbs generate very little heat energy, which means they are safe to touch. They are also quite durable and do not break easily, which means they are the preferred option for hard-to-reach places where a delicate glass bulb is in danger of shattering.

If that makes LED lights sound perfect, you need to know the one main drawback. LED lights are one of the most expensive options for lighting your home. While they lower your energy bills and have the longest lifespan of the available options, if your upfront budget is low, then this option may not work for you.

CFL bulbs bend a traditional fluorescent tube into a light bulb-shaped configuration. These are more affordable than LED bulbs and significantly more efficient than incandescent bulbs, but they don’t quite last as long or save as much energy as LED bulbs.

With CFLs, you are able to lower your energy use by 60 percent as compared to incandescent bulbs that provide the same amount of light. They last about 10 times as long as incandescent bulbs, so you have less frequent need of replacement. While not as cheap as incandescent bulbs, CFLs are priced around $4 to $15 a piece. This is a more moderate price point than LEDs.

So why would you overlook the CLF in favor of LEDs? CFLs are more efficient than incandescent lighting, but they are not as efficient as LEDs. If you’re looking to have the most efficient option on the market, CLFs are not that option.

The answer to which lighting option you should choose depends largely on your goals. Is your goal to have the most efficient lighting available? Then you want LED bulbs. Are you adding a light bulb to a place that is hard to reach or not accessed regularly? The longevity and durability of LEDs makes them the best choice for this. Is your goal to go efficient while on a tight budget? Then CFLS will work best.

Regardless of the choice you make, both CLFs and LED lighting help you save money, lower your carbon footprint and do your part to make the world a better place with less environmentally damaging waste. If you’re curious about which lighting option will best meet your family’s needs or have further questions about the differences between LEDs and CFLS, Kolb Electric is here to help. Contact us today to have all of your questions answered!

If you live in the United States, you’re likely well-familiar with our typical wall-socket setup. Your plug has two flat pieces of metal roughly half of an inch wide, with one side sometimes being slightly wider than the other. Your wall socket has two slots that match this, with one side also being slightly larger than the other. However, sometimes there’s a variance: some plugs have a third prong below and between the normal two, and most electrical sockets also have a third hole to match this plug. What’s the difference between these two types of plugs and is one better than the other?

To put it simply, yes, one is better than the other. When it comes to electrical plugs, the old adage “less is more” does not apply—the three-prong plug is far better than a two-prong. To learn why, let’s discuss the difference between the two.

In order for electricity to flow, you must complete a circuit. A circuit essentially is a connection from your power source to the device, and then from the device back to the power source. The line that brings power from the power source to the device is called your “hot wire”, which is most often red and comes off the positive terminal (noted by the large “+” sign). The line that then returns from the device to the terminal, usually a black wire connected to a “-“ sign, is known as the “neutral wire.” A plug must have both of these lines in order to work.

However, the third prong in a three-prong plug is a “ground” plug, which dramatically improves safety. When an unexpected burst of electricity happens, such a short in the device or a surge from your power supply, the ground plug will take that abundance of additional electricity and move it away from the device and down into the ground where it is safe. This prevents your device from being overloaded which can cause overheating, sparking, and fires in addition to ruining it.

Three-prong plugs didn’t become the standard in homes in North America until the late 1960s. If you have a home that was constructed around this time or after, odds are your wall sockets are probably already of the three-prong variety. Two-prong plugs can work with three-prong sockets just fine, and you’ll rarely experience any issues.

However, if you have any old two-prong plugs, you’ll likely need your electrical system updated in order to upgrade to a three-prong setup. Properly installing ground wires can involve several hours of electrical work and even cutting into your walls in order to do so properly, so it’s a rather large undertaking. However, it’s by far the safest and most prudent option.

Another option that doesn’t involve tearing open your walls is to install a ground fault circuit interrupter outlet, otherwise known as a GFCI. These sockets are two-pronged, but feature a miniature circuit breaker that measures the resistance through a plug and mechanically shuts off when the risk of a shock is present. While this can help you avoid being shocked by a faulty device, there is still no ground wire present so your electronics are not protected from a power surge.