With the winter months closing in, there are some things you need to know before you pull out that portable electric heater. Sure your feet may get cold under your desk or your bathroom is a little cooler than you would like in the morning, but before you plug in that space heater you need to get informed. These are some tips from your Santa Monica electrician when using any space heaters this winter.

Your space heater should be placed as close to the center of the room as possible to ensure nothing comes in contact with the heater. You don’t want furniture, drapes, paper products or anything else touching the heater and creating a fire hazard.

Ventilation is crucial to any electrical appliance. It needs room to breathe so to speak. Heaters should never be placed up against a wall or any other surface. Anything electrical needs proper ventilation. This can be taken care of by an electrician. Santa Monica homeowners who are not sure what is needed should definitely contact a professional.

The last consideration when pulling out the space heaters this winter is the cord condition. Before you plug anything in, check the cord to make sure it is not frayed or damaged in any way. This can be a major fire hazard if there are any loose or exposed wires or areas where the insulation around the cord is thin. The heater should be plugged directly into an outlet and never an extension cord. The cord should also run along a wall or somewhere out of the way of foot traffic to avoid it becoming damaged.

These tips can be applied to any electrical appliance. If you have any more concerns or questions about a space heater, give The Electric Connection a call today. We are here to answer any questions you may have.

Rewiring an old house can seem like a big challenge. Older homes often need comprehensive rewiring especially when their existing wiring no longer meets building codes. Yet, no matter if a home is 50 years old or 150, it’s important to work closely with a licensed electrician throughout this process. A small mistake or a forgotten area of the home could lead to costly mistakes later.

Older homes can be full of electrical hazards. Many times, the need to rewire comes from two areas. First, you need to be sure the home is safe and electrical systems are working as they should. Second, you need to upgrade the home’s existing electrical system to meet modern needs and electrical capacity requirements. That’s not always easy to do.

To upgrade old house wiring, there are several key considerations. This is where you need to start with the help of a licensed electrician. Here’s the process:

The little community of Victoria Park in central Florida is beating out Los Angeles when it comes to saving electricity on street lighting. Last November, I wrote a blog post about the street lighting program here in Los Angeles, which is currently yielding higher-than-expected energy savings — 60% compared to the expected 40%. Well, that’s something to crow about regardless of what they’re doing in Victoria Park.

The Nitty-Gritty in L.A.

Electricians are using LEDs to replace the conventional incandescent bulbs in 140,000 Los Angeles street lights. Maintenance costs for LEDs, though not as significant as electric bills, also take a smaller bite. Nothing to be sneezed at! LEDs are good for the City budget, good for climate change, and good for energy independence.

An LED (Light Emitting Diode) is a light created by the kind of tiny parts that are in a computer. LEDs are used, for example, in many kids’ light sabers. They’re brighter and use a lot less electricity than the incandescents that you and I screwed into sockets when we grew up. As for what Victoria Park is up to….

Electricians Retrofit Gas Lights in Victoria Park, Florida

Victoria Park is now upping the ante. Electricians are retrofitting its gas-burning street lights with special LEDs that will save the community 92% on its combined energy and maintenance bills.

Victoria Park is a planned community in central Florida. Residents enjoy the charm of real gas-lit street lights, but the expense is a concern. As the community builds out, the annual costs for gas and maintenance were being projected to top $1,000,000 a year, just for street lighting.

When residents formed a committee to look into alternatives, the committee hit upon low-voltage LEDs. While typical house current runs at 110 volts, low-voltage current can run at around 24 volts, reducing power needs.

Victoria Park is now retrofitting their existing street lights with low-voltage LEDs. The retrofits, an innovation by Solas Ray™ Lighting in Anderson Indiana, look, for all the world, like real gas lights. They mimic the look of a candle flame. The lights create charm and a warm glow, but also five times more light than each pole would create with gas. Not to mention the 92% energy and maintenance savings. In fact, the Mayor of the City of DeLand, where Victoria Park is located, awarded Solas Ray a proclamation of appreciation for saving Victoria Park residents nearly half a million dollars in 2010.

Fortunately for all of us, in the energy efficiency race, we all win as cities out-do each other to help out their budgets and help the environment.

Want to save energy in your home or business?

One of the specialties of my electrical contracting company, The Electric Connection, is energy-efficient lighting. Call us to discuss your lighting needs (800) 990-9490.

Kim Hopkins

CEO, The Electric Connection.

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We talk often about how electricity can be a double-edged sword that can help and but also harm. While making sure your house is wired correctly it is also important that you have put safeguards in place to protect yourself and your valuables from accidents. Surge protectors do just that, and they can be applied to an entire house as well for extra protection. Let’s get into more detail about how surge protection applies to you.

A surge happens when there is an excessive flow of electricity through a circuit or electrical connection. Devices will take in electricity they need to function properly, but in certain cases such as electrical storms or problems in your home wiring, too much electricity will be pumped through the electrical system. Much like taking too much water can be harmful to us, the electrical device will “drown” in the excess electricity and become damaged. This is why we use power bars on many of our larger electronics like computers and TV’s.

Surge protectors will help keep your electronics safe as well as yourself. If there is excess electrical flow, the electricity could jump to a nearby person and seriously injure them. Being smart with your protection and guarding your valuables can prevent you from needing to purchase a new TV or computer after a night of lightning. While we do use surge protectors around our home, it is important to have layers of protection. Similar to a car’s metal design and airbag system, there are layers to protect the person or item behind them.

Entire home surge protectors can be applied to the home’s breaker panel to protect specific circuits from surges. For example if you have an entertainment system on one circuit that requires a lot of electricity to run, it would be a good idea to connect a surge protector on this circuit in the breaker panel. This would add a first layer of protection to the electronic devices, and if a surge does trickle through the first line of defense, the power bar surge protector will protect from the second.

While the home electrical system is designed to protect you and your valuables, accidents happen when you least expect it. Protecting yourself against these situations is important. Contact your local Expert Electrician to find out more about how you can protect your family and your belongings with home surge protectors.