The electrical system in your home is much like your body’s organs. Your heart and brain power your body, but you can’t see them. You can’t see the inner workings of your electrical system, but it powers your home.
Despite being out of sight, there are key steps and things to know to ensure electrical safety in your home. Follow these five electrical safety tips to protect yourself, your family, and your beloved abode.
Safety First: Get an annual electrical inspection
It’s easy to take your electrical system for granted, but when it short-circuits or causes a fire you’d regret not taking the necessary regular maintenance. Asking an electrician to come to your home for yearly inspections will help increase the function and safety of your electrical system.
What a Trip: Understand what trips the breakers
Most homes have two types of electrical outlets, GFCI outlets, and AFCI outlets. GFCI outlets trip when they sense that electricity is not flowing the correct way, such as through your finger.
These outlets and your circuit breaker act as a safety net to stop fires, electrocution and protect your appliances from overload. To ensure your breakers are working correctly, you should understand what trips the breaker.
If your circuit is overloaded, it will trip. This means you’re asking too much of your system it will stop working. This can be too many appliances plugged in or all the lights are on. The circuit will trip to stop from overloading.
A breaker can also trip when there’s a short circuit. A short circuit occurs when a hot wire touches a neutral wire, meaning a large amount of electricity goes through the circuit and it overheats.
A trip can also occur when a ground fault surge happens. This is when a hot wire touches a ground wire made of copper. When this happens, more electricity is sent through the breaker than it can handle, causing a trip.
Don’t Get Burned: Have fire extinguishing equipment ready in your home
Being prepared to stop an electrical fire can save you and your family’s lives, as well as preserve your home. Prepare for the worst by purchasing fire extinguishing equipment and placing these emergency items throughout your home.
The causes and types of fires are classified in different ways. Electrical fires are Class C, so check that any extinguishers or sprays you buy are designated as Class C. Having an extinguisher that also puts out Class A fires, which includes combustible items, can help save your items around the source of the electrical fire. Many extinguishers will put out multiple different classes of fire.
Feel The Warmth: Warm outlets are a sign the electrical load is too high
With caution, it’s a good idea to touch the outlets around your house. You’ll want to see if they are emitting heat.
When outlets are warm, it’s signaling that too much electricity is being used in that socket. This can mean that too many devices are plugged in or the wiring is old and can not handle the load you’re asking of it.
If you find an outlet that is too hot to touch, don’t start with unplugging everything. First, go to the circuit breaker and turn off the section that corresponds to that outlet. Then, unplug everything. While letting it cool, evaluate if you had too much plugged in or something was faulty. Then, call a trusted electrician to see if there is anything wrong with the wiring in that outlet.
Stay Grounded
GFCI outlets, which stands for ground fault circuit interrupters, help prevent fires and electrocution by stopping the flow of electricity when it is interrupted. GFCI outlets have three holes, two are parallel and the third is centered below it.
You should check the outlets in your house for three holes and older appliances for 3-pronged plugs. If 2-pronged plugs are found, they are not grounded and are a fire risk. You can call the professionals at Mr. Electric to help you replace any old 2-prong outlets.
These five tips will help you and your family stay safe and ensure the electricity in your home is working safely and efficiently. If you are concerned about your electrical system, the best thing you can do is request a professional electrician from Mr. Electric to make a visit to your home to do an inspection.
