All About Electrical Panel Safety
Many older homes were built with a fuse box, because they met the electrical needs at that time.
Unfortunately, even if you have an electrical panel, it might be outdated. In this day and age, electrical needs are higher than ever with so many devices and appliances in households.
A fuse box or overloaded electrical panel could result in all kinds of things. It could damage your appliances, limit efficiency, or even cause an electrical fire. In fact, the National Fire Protection Association found that electricity was in the top 5 causes for house fires.
To make matters worse, electrical issues account for around 31,000 fires and 200 deaths every year, according to a report by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.
Between those statistics, there are a lot of reasons to get an electrical panel upgrade for safety.
However, the electrical fire hazard in your home isn’t just about your electrical panel installation. While having too many plugs in an outlet can cause problems, a big cause is also the wiring.
Over time, the insulation on your wiring can wear out and endanger your house. The wiring could also be done wrong in the first place, with different sizes needed to handle different amps.
Many of these electrical fires are the result of people trying to do things themselves. Unfortunately, they lack the knowledge and training that an electrician has. That’s why we always recommend a professional for any of your electrical needs.
Turner On Services has a team of licensed experts to do things right the first time! We’ll do things quickly to save you time and money, but we also care about your safety
Routine Maintenance Check
There are things you can do to make sure you’re taking care of your home. If you have to unplug something, don’t pull the actual wires. This can cause them to fray underneath the insulation. If you notice any frayed or broken wires in cables or plugs, replace them. Also, be mindful of how many devices you’re plugging into a single outlet.
It’s common for people to use a power strip if there aren’t enough outlets in a specific area. While this can help with surge protection, you can easily overload a circuit. How you organize your cables can also be a hazard.
We suggest using actual cord wraps to keep things tidy. Otherwise, you can end up with twisted wires and cables running everywhere. Not only is that a wiring danger, but it can also cause you to trip all over the place. We understand that you want your home to look neat for visitors. A lot of people use rugs, mats, and other things to cover cords.
What you might not know is that wires can get too hot, especially underneath a rug, so you could cause a fire that way. All of these are things we’ll look at during a professional inspection. We recommend scheduling a routine inspection every now and then to make sure the electrical situation in your home is safe. If you need more circuits, we can also take care of your electrical panel upgrade.
Safety First
Turner On Services takes extreme safety measures, because we know the dangers of electricity. We always recommend a professional for electrical repairs or installations, because wiring and lack of training are causes for house fires, serious or fatal shocks, and other hazards.
If you have kids in your home, you should have tamper-proof outlets. These are covers that go over the plugs, because it’s easy for children to get their tiny fingers in the holes. It’s also important to teach them about electrical objects and make it clear that they’re not to play with.
It also goes back to knowing how to unplug things correctly, because that can damage cords or cause a spark. Of course, it helps when you practice safety with your outlets, too. We’ve seen all kinds of bad electrical ideas being used all over.
Extension cords can be useful but, if you have the option, move closer to an outlet or use a power strip. Power strips can be dangerous if too much is plugged in, but they’re better equipped to handle the amps safely than an extension cord.
Overloaded Outlets
Every outlet is linked to a circuit, which all connects to your electrical panel. This is responsible for getting the flow of power from outside your home to the appliances. Unfortunately, too many plugs on the same circuit can overload the circuit and cause problems.
The minor damages could be to your appliances, with less efficiency and slower charging. It could be a lot worse, though, because an overloaded circuit can spark and catch fire or cause an arc flash up to 1,000 degrees.
Obviously, none of these are ideal. Damaged appliances would need to be replaced, so it can all get expensive. If you need more power or circuits, we suggest an electrical panel upgrade with more circuits.
Newer panels are also designed for modern households, which tend to use more electricity. Water and electricity don’t mix. You’ve surely seen or heard that many times, but you’d be surprised how many problems occur because someone doesn’t follow that rule. If there’s a leak, definitely unplug anything nearby or turn off the outlet circuit until it’s fixed. You might not know that some remodels and older homes don’t have waterproof features.
While some areas of your home won’t matter, it’s good to have waterproof outlet covers and light fixtures. Otherwise, the steam from your shower could affect the appliances over time. These are referred to as ground-fault circuit interrupter outlets, or GFCI for short.
Our inspection will make sure that your bathroom and kitchen has them installed, because they’re part of the building safety codes. Like a surge protector, they reduce the chance of an electrical shock. It might go without saying, but you should also never stick anything into an outlet besides a plug. Too many accidental shocks happen from someone putting a screwdriver or something conductive into an outlet, so just be safe and call Turner On Electric for your electrical needs.
At-Risk Appliances
Another thing we’ll check is that your appliances meet safety codes. If they’re certified with Underwriters Laboratories or Edison Testing Laboratories, or UL and ETL respectively, they meet safety standards by OSHA, which is the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
If you turn on the light and get zapped or unplug something and notice a shock, it could be a faulty circuit, bad wiring, or something else. Even if it’s just for peace of mind, give us a call. If your home still has a fuse box, you’ll need an electrical panel installation.
Fuse boxes were in most older homes, because people only needed 1,000 amps of power. Most modern homes use closer to 2,000 amps, if not more. A fuse box could easily be overloaded and cause issues within your home.
To conserve electricity and prevent electrical problems, you should unplug anything you’re not using. As long as something is plugged in, it usually uses passive electricity.
By unplugging appliances, you can lower your monthly electric bill. We’ve also noticed that people use the wrong light bulbs for things. Wattage is important to pay attention to, because it can cause your lighting to be ineffective or become dangerous. LED lights are newer and tend to be more energy-efficient, which could save even more.
Any appliance that uses heat, like a microwave or toaster, should be in a separate outlet. The instructions on these appliances are important to follow, like giving them clearance. They give off heat when in use, so anything nearby could melt or combust.
If you have any appliances or lights that need to be repaired or replaced, Turner On Services can help! We’ve got a team of electricians that have experience with almost any situation. We can also give you an electrical panel upgrade to have a more efficient home!
Electrical Panel Installation and Upgrading Your electrical panel is one of the most important appliances in your house. It controls how much electricity flows through your home and to each device or appliance. However, there are things to watch for that might mean you need an electrical panel upgrade: Your breaker keeps tripping. It’s okay if you have to flip a breaker once in a while, but if it’s happening too often, your electrical panel could be struggling.
Electrical panels are meant to be around for a while. That’s why we recommend an electrical panel upgrade to increase your home’s value. Still, if your panel is 25 years old or more, it might need to be replaced.
We said it before, but a fuse box needs to be swapped out with an electrical panel. Your lights flicker or cut out randomly. Your electrical panel feels warm to the touch. If you need more outlets for all of the appliances in your home, you probably need to upgrade your electrical panel at the same time. Of course, if you notice any outlets being singed or burnt, that could also be a wiring issue.
Either way, Turner On Services is here to help. Our electricians are trained to handle whatever electrical needs you might have. That’s why we offer such a range of services, so take advantage of our knowledge and experience.
Schedule your routine inspection, get an electrical panel installation, or let us upgrade the panel you have! Working with a professional means proper wiring and the best product recommendations. You can save with an electrical panel upgrade and avoid damaged appliances. It can also be safer for you and your home, so contact Turner On Services today!
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