Electrical Dos and Don’ts

When you deal with the electric in your home, there should always be one thing on your mind: safety. When it comes to electrical safety, there are a handful of dos and don’ts that you need to be aware of within your home. Along with these precautions, if any issue looks out of the ordinary – such as sparking wires or shorted-out electrical outlets– you need to get a licensed electrician right away.

Dos

Let’s start out with the dos. These are some proactive tips to ensure the safety of your home when it comes to the electric.

• Take a look at your electric panel. Always start by feeling the panel – it should never be hot to the touch. If it is hot, contact an electrician right away. This could be an electrical hazard that can lead to a fire. Also, be sure to understand how your breakers are laid out. If your breakers are tripping regularly, you may have too many appliances on one circuit. Again, an electrician can help you safely reconfigure your panel.
• Check your outlets. Very similarly to your electric panel, warm outlets are a bad sign. Be sure to feel your outlets, and again, if you feel a warm outlet, contact an electrician.
• Make sure you have GFCIs in the proper locations. Ground Fault Circuit Interrupters (GFCI) should be installed in any room that is equipped with running water. GFCI’s will shut off the electrical current when a shock hazard is detected. Check your bathrooms, kitchen sink areas and other water-related areas of your home to ensure that you have a GFCI installed. This is especially important for homeowners of older homes that may not be up to code with today’s required coding.

Don’ts

There tends to be a lot of don’ts when it comes to electrical safety. In fact, these are just as important as the above listed proactive items.

• Never overload an outlet. This is one of the top causes to electrical fires. Doing this can cause your breakers to trip, and it can even cause damage to your appliances.
• Do not use extension cords for permanent use. Extension cords can become safety hazards over time. Talk to an electrician about adding an outlet if you need one in a specific area of your home.
• Do not exceed the wattage of your light bulbs. This is commonly overlooked as “no big deal,” however; too many watts can cause sparking or trip your breakers.
• Do not cover cords with rugs. Homeowners commonly try to hide cords in this way. This is a major fire hazard. Cords can overheat at any moment and instantly start fires.
• Do not ignore flickering lights. Do not blame flickering lights on a ghost. This can be the signs of a dangerous electrical issue within your home. Contact an electrician to check your circuit connections for potential issues.

At the end of the day, safety is the top concern with the electric in your home. For help with your electrical needs, quickly and easily connect with a licensed electrician in your area using the Repairman App. For the latest news and updates, don’t forget to subscribe to our newsletter. And for more articles on various home improvement projects and safety-related information, check out the rest of our blog.

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