Does Your Home Electrical Wiring Need Inspection?
It’s estimated that more than 50 million homes and buildings have outdated or inadequate electrical wiring. Access Energy encourages you to make sure your home or business is safe from electrical hazards.
According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), faulty home electrical wiring is responsible for 40,000 fires a year and results in the loss of 350 lives, thousands of injuries from electrical shocks and burns and more than $2 billion in personal property damage.
How do you know if your electrical systems need to be inspected?”
• Has your home had a major renovation or any large new appliances added?
• Are you the new owner of a previously owned home?
• Do lights flicker or dim often?
• Do circuit breakers trip or blow fuses often?
• Are outlets and light switch faceplates discolored from heat or are they hot to the touch?
• Is there crackling, sizzling or buzzing from your outlets?
• Do you have extension cords and multiple power strips permanently in use around the house?
If you answered “yes” to any of the above questions, you should have an inspection. An electrical inspection is quite extensive, requiring professional knowledge and skill, so call a qualified electrician or electrical inspector to conduct the inspection.
Electrical hazards have a tendency to remain hidden until it’s too late to avoid disaster. There are many things you can inspect on your own to ensure electrical safety in your home.
• Check electrical outlets for loose fitting plugs. Replace missing or broken wall plates. If you have young children, make sure safety covers are used on unused outlets. Make sure outlets are not overloaded.
• Check the cords of appliances as well as the plugs and connectors. Make sure they are not frayed, cracked or damaged, placed under rugs or carpets, or located in high traffic areas. Do not nail or staple cords to other objects.
• Extension cords should be used on a temporary basis only. Have additional outlets installed instead of relying on extension cords. Make sure extension cords have safety closures to protect young children. Never use an indoor extension cord for outdoor use.
• Check circuit breakers to make sure that the fuses are properly rated for the circuit they are protecting. If you do not know the correct rating, have a qualified electrician identify and label the correct size to be used. Replace fuses with the same size as the one that you are removing.
• Check light bulbs to make sure the wattage matches fixture requirements. Bulbs should be screwed in securely to prevent overheating.
• If an appliance repeatedly blows a fuse, trips a circuit breaker or gives you an electrical shock, immediately unplug, repair or replace it.
• Check for or install ground fault circuit interrupters (GFCIs). A GFCI is an inexpensive electrical device that shuts off power instantly if there is problem and should be installed in all ‘wet’ areas of the home.