Electricity plays a part in our daily lives, often in ways we don’t even consider. Electrical currents provide us with lighting and power for our appliances. Electricity also runs through our bodies. Although vital for life, electricity in large amounts is dangerous. You’ve probably experienced small electric shocks before, possibly from static electricity when touching a doorknob in winter, or maybe because of a sudden surge in an outlet. That’s uncomfortable enough—larger amounts can cause serious risks to you and major damage to your home and your appliances.
We’ll briefly explain in this post what troubles you can encounter with electricity in your home. If you need repairs to make your home safer from electrical damages—to you or your property—get the Santa Rosa, CA electrical repair experts from Mister Sparky on the job.
Along with poor maintenance of fireplaces, electrical wiring problems are one of the main causes of fires in homes. Our ancestors probably discovered the use of fire because of lightning strikes, but you don’t want to re-discover fire when an electrical malfunction causes sparking or when wiring catches fire. Aging wires or improper line voltage that doesn’t match your appliances can easily cause fires along the wiring. Keeping your electrical system healthy, without broken wires or incorrect voltage, is one of the best ways to prevent household fires.
Older homes often have wiring that cannot handle modern equipment, and this wiring is prone to breaks that can lead to power outages and fire hazards. Often the best solution is to have whole-home rewiring done for older houses—and with the proper professionals handling the job, it doesn’t need to be as stressful as it sounds.
Power surges are one of the main electrical dangers. Lightning storm are a frequent cause of these sudden increases in voltage, as are falling power lines in storms, but much less dramatic events can causes surges as well, such as sudden power demands from a malfunctioning appliance. Power surges will not only damage appliances (computers are at particular risk) but can cause sparking along power cables and around outlets. Local surge protectors can defend against some of these issues, but the best way to protect your home from electrical surges is with a whole-house surge protector.
Although electrical problems sound scary, they’re also easy to prevent. If you take good care of the electrical system in your home, the only electric shocks you’ll need worry about are the annoying ones from doorknobs on cold days. And the only time you’ll need to worry about surges is during a thunderstorm—in which case you can just unplug important appliances until the storm is over.
Make sure you get any necessary electrical repairs taken care of as soon as possible. For electrical repair service in Santa Rosa, as well as whole-home rewiring and other safety services, contact Mister Sparky. We guarantee on time arrival, or the work is free!