Electrical cords are the cause of a lot of accidents and injuries around the home. The Electrical Safety Foundation International (ESFI) estimates that about 4000 injuries and about 3300 homes have fire accidents as a result of misusing extension cords. There have been around 50 deaths and 270 people injured because of these incidents.
The most common cause of injuries is from tripping over these wires. This has resulted in fractures, contusions sprains, bruises, and lacerations. There are situations where the victims had to be hospitalized.
You do not want to be part of these statistics and the Electric Connection offers some tips on how to use extension cords properly.
- Use extension cords temporarily and not as permanent fixtures. If the cords are used and taken away, the chances of you or others tripping over them are reduced drastically.
- Do not overload an extension cord. The ratings of an extension cord indicate how much load it can carry. Knowing this will guide you on what kind of devices and how many devices you can connect to the cord.
- Use the cord for its indicated use alone. An outdoor extension cord should only be used for outdoor purposes and vice versa. Outdoor cords are usually thicker and built to withstand weather conditions. Using the appropriate cord will help protect you from harm and reduce potential dangers.
- Check each cord before you plug it in. You should inspect the cord for damages such as frayed wires or bent plugs. You should also check for anything that could lead to electrical shocks. If a plug is hot, do not plug it in.
- Run extension cords in open spaces. When you are passing a cord, avoid running it through walls or ceilings. This will help reduce the chances of the cords overheating and posing a fire hazard.
- Avoid placing the cords in places where the insulation might be damaged. There are situations where people run their cords between doors or windows or place them under home furniture. This is wrong as this might cause damage to the wiring and damage the insulation, leading to electrical hazards.
- Use cords in areas with the least amount of people. Passing a cord through a door or a walkway poses the threat of someone tripping over it as these are routes people pass through a lot. You should run your cords along paths with the least human traffic.
- High power devices are not to be connected to extension cords. Microwaves, heaters and the likes draw a lot of power and should be connected to outlets directly and not through cords. This will ensure your cords do not draw more than their rated power.
You should only buy extension cords suitably rated for the load you want to power. If you are connecting multiple devices to an extension cord, you should ensure that their total load doesn’t surpass the cord’s rating.
The Electric Connection can and will provide professional assistance for electrical situations around the home. You can contact us for additional details and questions.
The electrical system of a building is important to its function and efficiency. But with so much use to bear and the factors involved with getting a solid electrical system, electrical issues and questions often occur. Not every electrical issue or question comes at a financial cost. You can get free electrical advice that directly answers your immediate minor need.
The right question should be, why not hire a professional Los Angeles electrician? L.A is a beautiful city with lots of action, celebrities, and so on to take up your time and energy. Why include DIY electrical projects to the mix?
It’s just annoying to live in a home that does not have enough power. The voltage will drop frequently, and this can be damaging to your electronics. Situations like this indicate that you need to upgrade your electrical panel. Other reasons why you might need to upgrade your panel include:
Electrical problems are sometimes difficult to avoid in a home and they can be caused by a lot of factors. For example, some electrical components may develop a certain fault, some parts may get old, or be installed incorrectly in the first place. Home accidents can also cause electrical problems. It goes on and on.
In the past, many homes could get away with using at most a 60 – 100 Amp service. But as technology evolves every day and homeowners are exposed to more and more appliances, 100 Amps can no longer cut it for most homes. 
When one or more outlets in the home suddenly stop working it’s easy to assume the worst. Before you panic, it’s good to know that there are some things you can try to solve the problem. However, when these don’t work, be sure to call in the pros. 
Flickering lights are almost impossible to ignore. They can be very annoying and dangerous if not solved. Flickering lights can be fun and raise no cause for alarm if the lights in question are decorative lights. 
When a part of your home or fixture suddenly goes dark, it is usually because of an individual circuit breaker tripping. The best way to find out if this is the case is to check your main electrical panel. The main electrical panel is located in the basement or utility room. A tripped breaker is always represented by a breaker switch facing a different direction from all others. For example, others may seem ON and just this one switch seems OFF or in-between. 
Electrical hums and buzzes are quite common in the home. The annoying thing about these sounds is that they can be hard to locate and most times they indicate more serious electrical problems.