Category: Outlets / Switches

Electrician Santa Monica – Help With Finding Out How Your Home Measures Up

Posted on | by K Hopkins

Over time, a home that was once top-of-the-line can find itself behind the times. While this might only be a mild concern in terms of convenience, the state of your electrical circuits can potentially be a source of trouble if they are found to be below present day recognized standards. However, an electrician in Santa Monica can certainly evaluate the state of your home’s electrical components and recommend a course of action. Generally speaking, homes that are more than 40 or 50 years are more likely to need an electrical safety evaluation.

Outlet Problems

Depending on the age of your home, you may need to have some or all of your electrical outlets replaced. Many older homes do not have updated three-prong outlets, and instead might have the older style two prong outlets. Today’s appliances require a third prong for grounding. Besides this, over time wiring can become damaged, and the demands placed on your home’s older electrical system can simply be too much for an older system to bear.

Finding Out How Your Home Measures Up

If you need an electrician in Santa Monica to help you determine the electrical safety of your home, a strong list of references and great internet reviews are a good jumping off point for locating an electrician to help you solve any of the most common problems that older homes face.

The Electric Connection is a dependable electrical contracting company that can send a knowledgeable Santa Monica Electrician to your home or business. We will be happy to help you compare your home to today’s electrical standards, examine your home thoroughly, and evaluate the ability of your electrical system to perform under typical conditions as well as any unusually high demand situations.

Visit TheElectricConnection.com for more information and to speak with someone about your home’s electrical system. If you are unsure about exactly what types of upgrades or repairs you might need, we can easily help you out.

Troubleshooting Electrical Outlets

Posted on | by K Hopkins

Here’s a familiar household scenario. You put a can of catfood into the electric can opener hoping to see the can spin around and make whirring noises, but instead nothing happens. No spinning, no noise. What to do?

Is the can opener broken or is it just not getting electricity? Finding this out is the first step of troubleshooting the problem.

Step 1: Plug the can opener into a socket that is delivering power to an appliance or lamp that works. Let’s say the can now spins and whirs. You know the can opener is fine. After you’ve fed Kitty, you can turn to the electrical issue to see if it’s something that you can handle or if you need to call an electrician.

Step 2: Look at the kitchen outlet that you originally plugged into. Does it have two little buttons on it that say “Test” and “Re-set”? If so, it’s a safety outlet (GFI) for kitchens and other places where water might be nearby. Push the re-set button and see if the can opener works now. If so, the problem may be solved.

However, if you frequently have to push re-set to get this outlet to work, there’s an electrical problem that an electrician should handle. If re-set doesn’t fix it, go on to Step 3.

Step 3: Is the outlet controlled by a wall switch? If so, flip the wall switch. Does the can opener work now? If not, go on to Step 4.

Step 4: Has the circuit breaker that controls the outlet flipped off? As a first step, turn off any computers and other electronic devices that might lose data if they lose power suddenly. Next, look in the circuit breaker box for any flipped switches. Even if you don’t see one, it’s possible that one has flipped off internally without moving to the off position. Firmly flip off each circuit breaker in turn and flip it on again. Now, plug the can opener into the kitchen outlet and see if it works. If the can opener works, you’re done.

But as a note, if a particular circuit breaker repeatedly flips off, your electrical system may need to be enlarged to meet your power needs or there may be an intermittent short circuit. An electrician can tell you which it is. A short circuit is a fire hazard and should be addressed as soon as possible.

Step 5: If after these steps, the kitchen outlet still doesn’t work, it’s time to call an electrician.

If you follow these steps whenever an electric outlet or wall switch is giving you trouble, you can save on unnecessary electrical service calls.  But if it turns out that you need an electrician and you’re in L.A., give us a call at (818) 446-0888.  We’ll be happy to discuss any electrical issues with you.

Kim Hopkins

CEO, The Electric Connection

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Is Your Electrical System Grounded?

Posted on | by K Hopkins

Back before the days when parents “baby-proofed” their homes, my wife’s little sister got quite a shock. Little sister was the mischievous type and stuck her finger into an electrical outlet. It’s not actually a very easy thing to do, but at three-years-old, her fingers were small. Fortunately, no lasting damage was done. But my wife will never forget her little sister’s blackened finger and the stern warnings by her parents that those mysterious little holes in the wall can kill you.

Now that my wife has married an electrician, she insists that I take every possible measure to ensure that the electrical system of our Los Angeles home is safe. One important step was to ensure that it’s properly grounded.

What is electrical grounding, anyway?
Grounding adds a safety factor for your family and your electronics. Here’s how it works. Electricity travels the path of least resistance. If an appliance like a toaster breaks, electricity can flow on the metal outside of the toaster. Touching it could result in a serious shock, causing injury or even death. But if the electrical system is grounded and the toaster is plugged in with three prongs, the electricity won’t flow to the outside of the toaster. Instead it will flow through the third prong back into the wires and harmlessly into Mother Earth. Thus, the term “grounding.”

An electrical system can be grounded with various types of devices. A “ground wire” is simply a wire attached to your electrical system that’s been pushed securely into the ground. Metal pipes (electricians call them “conduit”) that hold and protect your electrical wires can also act as a grounding device. Sometimes, grounding is provided by running a wire from your electrical system and attaching it to metal plumbing pipes that run into the earth.

Grounding protects not only people but also sensitive electronics. Without grounding, electrical charges build up in wiring and create slight but continuous damage to delicate electronics. This damage can shorten the lives of computers, phones, and any electrical appliance that has “smart” (computer) components — possibly your fridge or dryer.

How can I tell if my electrical system is grounded?
Homes built before 1950 were sometimes grounded. Homes built after 1950 were usually grounded. Even if your system was originally grounded, wiring mistakes may have rendered the grounding ineffective. The only way to know for sure is to have a qualified electrician check out your electrical system with a special tester. My electrical company, The Electric Connection, offers this check as a complementary service. It’s part of our Free Home Safety Inspection when we do an electrical job for an L.A. resident or business. If you’re outside Los Angeles County, you may find an electrical contractor who offers testing as a free service or as a service call.

My electrical outlets have three prongs — are they grounded?
If your home has electrical outlets which accept three prongs, it MAY have a grounded system. The third prong allows an appliance to be grounded IF it’s plugged into an electrical system that has a grounding device.

Sometimes three-pronged outlets have been installed in electrical systems that aren’t grounded. This can make it look like the system is grounded when it’s not. Do-it-yourselfers or handymen may install three-pronged outlets in an ungrounded system not realizing the hazard or that such a set-up violates the National Electrical Code.

Sleep sounder with a grounded electrical system
If you’ll sleep sounder knowing that your family and electronics are safe, give your electrician a call. If you’re in L.A. County, we at The Electric Connection will be happy to provide you with a full safety check of your electrical system, including grounding. Give us a call at (818) 446-0888 between 8 and 5. If you have other electrical work that you want us to do, use this coupon for a Home Electrical Safety Check and we’ll add your safety check for free.

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