Do you remember the last time you got your building’s electrical system inspected? Electrical issues can often go unnoticed until it’s too late. Even if everything appears to be okay, electrical problems may not always show up immediately. That why it’s important to have an electrical safety checklist you routinely go through to avoid future issues.
We’ve created a simple checklist you use to ensure your building continues to stay safe.
Step One in Your Electrical Safety Checklist: Inspect Your Lights
If you’ve recently replaced old bulbs with brand new ones and the light still flickers that’s not a good sign. To fix this, double-check the right wattage is being used. It could be as simple as just getting a new bulb with the correct wattage for the flickering to stop.
Other potential causes include loose connection or some kind of issue with your electrical panel.
Your lights should also be all at the same level of brightness in every room. If there are differences room-to-room check the wattage of each to ensure it’s not just the way the fixture is set up.
Lights that burn out frequently could be caused by multiple factors. For instance, it could be due to bad wiring on either the main or the circuit. Either way, these issues are best handled by a professional electrician.
Meticulously Check Each Breaker
Circuit breakers are designed to shut down power if any circuit is overloaded. This may have happened to you before when you’ve tried to run a kettle and microwave at the same time. Because they avoid power building up with nowhere to go, these are crucial to get properly inspected to ensure they don’t damage wiring and appliances.
If the breakers are tripping frequently it could be because of a short circuit, i.e. live wires touching neutral wires. This causes a significant amount of current to go through a circuit, generating too much heat. Another cause could be ground fault surges where hot wires contact ground wires.
Check All of Your Outlets
Although built to take repeated use, outlets still wear down after time. With enough wear, heat and resistance can build up and continue to build up until it either trips the breaker or breaks the circuit.
It’s likely time to replace the outlet if it’s warm, broken, discoloured, or there’s a burning smell. Any of these issues could indicate wiring issues or overloads.
While it’s important to make note of these issues as soon as they arise, you should get the help of a trained electrician to resolve them.
