Home Safety Tips from Professional Electricians
Electricians hear a huge amount of preventable, yet tragic stories about electrical accidents, accidents that could easily have been circumvented with the most basic knowledge about the electrical systems in your home. While it is true that accidents can happen no matter how attentive you are, you can ultimately minimise their occurrence risks. Here is how.
Cord Safety
Whenever you have to install new power cords for electrical equipment, you should never ever nail or staple them in place. By doing so you may damage the internal components of the cord, and it may short-circuit when you plug it into an outlet. You also should not cover the cords with rugs. If you do that, the cords will not be allowed to breathe and will overheat. Combine that with the fact that any signs of wear & tear on the cables will not be noticed and you have a perfect recipe for fire hazards.
In order to make your home safer, you can use special cord clips to guide the power cables on the edges of the wall. By doing so you can minimise the risk of fire accidents, while also having an aesthetically pleasing cord setup.
Plug Safety
Plug-related electrical problems are some of the most common occurrences that electrical technicians have to deal it. You should never attempt to modify a plug because an electrical cord doesn't fit into it. Don't attempt to remove the ground pin or fill down the prongs. If the plug doesn't have a ground pin, you are at risk of receiving an electrical shock. All plugs should snugly fit into any power outlet. Do not try to use force to get the plug into the outlet, as you may be faced with deadly consequences.
Thunderstorm Safety Tips
Thunderstorms are extremely dangerous. Whenever you notice an electrical storm outside of your house, turn off any electrical equipment in the house. Also, do not take a bath or a shower during this time. If, by any chance, lightning strikes the wires that supply electricity to your house, a power surge will flow through every single wire inside the house. Not only can the extra electricity cause your electronics to fry and start fires, but anyone found in the bathtub will be shocked as well because of the electrified water pipes.
Remember, thunderstorms generally last a couple hours, but the effects that they cause are permanent.
For more information on safety, contact an electrical contractor.
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