As winter looms and creatures big and small head indoors, make sure your home’s electrical system is ready to face the increased load brought on by winter. Here are some tips for what you should do to stay safe in your home.
- Inspect outlets to see if there are any loose plugs. These can overheat and lead to a fire.
- Test all ground fault circuit outlets to ensure they properly reset when the test button is compressed.
- In homes with small children, shield all outlets with safety covers. Tuck away wires that might get pulled, but do so in a way that doesn’t increase the wires’ heat exposure.
- Check all your electrical cords to make sure they are in good condition. Avoid using electrical tape to fix these wires; replace them with new ones.
- Assess light bulb wattage throughout your home. You don’t want the wrong wattage in a fixture. This also is a good time to switch out old bulbs for energy-efficient models, such as LED.
- Conduct tests of all smoke and carbon dioxide or monoxide detectors. Take the time to replace all the batteries with fresh ones. If you find a faulty detector, get it changed immediately. If the detectors are hardwired, you may need an electrician to help with those that are non-functional.
- Be mindful of overloading plugs with power strips and extra lights. As convenient as it is to have all your decorative lights on a single switch, this increases the risk of an electrical fire. Make sure any power strips or extension cords used meet the minimum requirements for any lighting you plug in.
- Exchange older decorative lights for newer, safer, more energy efficient LED lights. This reduces your electric bill and reduces the risk of a fire because of the reduced power requirements.
Give Winter Electric a call if you have any questions or need your electrical system inspected or replaced.
