Absolute Electric INC

GFCI's save lives

GFCI plug outlets sometimes are a pain to have your electrical system. However, they can save your life. If a GFCI is tripping then the device is telling you something. You have a faulty tool or cord and or situation. Make sure you test your GFCI plugs monthly.

Time to replace the old panels.

Here is a video showing how the breaker under a electrical load is not tripping when it should be. Don’t this happen to your electrical panel, (also know as “fuse box”). Federal Pacific, (FPE), and Zinsco panels are known for this to happen 60% of the time. These breakers will not trip when needed thus causing fires and damage to equipment. A common thread with home owners is their panel looks good. Even home inspectors say it looks good. They are not giving you all the facts about what you may have in your home. Get an electrical contractor/ electrician to look over your electrical for the best advice.

What is surge protection?

What is surge protection?
A surge protector (or surge suppressor) is an appliance designed to protect electrical devices from voltage spikes. A surge protector attempts to regulate the voltage supplied to an electric device by either blocking or by shorting to ground voltages above a safe threshold.
Many power strips have surge protection built-in; these are typically clearly labeled thus. However, sometimes power strips that do not provide surge protection are erroneously referred to as surge protectors.
Appliances over looked for surge protection are: Wash machine, dryer, refrigerator, freezer, phones, alarms, microwave, X-box, other games, televisions, stereos, clocks, wine coolers, and any other electronics that are plugged in.
Home owners have to replace appliances due to a surge that came from the power feeding their home and sometimes coming from inside the home. A whole house surge protector can help prevent this from happening.

Can I turn my Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs (CFLs) on and off frequently?

The question is:
Can I turn my Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs (CFLs) on and off frequently? I’ve been told I have to turn it on and leave it on all day.

Answer:
Turning a CFL on and off frequently can shorten its life. To take full advantage of the energy savings and long life of ENERGY STAR qualified CFLs, it is best to use them in light fixtures you use the most and are on for at least 15 minutes at a time. Good locations include outdoor light fixtures, indoor fixtures in the living room, family room, kitchen, bedroom, recreation room, etc. This is not to say you should leave your lights on all day if you use ENERGY STAR qualified CFLs. It is still a good habit to turn the lights off when you leave the room for an extended period of time.
You may also have heard that CFLs use a lot of energy when turning on and off. While there is a brief surge in energy use when a CFL is turned on, with today’s starting technology, that surge usually lasts about a tenth of a second and consumes about as much energy as five seconds of normal operation. So, even when turned on and off frequently, a CFL uses less energy than its incandescent equivalent. But because turning a CFL on and off more frequently can shorten its life and CFLs are more expensive than incandescents, we recommend consumers use CFLs in applications where they are on for at least fifteen minutes. (This a reprint of information from the http://Energystar.gov website. There is a wealth of information there on how to save energy).

Wireless smoke detectors

Wow, what will they come up with next?
Kiddie has a battery operated wireless smoke detector system that can protect you and your family. This is an inexpensive way to get fire protection in your home if you don’t already have it. You can install a quick and easy smoke alarm system without the messy wiring or labor. (It still is recommended and required in many areas to be hardwired with battery backup).
The key to the wireless smoke alarm system is when one sounds off they all sound off. This is very important since doors may be closed and smoke present. For someone that does not want to add wires and needs smoke detector protection this is the way to go. How do you know if your smoke detectors are interconnected? Press the test bottom and if one sounds off they all should off.
The NFPA recommends you install at least one smoke detector on every floor level and one in every sleeping area.

Kitchen under cabinet lighting

Under cabinet lighting is great for tasking lighting in the kitchen. It can be used for task lighting, room ambiance or supplement lighting. Kichler Xeon lighting, (For us they have a great track record for an under cabinet light). The fixture has a junction box that is located at the wall, a cord connection to the fixture. The beauty of this fixture is it can be located towards the edge of the cabinets instead of against the wall allowing you more lighted counter space. If you are going to add or already have granite counter tops these are a must have. The darker the counter tops the darker the room is for lighting. Under counter lighting helps make up the difference in lighting.

LED under cabinet lighting is starting to make a presence. These are great for energy savings. The light output has come a long ways for options and color.

I don’t want an electrical inspector in my house!

We hear this often. In fact there are many times that the home owner tells us that the other electrical contractors said nothing of an electrical inspection on the work to be done. First it is sad that not everyone follows the same rules as the rest of us. And second wouldn’t you want someone to look over the electrical work to insure that is was done to current codes and is safe? Sometimes electrical work can be a sizable about of money. We have seen it many of times that home owners have had to pay for it twice to be done correctly. The electrical codes been made to protect persons and property. Even though at times it is a pain and may cost more to get the job done, the inspectors are there for your safety and to insure electricians and contractors are doing their jobs correctly.

How do you dispose of florescent light bulbs?

So many people just through their florescent light bulbs in the trash can. It is not safe for the environment and people working in the landfills. Look on the internet for your area near you to see who and where you can take the florescent light bulbs for recycling. Some areas of the country have incentives to do so by trading light bulb for light bulb. That is a huge savings as well great for Mother Earth. Your trips to the recycling should become less since the newer florescent light bulbs last a lot longer than ones in the past. Better technology and materials.

Over lamping light fixtures

Too many home owners want more light in the room. Doing so they install light bulbs that have higher wattages than what the fixture is rated for. This becomes a big fire hazard. When installing higher wattage light bulbs and a fire does not occur, damage to the fixture wires, sheet rock or other surroundings may result. Only use the wattage that the fixture is labeled to have installed.
Another way to achieve brighter light is installing florescent light bulbs. You can use higher equivalent wattage florescent light bulb, with the benefit of florescent wattage. Example is, the fixture only allows up to 60 watts for the light bulb. A 75 or 100 watt equivalent florescent light bulb could be installed and only use 18 to 22 watts.

Is your bathroom exhaust fan sized properly?

Home builders have a tight budget for building new homes or remodels. Bathroom exhaust fans always get overlooked. Normally the smallest, cheapest and loudest fan is installed. End result the home owner lacks the proper venting of the room.
To figure out the correct fan size, take the square footage of the room and times it by 1.1. Say you have a 10’x10’ room and times it by 1.1 you get 110. It would take a 110 CFM bath fan to have the proper air exchange for the room.
If you have an existing small exhaust fan you may have an option that can get you 20% more air flow and up to 50% reduction in sound. Broan makes a replacement unit that will fit into Nautilus, Nu tone, Broan units depending on the model number. We have used this fan in many homes and the home owners love it. This unit is a Broan 690.