Safety Tips
For any electrical work necessary in your home, we recommend hiring a licensed, professional electrician to do the work. For those do-it-yourself tasks you want to tackle, follow these important safety guidelines:
- Learn as much as you can about your home’s electrical system.
- Don’t try to do a project that’s above your skill and comfort level.
- Always ensure that the power to any circuit you’re about to work on is turned off at the circuit breaker in the breaker box.
- Unplug any electrical item you’ll be working on.
- Double-check the wires before touching them to make sure that there isn’t any power flowing to them.
- If you have any doubt, call a professional electrician.
Outlets
If you have an older home, you may have outdated outlets and receptacles. Replacing these with new outlets with built-in safety features can help guard against electric shocks and ensure fire safety.
GFCI Outlets
Ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) outlets have sensors that measure the amount of current going in and out of the socket and automatically trip when that flow gets out of balance. GFCI outlets prevent electric shock by instantly shutting off power to the circuit. GFCI outlets are important to have in areas where electricity could meet water, and the National Electrical Code requires GFCI outlets in kitchens, bathrooms, laundry rooms, garages and outdoor areas.
AFCI Outlets
Arc fault circuit interrupter (AFCI) outlets contain electronic components to monitor a circuit for the presence of dangerous conditions that could cause a fire. These conditions include damaged wiring, overheated cords, loose connections, and damaged cords and plugs. If dangerous arcing is detected, the outlet can be triggered to turn a circuit off quickly. AFCI outlets are required in bedrooms, living rooms and family rooms.
Tamper-Resistant Receptacles
A tamper-resistant receptacle (TRR) has built-in, spring-loaded shutters that close off the contact openings where you insert plugs. For the shutters to open, both springs must be compressed at the same time. This ensures that the shutters won’t open if a child attempts to insert an object into one of the contact openings. Every year, more than 2,000 children suffer shocks and burns from inserting common items, like keys and pins, into outlets. TRRs are a simple and easy way to protect your family from potential harm.
Until recently, it was a common practice to put plastic caps in outlets to provide protection. Unfortunately, children can easily and quickly remove them. These caps are also a choking hazard.
Surge-Protection Devices
Surge protectors are designed to protect sensitive electronic devices, such as computers, TVs and modems, from voltage spikes in the electrical current. These spikes can be from lightning striking nearby objects or power lines or from power outages. Surge protection is measured in joules, and a joules rating indicates the amount of energy that a surge protector can absorb. The higher the joules rating, the stronger the protection.
Receptacle Testers
Receptacle testers, or outlet testers, can check the wiring of outlets in homes and offices. LED lights will combine to show any errors in wiring, such as missing ground wire, live wire or ground-wire reverse.
When working with electricity, use tools and equipment that are specifically designed for electrical work.
Outdoor Electrical Safety
Being safe while working with electrical equipment outside your home requires the same caution as working with equipment inside. Here are a few tips to protect yourself and ensure your work area is safe:
- Just like inside electrical work, have a licensed electrician complete your project.
- Make sure that all of your outside receptacles are GFCI outlets. If they’re not, have them replaced with GFCI receptacles.
- Three-prong plugs and outlets also offer added safety benefits.
- Use extension cords that are rated and labeled for outdoor use. The power demands of outdoor power equipment are too strong for ordinary extension cords.
- Check your outdoor extension cords for possible damage. These cords are subject to more stress — especially at the plugs — than cords that remain inside.
- Learn more about extension cord care with Wrapping Extension Cords and Cord Safety Tips.
Home Fire Prevention
One of the leading factors in home fires is electrical breakdown or failure. When a home fire occurs, you may have less than two minutes to safely evacuate; within five minutes the structure may become engulfed in flames. Even with the safety upgrades, it is best to implement additional measures that can provide you and your family with protection from fires in case of an electrical malfunction. Here are some ways you can stay prepared as well as safety tips for fire hazards to help you protect your home:
- Update your home with the latest electrical safety devices, including GFCI and AFCI outlets.
- Install smoke alarms on every level of your home, especially inside and outside of bedrooms and in hallways.
- Test your smoke alarms regularly and change the batteries every six months or when the alarms alert you to do so.
- Map out a fire escape plan, make sure all family members know how to evacuate and practice with fire drills.
- If possible, have two possible ways to escape out of a room.
- Keep space heaters at least 3 feet away from flammable surfaces and remember to turn them off when leaving or going to bed.
- Never leave burning candles unattended.
- Install fire extinguishers on every floor of your home, especially in the kitchen and garage. They should have an ABC rating, making them applicable for all types of fires.
- Ensure that the bulbs in your lamps and lights are the correct wattage. Light bulbs can get extremely hot and cause anything flammable nearby to ignite.