Electricity is a blessing that science has given to us. It is an integral part of our modern life. It provides us with everything we need – lighting, washing, cooling, heating, cooking, and entertainment. But this blessing can turn into a curse, if not handled with care. So, the best thing you could do for your family is to ensure that you carry out regular electrical maintenance for home safety.

Follow these basic rules for electric safety in your home.

Cut off the power.

Before working on anything electrical, cut off the power supply. This is the only way to ensure that there is no power going through the wires.

Rooms with running water must have ground fault circuit interrupters (GFCI).

GFCI are circuit interrupters that shut off the electrical current from the circuit once they detect a shock hazard from the circuit.

It mandatory for new homes to install GFCI under National Electrical Code. However, if you live in an older home, get GFCI installed in your kitchen, bathroom, and laundry room.

Childproof your outlets.

Open outlets are dangerous, especially if you have children in your home. The outlets are of a perfect size for a child to push their tiny fingers into them.

Invest in tamper-resistant receptacles for all your outlets. You have several options in the market, but the best ones are spring-loaded that auto covers the outlet when not in use.

Avoid extension cords for permanent use.

An extension cord is a great product, but only for temporary use. If you are using an extension cord for a permanent source of power supply, stop. Call an experienced electrician from Palm Beach and have an outlet installed.

Take off the load from overloaded outlets.

Every outlet in your house can only take the load of a certain amount of energy. Using one outlet for multiple high-wattage appliances is a red flag.
  • Rearrange your appliances to take the load off the outlet.

Warm outlets are dangerous.

If an outlet is warm to touch, or if it flips the circuit breaker frequently, it’s a sign of a bad connection, which if not taken care of can lead to fire or shock hazards. Call an electrician to resolve the issue.

Older appliances need to be grounded.

Grounding is the foundation of a house that holds all your electrical systems. To prevent shock hazards, ground testing is important.

If you have two-pronged plugs for your appliances, that means your appliances could have grounding issues. This can put you at risk for a shock.

Ensure all your appliances have three-pronged plugs that connect to the grounded outlet. As a rule, if any of the outlets aren’t grounded, replace them and have a new circuit installed.

We tend to take electricity for granted. As a result, we forget how powerful and dangerous it can be. Follow these basic rules to keep you and your family safe from electrical hazards.

Author bio - Jeson Pitt works with the marketing department of D&F Liquidators and regularly writes to share his knowledge while enlightening people about electrical products and solving their electrical dilemmas. He's got the industry insights that you can count on along with years of experience in the field. Jason lives in Hayward, CA and loves to explore different cuisines that the food trucks in the Bay area have to offer.