Summary: You need electricity in your home to power things like the lights, appliances, and HVAC system. But it’s also important to practice electrical safety in your WA home, considering the hazards that come with electricity. In this article, we’ll outline some ways to stay safe when it comes to your home’s electricals.
Electricity plays an important role in your WA state home. It helps keep you warm, allows you to cook meals, and brightens up the interior of your house. At the same time, electricity is a common hazard.
Electrocution accidents can lead to burns, serious injuries, and even death. There may be times when you inadvertently place yourself at risk of getting electrocuted if you’re not aware of how to practice electrical safety in your home. You should feel safe in your own home, so it would be a smart idea for you to remember these 8 important tips when it comes to electrical safety at home, including the following.
- Watch Out For Damaged Power Cords
- Double Check Outlets and Switches
- Don’t Overload The Electrical Outlets
- Ground Old Appliances
- An Extension Cord Is A Tripping Hazard
- Get Familiar With Your Electrical Panel
- Work With a Qualified Electrician
- Avoiding Injuries With Electrical Safety in Your WA Home
#1. Watch Out For Damaged Power Cords
One of the most common causes of electrocution accidents at home is from damaged power cords. Over time, the wires that run through the home might start to degrade. This is a danger that is often overlooked.
If any of these cords are exposed, you and your family could be in danger if you touch them. This is especially true for children and pets. If the protective coating on any of your wires has been stripped away, cover the cord or replace it. If you need help doing this, call a professional for help.
#2. Double Check Outlets and Switches
Loose outlets or switches could mean that they’re not installed properly or could have become loose from the stud. If you notice that the faceplates are warm to the touch, this could be a sign of a number of electrical issues that need to be addressed. If you are making any repairs or checking for electrical issues, be sure to cut the power to the outlets and switches first to keep yourself safe.
#3. Don’t Overload The Electrical Outlets
Another common source of electrical accidents comes from outlets that have been overloaded. Many times homeowners plug a number of different things into their outlets all at once, whether it’s a hairdryer, curling iron, electric razor, toaster oven coffee machine, or anything else that required electrical power.
Your outlets have been designed to deliver a certain amount of power and are not meant to deliver more electricity than they’ve been constructed to do. If you plug too many devices into the same outlet, the circuit will become overloaded. This can lead to a fire or a potential explosion in your Washington home. If you need to plug in more devices, use a power strip, which are designed to add additional outlets in a safe manner.
#4. Ground Old Appliances
If your home still has a few older appliance models, you might want to take extra precautions that you normally wouldn’t have to with newer models. With older appliances, consider grounding them, which essentially means connecting them to an electrical neutral so that the circuit breaker can be “tripped” if an electrical fault occurs. Doing so can protect you and your family from being shocked by an electrical surge.
#5. An Extension Cord Is A Tripping Hazard
Extension cords are great for providing electrical power to something that is far away. On the other hand, they also should not be left out constantly. These cords are long and represent a tripping hazard if you’re not paying attention to where you’re walking.
In addition to a fall injury, this can also lead to serious damage to the outlet and the cord itself. In turn, this can increase the chances of something bad happening with the home’s wiring. If you are using extension cords all the time, you obviously need additional outlets in your home to accommodate such increased requirements. While you’re at it, limit your use of extension cords. If you must use one, be sure that it is the right size for use. Further, don’t connect extension cords and don’t run them under carpets or across doorways. In this case, it is a smart idea to call an electrician who can add additional outlets to your Washington state home.
#6. Get Familiar With Your Electrical Panel
You may want to take some time getting to know your electrical panel, which is a large switch panel filled with many other smaller switches that send electricity to various parts of your house. It includes a main breaker that controls the whole panel along with smaller breakers that provide electrical service to certain rooms or appliances. If one of the breakers trip, you will be able to pinpoint it by it because it will be in the off position. To fix it, turn it off and then back on to reset it. If it trips again immediately after it has been reset, there could be an underlying electrical issue, which in this case would warrant a call to an electrician.
#7. Work With a Qualified Electrician
Considering the potential hazard that electricals in the house can pose, it’s always advised that homeowners work with qualified electricians if there is an issue that could pose a potential danger to everyone in your home. Trying to resolve electrical problems on your own can be potentially dangerous, and as such, you’d be well-advised to hire a professional to fix the issues for you.
#8. Avoiding Injuries With Electrical Safety in Your WA Home
Other common electrical safety tips include keeping powered devices away from water and supervising children at all times. It’s highly recommended to understand everything you need to do to protect yourself and our family from electrical hazards at home in WA. Electrical injuries are serious and should be avoided at all cost. Practicing proper electrical safety is vital to preventing injuries.
If you are looking for a new home or if you are interested in refinancing your current property, be sure to contact your trusted home mortgage professional.
Need a Mortgage?
Sammamish Mortgage is a local mortgage company serving the broader Pacific Northwest region, including Washington state, Idaho, Colorado, and Oregon. We are proud to offer a wide variety of mortgage programs and products with flexible qualification criteria. Please contact us if you have any questions or are ready to apply for a home loan.
