Category: Electrical Safety

How to Put Out an Electrical Fire

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How to Put Out an Electrical Fire

How old is your home’s electrical system? Does it show signs of instability? Playing it safe and scheduling an electrical safety inspection every year is a good idea. Even if you have a relatively new system and never experience electrical problems, it is always prudent to have an assessment every few years. Annual maintenance is the best way to avoid electrical fires. But if you are faced with one in your home, you should know how to act. Knowing how to deal with an electrical fire might not just save your home – but the lives of your loved ones as well.

Your safety comes first

If an electrical fire starts, the first thing you should do is call 911 – and make sure they are aware that it’s an electrical fire. If you decide to stay and deal with the fire yourself – only do so if there are two clear pathways to freedom. When one of those pathways gets blocked by fire or smoke, quickly exit through the alternate route. Fighting a fire in your home is not worth risking your safety.

Disconnect your electronics

If it is apparent where the electrical fire started, such as a small electronic or appliance, try to unplug it from the wall immediately. Unplugging it will decrease the chances that the fire will spread. This will also allow you to focus on the fire itself. If you can’t unplug the source, you’ll have to disconnect the power in your home. Go to the electrical panel and turn the power off directly. When you’ve cut the power, you are no longer in danger of electric shock and the origin of the fire is cut off.

Keep baking soda on hand

If the source of the fire can’t be contained, stop it with baking soda. The old kitchen standby contains the compound sodium bicarbonate, which is a component found in Class C fire quenchers. Keeping an open box of baking soda accessible could make all the difference when fighting a small electrical fire.

Don’t put out fires with water

In spite of the fact that it might be your first thought, never use water on any electrical fire if your electricity is still on. Water conducts electricity, so in the event that you throw water onto the flames, you are in danger of being severely burned.

Stop electrical fires with Weeks Service Co.

To keep electrical fires from starting, think about scheduling an electrical safety inspection from a skilled technician. The professionals at Weeks Service Company can assist you with finding any problems in your system – and how to remedy them. Call us today at 218-332-9555 to schedule an assessment!

 

 

Sparking Outlet – Should You Worry About?

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should you worry about a sparking outlet

You’ve just unplugged a lamp from an outlet, but something out of the ordinary happened. This time, a little blue spark jumped out from the plug when you removed it from the wall – and now you’re worried. Is your home in trouble? Are you one lamp-removal away from catching something on fire? Should you avoid plugging anything in for the foreseeable future?

Lots of questions! They’re understandable since electricity is so volatile and can present legitimately dangerous problems in the blink of an eye. If your outlet is sparking, though, it might not always be something you need to worry about. To help whittle down the possibilities, here is a quick and easy guide to when a sparking outlet is something you can ignore, and when it’s more serious.

When It’s Not a Problem

Most of the time, if you’re seeing a sparking outlet, it’s nothing to worry about. After all, this is the point at which electricity connects to your device, so when a current is present, it’ll understandably jump from the plug to the outlet sometimes.

This spark, which is blue in color, isn’t anything to worry about if it’s happening every now and then. But if you notice it happening more frequently, then we recommend putting in a call to an electrician you trust.

When It Is

But there are times when sparking is out of the ordinary. If you notice one or more of these indicators, don’t run the risk of causing greater damage – stop using the plug immediately and call a professional.

  • Longer sparking: Normal sparks don’t last very long – they’re gone in the blink of an eye – but sparks that last longer are ones you need to take more seriously.
  • Charred/burned smells: If your nose picks something up that smells like this, then something has melted. This is obviously a sign that something is wrong and should prompt a service call as soon as possible.
  • A strangely colored spark: Like we mentioned earlier, normal sparks are blue. But when you unplug a device, sometimes the color is white, yellow, or something else. This indicates a problem as well.

Why Sparks Occur

Sparking isn’t just limited to one cause. Things like water damage can lead to sparking, as can normally wear and tear that your electrical system undergoes over the years. Or, it could even be because a previous electrician installed wiring or an outlet incorrectly or didn’t repair something the right way.

It’s tough to tell why your outlet is sparking without taking a look at your specific situation. When you’re worried about whether the sparks you’re seeing are something to be concerned about or not, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us.

Weeks Service Company is the League City and Houston-area service provider you can count on. We’ll figure out why your wiring is acting up and work with you to develop a solution that makes sense and will prevent this issue from popping up in the future.

Give us a call at 281-738-1362 to speak to a member of our team today!

Easy Methods to Avoid Power Surges

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It’s just another typical weeknight. You’re kicking back, watching the latest episode of your favorite TV show while your family bustles around the house. They’re making food, flipping light switches and using different appliances when all of a sudden – zap! A power surge.

Surges bring whatever you were doing to a screeching halt. You’ve got to drop whatever you were doing to go flip a breaker or wait until the power returns – but you could’ve avoided this aggravating situation in the first place! Here are a few ways to avoid power surges from the electrical experts at Weeks Service Company.

Load Up on Surge-Protecting Power Strips

If you want a single point-of-use protector to safeguard one particularly troublesome appliance, then a surge-protecting power strip is a wise choice. These include basic surge protection inside the strip itself to help reroute potential overloads away from your appliances.

However, a word of caution. These are strikingly similar to traditional power strips – ones without surge protection added on – and it’s easy to confuse the two. Make sure that you thoroughly look over the label before purchasing one to double-check that it actually provides protection and isn’t just a collection of outlets.

Don’t Overload Outlets

Even if you do get one of those surge-protecting power strips, you don’t suddenly have unimpeded freedom to load up those outlets with a million different plugs. The surge protection does in fact work, but it isn’t an impenetrable wall against any and all electrical surges.

You still need to take care and pay mind to how many things you’ve plugged into that power strip. These things are designed to handle some measure of excess voltage, but even they will crumble under too big a spike in energy. It’s okay to plug a few things into the power strips, but don’t overload them.

Install a Whole-Home Surge Protector

On the other hand, if you just want to protect everything in your home at once and skip the piecemeal solution, invest in a whole-home surge protector. An electrician installs one of these at the source of your home’s electrical grid, so it catches any surges before they have a chance to travel through your grid.

The benefits they provide are numerous. Whole-home surge protectors handle a higher voltage load than individual power strip surge protectors are, and they last longer to boot.

Weeks Service Company: Your Surge Protection Experts

When you’re searching for an electrician in League City, don’t look any farther than the pros at Weeks Service Company. Our team members are dedicated to providing the most reliable service in the area. We’re confident you’ll find that they’ll go above and beyond to make sure you’re taken care of.

Surge protection is no match for our electricians. They’ll work with you to devise the right solution and you’ll never have to worry about your appliances being fried.

Give us a call at 281-738-1362 to find out more about our surge-protection services!

Is It Safe to Troubleshoot My Electrical Problem?

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“Is it safe to troubleshoot my electrical problem?” We get this a lot, and it makes sense. With the amount of technology available in the world nowadays, it’s almost inevitable that we’ll encounter electrical problems in some form or another at home. Since it seems like everything is becoming digital or electronic, it makes sense to be prepared to troubleshoot these issues.

However, it’s not always safe to attempt these problem-solving procedures. Some require more precise tinkering with the dangerous wires in your home, while others can be solved with a simple adjustment to a single component. But which is which? We’ll list a few of the more common issues and help you figure out if you can undertake the fixes yourself, or if you should just let a professional handle it.

Flickering Lights

There it goes again! If you’re experiencing frequent incidents of flickering lights, then something is obviously wrong. Pinpointing exactly where the trouble is coming from, however, is a tougher task. It could be a result of any number of things, but the most likely explanation is a faulty connection in a circuit somewhere.

Unfortunately, this isn’t something you’ll likely be able to tackle yourself. You’re better off calling an electrician to come handle this, as they’ll be able to wade through your various electrical components until they discover precisely what needs fixing.

Frequently Tripping Circuit Breaker

Few things are as irritating as tripping a breaker while you’re using some device or appliance. It’s annoying not only because the thing you’re using will immediately shut off, but you’ve also got to go find the breaker box and flip the circuit back, interrupting whatever you were doing.

The easiest way to correct this problem is by finding out what’s at fault for the tripped breaker. Take note of which appliance or piece of equipment you’re using when the breaker trips – it might be straining the electrical grid too much. Consider swapping it out for a lower-wattage unit or plugging it in somewhere else to even out the power load.

Surges

This is another tricky one to diagnose from afar. Several different things can cause power surges, like storms, faulty equipment or shoddy craftsmanship on appliances or circuit boards, to name a few. This is another case of something where it makes more sense to have a professional electrician come inspect your grid to find out what the root of the issue is.

Light Bulbs Burning Out

Light bulbs have exactly one job: to illuminate a dark spot. That makes it all the more frustrating when they burn out – but it’s not necessarily the bulb’s fault.

There could be a loose connection somewhere, or the wiring in the outlet or device itself could be faulty. Your lamp or other lighting implement might not be able to handle the wattage of the bulb you’ve placed in it, which is arguably the most common culprit.

 

Electrical problems can be tricky, since one wrong move can spell disaster for you, your home or your family. If you’re not too sure of the right steps to take – or if you are and would just rather have someone else take care of it – give us a call!

We’re always willing to help you feel safer, and we’re able to answer any question you have. Call us at 281-738-1362 for more information!