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With the winter comes the problem of power outages. Most of the time these outages can be restored quickly without too much hassle.
Depending upon where your location is, the outage can become days instead of hours. This is the time when you will start looking for a generator. Generators can be purchased in numerous sizes and applications. Most of the simple generators are portable and usually are 5000 watts or less. These generators are great and are designed for temporary, quick available power, usually with the use of extension cords.
When it comes time to supply your whole house during extended power outages, these generators are undersized for this application. The 5000-watt generators are calculated with usage being only 110-volt receptacles. Now, if you plan to use just extension cords, then there should be no problems as long as you don’t exceed the 5000 watts. Your house panel requires 220-volt power. When you use a 5000-watt generator, you have raised the voltage, which reduces the wattage from 5000 watts to 2500 watts or a 20-amp/220-volt source. The minimum main house panel is 100 amp, and under normal operation the home probably uses 50% of this power. Now you can see that the simple generator is not large enough to supply needed temporary power.
Another problem that can exist is how to safely disconnect the house panel from the utility company so that power you are generating is not being back fed into the utility lines. This is where a licensed electrical contractor will be able to assist you in the proper sizing, application, and safe installation of your new generator.
During the heavy rains, water is unable to drain effectively from around or under buildings and assistance is required with the installation of sump pumps. Depending upon how many pumps you need and where they are to be installed, you will require power to operate. Pumps can be installed with temporary usage of extension cords that will require final installation with a new receptacle at each location. During the summer months, these pumps usually are not in operation unless there is a constant flow of water being produced. The pumps that are not in use should be tested to make sure they are in operation for the following season. You can fill the chambers with water to test and cycle these pumps. This testing will also make sure that gaskets won’t dry out and crack that might cause internal damage to the pumps. Contact a licensed electrical contractor for proper installation of the permanent receptacle.
Smoke detectors are designed to signal an alarm that will alert you to leave the space. There is a light beam that is on the inside of the small opening on each detector. When this light is broken by smoke, steam, dust or even a spiderweb, the detector will go into alarm mode. Newer homes will have all detectors interlocked, which will alarm all detectors at the same time.
Older homes usually have one detector per bedroom or hallway outside of the bedrooms. Older homes can be wired for interlocking of all detectors. To clear the detector you can either create a breeze that will clear the problem or purchase from most hardware stores compressed air in a can. Spray the compressed air into the small opening and it will clear even the spiderwebs. On interlocking detectors you will need to locate the detector that sent the system into alarm and clear to silence the system. This will also work on battery smoke detectors too. Detectors outside of bathrooms that have heavy shower (steam) usage should be relocated to avoid this problem. Should you need replacement of defective detectors or new installation of detectors, contact a licensed electrical contractor.
Switches and dimmers operate lighting fixtures. Dimmers can reduce the energy and control the lighting levels, usually one switch/dimmer to one fixture or one set of fixtures. Dimmers come in many levels of dimming capacity The most commonly used are 600 watt and 1000 watt. You can determine your need by counting the total wattage of each lamp used on the dimmer. The closer you get to the maximum wattage of the dimmer, the warmer it will become. This is normal. The dimmer depresses the electrical wave which creates heat and the heat needs to dissipate.
To reduce the heating effect, you can increase your dimmer to the next wattage size. Switches/dimmers can stop operating from age, usage or shorting out. Switches/dimmers come in various shapes and styles. Switches come in toggle (standard style) to decora (rectangular/rocker style). Dimmers come with the same options with ranges from rotary (knob style), toggle, decora and touch (smooth faced). There are three-way switches/dimmers that can operate the fixture from multiple locations. Three-way dimmers can either be dimmed on one end of the switches or on both ends. Contact a licensed electrical contractor for these replacements.
There are two basic types of lighting: incandescent and gaseous style. Incandescent (standard light bulb) style is the most commonly used and is the least energy efficient. This light works from an element that when in operation will create a resistance to produce light. You can reduce your energy usage with dimmers. Gaseous style lights are fluorescent, quartz halogen, metal halide and high-pressure sodium. The fluorescent and quartz halogen are most commonly used in homes. Metal halide and high-pressure sodium are most commonly used in areas that require larger coverage or brighter usages like in street lighting, parking lots and exterior building security.
Fluorescent lighting has changed over the years, is very adaptable to home usage, and is the most energy efficient for this area of application. Quartz halogen will be more efficient and brighter than standard incandescent lamps. Contact a licensed electrical contractor that is up to date on any of these applications.
When you have tripped a breaker, either by overloading or short circuiting, it will trip off as it is designed to. Your breakers either are located on the exterior of the house (where the PG&E meter is located) or in the interior of the house (either garage, basement, clothing closet). The breaker will either go up and down, right to left, or left to right to turn them off. When resetting your breaker, you need to fully push the handle to the opposite direction until you hear a click. Now you have reset the breaker and can return it to the proper position. When returning, if you find that the breaker buzzes or trips off again, that means the wiring still has the problem on it. You can see if something new is on the wiring. If so, remove and try resetting one more time. If this problem continues, you have other internal issues that require a licensed electrical contractor to repair.
All current homes will have a receptacle in kitchens, bathrooms, garages and exterior locations that will have two buttons located either in the middle or along the sides, “TEST” and “RESET”.
The purpose of this style of receptacle is to protect items plugged in that are near wet or damp locations. When you have tripped this, you unplug what is plugged into this receptacle and push the “RESET” button. You should either hear a click or feel it reset. In some homes you will find that the power has gone out in a bathroom and you have no GFI directly in that room. The code allows a single GFI receptacle to protect the complete line of receptacles as needed. You will have to locate the first one in line and reset. If this problem continues to trip and you have all the items unplugged completely at all receptacles, you have internal issues that require a licensed electrical contractor to repair.
Dishwasher and Garbage Disposal Not Working
Unplug the cord (if plugged in) from the receptacle under the sink, plug in an item in the same receptacle (don’t plug into open receptacle that can be used for the dishwasher or disposal and will give you a false testing) that you know is in working operation. If your item operates, then power to this receptacle is working. Sometimes on the bottom of the disposal there is a button that is a reset for the device. Try pushing in; once reset, plug into same receptacle and test. If still not working, you need to call a plumber.
Power Loss to Items that Require Immediate Operation
Unplug the item (if plugged in) from the receptacle. Plug in an item in the same receptacle that you know is in working condition. If your item is not working and you have tried to reset the breaker, you can install an extension cord from a working receptacle to restore power until a licensed electrical contractor can arrive. When you use an extension cord, you should always use a high-grade cord, either a 15-amp or 20-amp-rated cord. Most cords will give you this information on the sides. It is always nice to have one on hand for this emergency. If your item does not operate once you have restored power, you will need to call the appropriate repair company.
Light Fixtures Not Working
When replacing light bulbs, make sure you use one that is in working condition. Light bulb elements are very thin and can easily be damaged either by dropping, shipping or transferring from the store. You can use a lamp that you know is working to test in in place of the light that is not working. New light bulbs sometimes are higher on the bottom of the lamp and when you install into the lighting fixture can cause the middle inside center prong to be lowered. When you install the new light bulb, if the base is shorter it will not make connection and will not allow the connection to be completed and the light to operate. If you have a dimmer controlling this fixture, you could have shorted out the dimmer and it needs to be replaced by a licensed electrical contractor.
220-Volt Electrical Appliances Not Working
When you turn on your electric dryer, electric stove, oven or any other 220-volt appliances, they require two opposite circuits of 110-volt power to operate correctly. When you turn on your electric cooktop or oven and they do not fully become hot or the same problem exists with your electric dryer but the motor is operating, this means you are only receiving half (one of the two circuits) of the power required to properly operate these appliances correctly. If all of the 220-volt appliances are operating at half power, you have to determine if the problem exists inside of your building or from the power being supplied from the outside of the building. Speaking with your neighbors to see if they are experiencing the same problem is the quickest way to verify this problem. Then you can contact the proper services to restore your power.
If the problem exists inside of your building, then you can check your main panel to see if you have a main breaker that needs to be reset, which is explained in the June "Tip of the Month." If this problem exists individually, then locate the breaker that operates that specific appliance and reset. If power has not been restored, you need to contact a licensed electrical contractor or an appliance company to verify which of the devices is your problem.
Christmas lights are great decorations and, based upon how many you install, can sometimes become a circuit-overloading problem. These strings of lights, when installed numerously, can increase the usage on the existing circuit which in turn trips the circuit. Most times the string of lights are installed into existing receptacles that operate on a 15-amp circuit (1500 watts). The most common string of lamps use 1 amp to 1.5 amp (100 watt to 150 watt) per each string. The problem is that the existing receptacle you are using is connected with other items inside of the house that are operating daily. When you install these new strings of lights, they can use or exceed the remaining availability, which turns off the power. Since you only use these lights a very short time, sometimes splitting the lights onto another circuit can assist you. Otherwise, you need to contact a licensed electrical contractor to install a dedicated circuit which would maintain the usage you require to have a safe and enjoyable holiday.
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