Warning signs your home electrical system is damaged guide, House electrics tips, Online property repair advice

Warning Signs Your Home Electrical System Is Damaged

3 Sep 2021

Are you unsure if you are dealing with an electrical problem in your home? Do you believe you may need professional electrical services but don’t want to pay for a professional inspection if you don’t really need it?

Warning Signs Your Home Electrical System May Be Damaged Guide

Many homeowners face this problem, and it is hard to know what to do when it happens to you. Here are some signs it may be time to invest in a professional electrical inspection for repairs.

Hot Outlets

Most electrical appliances generate some level of heat when they are turned on and operating. However, the outlet the appliances are plugged into should never feel hot to the touch. If you notice this in one of the outlets in your home, unplug all cords and don’t use the outlet again until the issue can be investigated.

The switch cover plates in your home need to be treated similarly. However, there is one exception to this rule. Some dimmer switches will feel warm when you touch them because they dissipate the extra electrical energy, which generates the dimming effect. While this is true, the switch cover plates on dimmer switches should never be so hot that they are uncomfortable to touch. To help ensure this does not happen, make sure you check the wattage before installing the dimmer switch.

Flickering Lights

While flickering lights in a Hollywood movie are a sure sign of a ghost, it’s probably the sign of a loose wiring connection when it happens in your home. If the flickering is only seen in one fixture, it is pretty easy to troubleshoot and repair. However, if there are several lights or rooms where this issue is seen, the issue likely exists somewhere in the circuit.

If the lights in your entire home are flickering, the issue may be with the breaker box or even with a utility drop that is outside of your home. In this situation, you should contact a professional to come in and figure out what the underlying issue is.

Aluminum Wiring

During the late 1960s and early 1970s, the high cost of copper resulted in many home builders using aluminum wires for a home’s electrical service. Lab testing had shown that aluminum was a suitable alternative to copper, so it seemed like a good idea to keep costs much lower.

The problem with this is that the exposed aluminum oxidizes much faster than copper does and can retain heat, increasing the risk of a fire. In lab conditions, where everything was controlled, this was not an issue. However, in a real-world, imperfect environment – like in your home – aluminum wiring became a serious fire hazard.

Today, this is why aluminum is no longer used for residential wiring. In fact, the CPSC has discovered that homes with aluminum wiring installed may be as much as 55 times more likely to experience damage due to fire from faulty wiring. The good news is, there are a few options to address aluminum wiring. You can use specialized connectors or contact an electrician to see what they recommend.

Burning Odor

It should not be a huge surprise that if you smell something burning, you need to act. If your electrical system’s wiring is heating up so much that the plastic sheathing has started to melt, you are facing a serious fire risk and you should not wait to have it repaired.

It is best to try to find the source of the problem. It could be the breaker box or an individual outlet. If you can’t find the problem area, contact an electrician right away. They can inspect all the electrical elements in your home to see what needs to be done to restore proper function.

Don’t Wait To Contact an Electrician

When it comes to electrical problems, you have a lot of factors to consider. The one thing you should avoid doing is waiting too long to act. The longer you wait to find and fix the issue or hire an electrician to do this, the more serious the problem will become and the more expensive it will be to fix. Acting as soon as you notice an issue is the best way to ensure that your home’s electrical system continues working properly and safely.