As we embrace today’s technological age, we’ve become more and more dependent on our appliances and electronic devices. The first thing you usually check in the morning is your phone and the last thing you ever do late at night is turn off the TV or laptop where you’ve watched the latest episode of your favourite series.
Your TVs, phones, electric stove, washing machines, microwaves, lamps, and refrigerators do not only hold a place in your homes. More than anything, these devices offer convenience that you usually crave. Because who would want to handwash a week’s pile of clothes? Certainly, not you!
If you’ve convinced yourself that you can’t live without these devices, you’re not alone. In a study conducted last 2016, roughly 7 million Aussies can’t live without their phones. What more with the essential appliances? But what draws your phones, lights, TVs, and washers together? It’s electricity.
Electricity plays a crucial role in our lives. From keeping our homes lit to maximising the things we can do; electricity is very beneficial. But too much of everything can be harmful as well. If there is an excess in electricity gushing into your homes, it can lead to a power surge.
What is a Power Surge?
A power surge happens when the amount of voltage flowing into our devices or appliances exceeds the safe level for our home. It overloads electricity to most of our devices. When power surges occur, it can either damage your devices permanently or significantly reduce its lifespan.
Smartphones, tablets, and other low-power devices backed with sensitive circuit boards are more vulnerable to damage caused by a power surge compared to larger devices such as appliances.
There are a lot of things that cause a power surge. Bayside electricians might suggest that it can either be as mundane as downed power lines, faulty wiring, or as striking as lightning. Power surges occur when there is a substantial spike in your electrical system’s current.
Most power surges last about a fraction of a second, but their effects are irreversible to any outlets or plugged-in appliances. That is, it’s important to know how to protect your electronics against untimely power surges.
Signs of a Power Surge
Since a power surge happens in a split second, you need to be always vigilant when your devices have been damaged because of it.
Some signs that may indicate damage are as follows:
- The device flashes beyond usual
- The device cannot be turned on
- The device or power source smells burnt and
- The power strip needs resetting.
Protect Your Homes Against a Surge
Power surges can happen anytime. Preventing a power surge and protecting your home from it requires planning and foresight. Here are some of the things you can do to keep your home and delicate electronic devices safe:
Check your wires.
Remember that faulty wiring can cause power surges. Sometimes, it can even make your problems worse. Better have an expert electrician visit your place. If you’re in the Bayside, you can trust that our bayside electricians will inspect your home’s wiring for issues.
Invest in a quality surge protection system.
Having a whole-home surge protection can protect your homes from significant power surges. This surge protection system suppresses the electricity when it gets too high and redirects it into the ground wire. It is connected directly into your fuse box and prevent power surges from entering your home at the source.
You can have your whole-home surge protections systems installed by our licensed electricians.
Turn off your devices during a storm.
This is one of the easiest ways to protect your homes from being affected by a power surge. Remember that by turning off and unplugging your sensitive electronics, you stop the electric current to flow to your devices when the lighting strikes.
Know your electronic load.
Did you ever notice that your air conditioning systems don’t share the same power strip with any of your appliances? That’s for a good reason. Whenever you decide to plug in your delicate devices, always be smart about where you plug it in.
Different types of devices and appliances have varying electronic loads. Large appliances can put your sensitive devices at risk by causing “mini-surges”.
Use surge protectors.
Whenever you invest in expensive and delicate electronics such as computers, and OLED television sets, the best practice is to plug these devices into a power surge protector to prevent surge damages.
The most common devices include surge protector outlets, suppressors, uninterruptible power station, and power strips. These protectors are used on more delicate devices such as computers, televisions, stereo systems, and media centres.
Use high-efficiency AC units.
Replacing older air conditioning units to high-efficiency units helps in reducing the likelihood of having a power surge in your home. Newer AC models draw lesser power compared to older ones. This means that when it suddenly stops drawing power, it will not increase the risk of voltage spikes.
If you want to install high-efficiency AC units on your homes, call our Cheltenham electrician to help you out.
Bell Electrical for All Your Electrical Woes
Did you recently suffer from a power surge? At Bell Electrical, we will help you with all your ctrical problems. We are your trusted Bayside and Cheltenham Electricians. We offer rewiring, fault finding, air-conditioning installation, switchboard, and metering upgrades and more.
Partner with our electrician in Melbourne suburbs today. Call us at 04114711922 or email us at [email protected]. You may also leave us a message via our enquiry form.
The size of your room will determine what size chandelier will be best suited to it.
If the ceiling is very high, you could install a multi-tiered fitting to cascade down through the space – providing, of course, that the chandelier still complements the room and its décor rather than overpowering it.There’s no doubt a large light fitting can add drama to a room, but there are several things you need to know about having a chandelier installed.The biggest considerations in practical terms are size and weight, according to Melbourne-based electrician, Andrew Bell of Bell Electrical Contractors“You want to make sure the light doesn’t make the room feel small, so check the ceiling is high enough for the chandelier you choose, and the room is big enough,” Mr Bell says.“That way the light fitting does what you want it to, rather than making the space seem too crowded.
You also want a light that suits the era or style of the house – it can look a bit odd if you choose an ultra-modern light for a period home, or the other way round.”Mr Bell suggests someone who wants to have a chandelier installed talks to their electrician first to get some ideas about the right type of fitting and find out more information about what is involved.“Ask the electrician how they plan to install the light.
You don’t want your electrician using a small ladder and potentially falling and hurting themselves or damaging your house.”According to Mr Bell, if you’re looking at a dramatic, heavy fitting, you will need several electricians on the job and they will need to use some form of a platform or manlift to get the job done.“Your sparky may also need to install some type of bracing in the ceiling if the light is heavy, or call in some help from a carpenter and/or engineer to help make it safe and secure,” he says.“Bracing is reasonably straightforward in a single-storey dwelling where access to the roof is fairly simple, however if you are installing the light on the bottom level of a two-storey house, it may not be possible to brace without damaging the plaster because there is limited access to the ceiling.”Once you know if it is possible to install a chandelier and whether there are any weight restrictions, Mr Bell suggests you measure the room where you want the light installed, and take a photo, and take both to the lighting store.That way, the sales team should be able to visualise what you want and what the room will allow for.
So, for example, if your room measures 304cm x 426cm, the width of the fixture should be around 73cm.It’s a similar situation with the height.
Raising the chandelier too high may cancel out its impact.
