Home Electrical Basics | HTH 015

This week, we chat with licensed electrician Caleb Effinger about home electrical basics and safety.   LET’S CHAT! You can always call and leave your questions and comments on our voicemail! 978-709-1040   Electricity 101 - Power comes from the power company either via powerline or buried and attaches to your main panel box and disperses through the house. - The electric company’s job ends at the meter (keep it on), you’re responsible for everything else. - 110 circuits are for smaller appliances, 220/240 for larger things like air and washer/dryer. - Volts are like the pressure from your faucet, amps are like to flow/volume & watts are the power/pressure. - If your lighting circuit keeps tripping you could go LED and save a lot wattage. - The higher the wattage, the more power it’s drawing.   Show Highlights: - Caleb is passionate about raising up the next generation of electricians, because there’s a dire need. - The average age of an electrician today is 55. - The most dangerous thing you can do is work on live electricity. Turn the circuit off and work safely. - If you’re working on an outlet or a switch shut off power and wear gloves. These are simple ways to keep safe. - The National Electrical Code governs electrical safety- https://www.nfpa.org/NEC - A homeowner can update light fixtures, switches etc. Caleb recommends calling a professional to add circuits. - Things to looks for when hiring an electrician: make sure they’re licensed, are they insured and bonded? These things protect the electrician and the homeowner.   Maintenance Tips: - Go to breaker panel once a year and turn breakers all off and on to check for tripping. - Replace any loose outlets. - Pest control is key to keeping your home safe. - Wires should be in-cased within the home for safety. It keeps rodents, nails etc from interfering with the wiring. - A hot wire is usually black or red, a neutral wire is usually white-ish.   5 Tools for DIY - 10-in-1 screwdriver - Needle-nose pliers - Non-contact voltage tester - Pliers - Gloves - Wire strippers PHONE CALLS/SOCIAL: Q: I keep tripping my circuits at home but I need my lights in that room A: The lighting circuit might be connected to some outlets too. Try swapping out lights for a lower wattage bulb as well (LED).   Q: If I’m trying to diffuse a bomb, which wire do I cut? A: Always Orange   Q: I use screw caps, are there merits to using something else? A: If it ain’t broke don’t fix it. Wire nuts are tried and true and you get a real tight connection.   Q: I have a bunny who chews on cords, is there anything I can do to solve that? A: Cable covers will fix the issue.   Caleb’s INFO Website | www.effingerelectric.com Contact | [email protected]   FOLLOW US on social media: Website | https://howtohome.com/ Instagram | http://bit.ly/2WqVfSp Twitter | http://bit.ly/2RRyYij Facebook | http://bit.ly/2MC3Hdc Youtube | http://bit.ly/2SifqTH SUBSCRIBE to the How to Home Podcast: Itunes | https://apple.co/2DL0lSp Android | http://bit.ly/2B9k7Fm Stitcher | http://bit.ly/2DM0W6c Spotify | https://spoti.fi/2GcRCKo   THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSOR FILTERBUY.COM