The Importance of Electrical Safety

If you are planning on upgrading the electrical wiring in your home, you should hire experienced electrical contractors for the work. Rewiring can be a dangerous process. Improper handling of the wires and accessories can cause personal injuries such as electrical shock. Also, if the electrical system is not set up correctly, there might be future problems such as appliance damage, overheating issues and electrical fire. In addition to hiring an expert, you should note down the shortcomings of your current electrical system and ensure that they are resolved during the rewiring project. Here are some of the critical issues that you should plan on resolving.

Inadequate Outlets

You should check the number of outlets in your home and determine whether they are enough for your current needs. Most old homes cannot handle the modern electrical demands. These homes were built when the power requirements were significantly lower. Therefore, the only way to power the numerous appliances, equipment and devices is to use power strips and extension cords. These accessories increase the risk of overloading the electrical circuits and overheating the connections. Moreover, the additional cords can become a tripping hazard. Therefore, when rewiring your building, you should have the contractor add more outlets for optimal performance.

Lack of GFCIs

There is a high risk of electrocution in areas such as bathrooms and kitchens. In general, if the electrical connections and accessories come in contact with the water in these spaces, the current will spread and shock any individual in contact with the moisture. When rewiring your home, you should reduce the probability of electrical shock by installing GFCI outlets. The ground fault circuit interrupters will cut power supply immediately if the connections come into contact with water, minimising the risk of injury. You should think about purchasing these outlets for your wet areas, garage, basement and outdoor outlets.

Panel Overwiring

You should discuss your overwired panel with your electrical contractor before beginning the rewiring project. An overwired electrical panel usually contains more circuits than the unit is designed to handle. In most cases, this issue will occur because of the substitution of single pole breakers with tandem breakers. Simply speaking, a single pole will handle one circuit while tandem breakers will handle two circuits in the same slot. You should resolve this problem to avoid electrical malfunctions. Ideally, you should replace the entire electrical panel with a larger unit. However, it is possible to add a subpanel with the required additional slots.