How Can Electrical Outlets Improve Your Outdoor Space?

 Do you love outdoor living? Whether your home has a patio, outdoor room, or a deck, there’s something soothing and pleasurable about relaxing outdoors and breathing in fresh air without leaving the comforts of your home. And when it comes to comfort, there’s something you can do to improve your outdoor space. Add at least one electrical outlet outside. It’s better to install a GCFI outlet.

How to use electrical outlets outdoors?

Light – experiment with the kind of outdoor electrical lights that would match your mood and improve whatever entertainment is happening in your outdoor space like a family cookout or playing board games.

Cool and heat – plug a mist cooling system or an outdoor fan that is weather resistant. In several states, the summer season may still have some chilly evenings, so having a heating system that can be used outdoors is a good idea.

Work – if you love outdoor work, you should be able to do so with ease. Having an outdoor outlet installed means you have a place where you can charge or plug in your garden tools. Saws, leaf blowers, and trimmers will run with more power when it’s plugged in than when it’s using batteries.

Play – Take your garage band outdoors as you practice your keyboard, bass, and electric guitar. If you want to use your outdoor space to relax, you can add a garden fountain and plug in into the outdoor electric outlet Columbia.

Cook – there is nothing better than tending the flowers, resting in a deck chair, and playing on the lawn to help you build an appetite. If you install an electrical outlet, it’s easy to use small appliances to help you make your favorite snack like grilled cheese sandwiches and popcorn. Of course, outdoor cooking can also mean outdoor barbecues. You can try using an electric grill because they’re easy to use and clean plus it does not give off carbon monoxide and gas fumes.

 

Call CHS Electricians Columbia if you need help in installing electrical outlets in your outdoor area or if you have any electrical problems.

 

CHS Electricians Columbia
Columbia SC 29205
(803) 973-7324
http://electricianscolumbiasc.com

What is a Homeowner’s Electrical Exam?

 For several big or technical issues around your house, building departments need permits to get the work done. Most of these permits should be obtained by licensed professionals like plumbers and electricians.

But in several areas, homeowners could take a test in order to qualify to get a permit on their own and to do related work without hiring an electrical contractor. The electrical test of homeowners is a common test.

Where is the electrical exam offered?

This type of electrical test are provided by the local permitting office or building authority. This is generally part of the country or city building department. You could get in touch with your country or city office for additional information. You need to know that not every building authority provide homeowner exams or let homeowners to do electrical work on their own.

Is it hard to pass the homeowner’s electrical exam?

The exam contains only a few questions, usually between 10 and 30, there’s definitely a risk that you won’t pass it. It isn’t unusual for homeowners not to pass the exam on their first attempt. In case you fail a test, there could be a waiting period before you could retake it, even though it may be quite short.

Why are homeowner’s electrical exam offered by authorities?

There are several reasons for this. If the electrical job is complicated, it’s best to hire an electrician instead of taking on the job itself. But maybe the building authorities are just trying to be practical. They are aware that sometimes, homeowners would rather do the job themselves, sometimes with disastrous consequences. The electrical exam offers municipalities to establish some type of standard for newbie electricians Columbia.

What kind of work can you do after passing the electrical exam?

In most instances, homeowners are restricted to certain electrical projects within their own houses, and they could work on single-family homes. They can’t work on multi-unit dwellings, townhouses, and condominiums.

Electrical exams generally apply to certain kinds of projects that are covered by a certain electrical permit. Therefore, it’s crucial to get all of the details about what passing the test will allow you to do. You do not want to undergo the trouble of studying, taking, and passing the exam only to find out that you are not allowed or you can’t do the work that needs to be done. Don’t forget that permits have expiration dates, which means the qualifications you get for passing the exam is only valid for a short time.

What is the homeowner’s electrical exam based on?

It is based on the newest version of the NEC or the National Electrical Code as well as the local electrical code requirements. Since local authorities can make changes to the recommendations of the NEC, you may have learn about these alterations. The NEC offers a basis, but not a prescription of the electrical codes of each municipality.

Call CHS Electricians Columbia now if you need a professional electrician to help you with your electrical problems.

CHS Electricians Columbia
Columbia SC 29205
(803) 973-7324
http://electricianscolumbiasc.com

Tips For Preventing Circuit Overload During The Holidays

 Having a magnificent display in and out your house helps invoke the holiday cheer. But, the winter revelry will be there before you know it once the power goes off in a room, and then cause the music, lights, as well as other electric powered accessories to go out. Fortunately, electricians are there to help you with your electrical problems.

If you lose power in a certain area in your house, it’s possible that you have an overloaded circuit because it’s trying to draw too much electricity from it and it caused the circuit breaker to trip. If you have too many devices or lights on one power strip, then that is the most common cause of the problem. If you connect too many lights, it may also lead to a problem if they are all connected to a single outlet, especially if you are living in an older house that was not wired according to today’s standards.

According to electricians Columbia, you are risking your electric circuits even more if you’re preparing a huge meal and preparing for a big family event at the same time when you’re decorating your halls with Christmas lights using the same circuit. Imagine adding more pressure to your already overloaded wiring when you use whirling mixers, coffee makers, dishwashers, and food processors.

Clean up before and after you have guests over could also create some danger to your electrical system – the vacuum is known for tripping the breakers on the circuits that are already dealing with a decent sized load. Another electricity hog is the space heater as they usually create issues to circuits during the colder season.

How to Avoid Circuit Overload During The Holidays

1. Calculate the circuit load – the majority of circuits have a rating between 15 and 20 amps, so if you know what current your appliances and lights draw you could ballpark how much is considered safe and secure to plug in. In case you approach with a load of 80%, find a different room where you can plug in the next strand of Christmas light.
2. Watch out for large appliances – avoid rooms which has lots of appliances already such as the kitchen if you are searching for a place where you can plug in your Christmas lights. You could also unplug electronics or devices that you don’t need to use so you can free up a lot more current for your Christmas decorations.
3. Use LEDs – buy LED lights if you wish to have that much festive vibe. LED lights use less current compared to conventional bulbs and they will also save you cash on your electricity bills during the holiday season apart from adding less strain on your electrical wiring.
4. Consider installing more circuits – if you’re really committed to creating the brightest holiday lights in your area, together with animatronic snowman, you may consider the installation of at least one dedicated circuits that comes with a rating of 20 amps.

In case a breaker trips, you must feel grateful that it’s on guard for your protection. In case the circuit breaker is not there once the current becomes too much, the circuit wiring can heat up quickly, melt down the insulation and even lead to house fire.

Call CHS Electricians Columbia now and let our electrician help you with your holiday decorations to make sure that you won’t have issues with circuit overloads.

CHS Electricians Columbia
Columbia SC 29205
(803) 973-7324
http://electricianscolumbiasc.com

What’s the average cost of common electrical projects?

 Among the building trading professionals, one of the busiest ones are professional electricians. Homeowners get their services because they don’t want to risk their safety given the level of danger associated to any job that deals with electricity. Generally speaking, hiring an electrician is a good investment because this expert can do the job right the first time around. To avoid surprises later on, here are a few things you need to know about the average cost of common electrical projects.

Costs of the common Services Offered By Electricians

How much do common electrical projects cost?

The rate of professional electricians Columbia is generally a flat fee for the initial visit and then an hourly rate for the actual labor. The call out fee range from $50 to $100 depending on the location while the hourly rate range between $40 and $120 per hour.

It may be difficult to book an electrical contractor to do one small job because of the small profit margin. It’s better to have an electrician do a few tasks in the same service call so you can get the most out of the call out fee.

Repair or Replace a Switch or Receptacle Outlet

This is an easy job but the local electrical contractor will charge his or her minimum fee for it, aside from the call out fee. The costs may range between $100 and $150 so you may have to consider having several outlets replaced during this service if you wish to get the most out of the electrician’s visit.

Grounding an Outlet

In case you are living in an older home that still comes with outlet receptacles with only two slots, you should consider having it replaced with a 3 slot grounded outlet so it can handle plugs with 3 prongs. As long as the circuit breaker panel or fuse box is grounded, this task is easy to complete. It will take about 30 minutes and the labor plus the call out fee may amount to about $100 – $150. The costs may double if the electrician has to establish a ground at the main fuse.

Replace Standard Outlet Receptacles with GFCI

If the electrical contractor is just changing a standard outlet receptacle with a ground fault circuit interrupter, the project may cost between $120 and $150 for the service call and the labor.

Install New Switch or Outlet

The installation of a new switch or outlet where non exists means there’s a need to create an opening in the wall, fish brand new cables to the power source, install a new device and wall box, and establish the connections. The average cost for this type of work range from $150 and $200 because this relatively simple task can be performed in just 30 minutes.

Install a 220/240 Volt Outlet

The installation of a 220/240 outlet may be more expensive than wiring a standard outlet because the electrical contractor may have to run conduit, reorganize the circuit breakers within the main electrical panel, or install a brand new circuit breaker. The average cost may reach up to $300 for this type of electrical work.

 

Call CHS Electricians Columbia now and let our electricians help you install, replace, or maintain the components of your electrical system.

 

CHS Electricians Columbia
Columbia SC 29205
(803) 973-7324
http://electricianscolumbiasc.com