Dealing With Electrical Problems
As any veteran do-it-yourselfer knows, there are lot of
mistakes made before you can call yourself an expert on
anything. We all have experiences of home improvement
projects that proved to be anything but an improvement.
Usually these kind of mistakes just make us laugh and
learn. But there are some home projects that cannot be
done wrong because they are too dangerous to have a
mistake with. Electrical repairs fall within this
category. But if you follow these steps, you can make
sure you keep yourself and your family safe when you do
an electrical repair. Before you even take any of these
steps, however, find out if your local community
requires you to have a permit in order to do any
electrical work. But these laws are different in each
state, and even in each municipality, so check first.
The first thing you should do before you work on
electricity is to turn the electric power off at the
source. This must be done at the circuit breaker, since
just turning off a wall switch will still leave you with
hot wires.
Make sure the electric is off by using a voltage meter.
After you have turned the electricity off at the circuit
breaker, test the wire in the room you are working in
and make sure nothing registers. Keep the power off
until you have completed the job. You should not touch
any of the electrical wires that bring electricity into
the house. If you think there is something wrong With
this service, make sure you contact your power company.
When you are working on electricity, never stand in
water or even on a damp floor. Water conducts
electricity, and it will go through you if it has to. If
the floor is damp, put down a rubber mat.
Make sure you know what materials you are working with.
In general, you have to be careful of metal, but rubber
is safe. Since metal conducts electricity, do not touch
metal at the same time you are touching a live wire,
because you will become the conductant.
Since rubber is a nonconductive material, it will
insulate you. So you should use tools with rubber or
plastic handles, and wear rubber soled shoes or
sneakers. While we are on the subject of what to wear,
you should also wear safety goggles and gloves.
Now that you have completed the repair, flip the circuit
breaker back on to turn on the power. Use you voltage
meter once again to see if there is power, and there is
the right amount of voltage. Smaller items such as
lights, a receptacle or a small appliance will need 120
volts. Big appliances (air conditioners, ovens, etc.)
will require 240 volts. There are some appliances that
need such small voltage, such as doorbells or telephones
that they will have a transformer to convert the power
to a smaller voltage.
If you want to make sure you know what you are doing
before you start an electrical repair job, you may
consider taking advantage of the clinics or workshops
that many do-it-yourself centers offer. You will learn a
lot and feel more confident when you tackle the next
job. If you don't feel that you know what you are doing,
don't take a chance: call an expert electrician to do
this kind of work. There are plenty of other jobs you
can do, such as painting, hanging shelves, or trimming
branches. Just ask your wife. She probably has a "honey
do" list as well as cnc routers and used cnc electronics
all ready and waiting for you.
Ray Walberg works
essentially for
http://www.insidewoodworking.com
, a web publication about cnc machines, cnc routers and
different topics. His comments on cnc routers and used
cnc electronics can be encountered on his web sites.
If you are looking for Chemung County electrician please all us today at 607-733-2032 or complete our service request form. |
