The importance of routine electrical maintenance

"When was the last time your home's electrical system was serviced?" 


When asked this question, most homeowners respond with "serviced?....", or sometimes a blank stare. 


Electrical systems in a home are some of the most overlooked and neglected out of all the home's systems. It is very common for little or no thought to be put into what is powering the lights, appliances, AC systems, home theaters, computers, vacuum cleaners, etc. etc. There are no filters to change, motors or bearings to be greased, or no pipes to be flushed. Everything's okay as long as it works when you plug it in, right?


Here is a word about electrical safety from Vernon T. Houchin, a retired St. Louis Fire Department Captain.......

Electrical accidents and fires cause personal injury to homeowners and millions of dollars of damage to homes throughout America each year. These tragedies are often the result of poor installation, outdated components and systems that have not been maintained.

To protect homeowners, organizations such as the National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA) provide and continually update electrical standards for homes just like yours. These are standards that organizations like the NFPA recommend to protect you, your home and your family from fire and electrical shock.

The electrical industry is constantly improving with new technology to make your home more energy efficient and safer. The electrical codes are constantly being updated to reflect that technology and many of the advancements in the last few years have outdated many wiring methods used in the past. If your home hasn't been updated with the newest standards, you may be staring a potential hazard right in the face.

Electrocution and fire are real threats. For example, from 1992 to 2001, electrical problems accounted for 407,606 fires, 3,406 deaths and $7,858,700,000 in damages in the United States. (Source: Statistics from the U.S. Fire Administration's Fire in the United States, 1992-2001, Thirteenth Edition.)

With homeowner education, improved safety standards and programs like the Home Protection Plan, homes are safer. I urge you to consider these plans. Many fires and electrical deaths are caused by factors that could have been avoided with regular maintenance.

-Mr. Houchin was also president of the Retired Firefighters Association, Vice President of Local 73 International Firefighters Union, and Legislative Chairman of the Firefighters Benefits Committee.

When was the last time you had a qualified electrical professional examine your home's electrical system? Have you ever? If not, it's a good possibility you "may be staring a potential hazard right in the face". 

Similar to your car, your electrical system needs routine maintenance. Changing the oil, the filters, having the brakes serviced, and other routine maintenance for your vehicle not only helps extend its life, but it also reduces the risk of you and your family dealing with breakdowns and even accidents. Like your car, your electrical system is an active system. Electricity flows from the power company into your main service, where your meter is located. From there, it goes into your panel where all the circuit breakers are located. From the circuit breakers, it distributes through wiring ran in the walls and ceiling to all of your outlets and switches, ultimately powering up everything that makes modern life so convenient. As the electricity flows through the wiring, heat is generated. The wires continually heat, then cool, then heat up again. Over time, this process begins to break-down the electrical systems components and wiring, causing a hazardous condition. Old wiring can form breaks in the insulation, allowing power to "leak" through if another current carrying substance comes in contact with it. Circuit breakers internal mechanisms that cause the breaker to "trip"(or shut off power if a short or surge takes place to prevent fires) began to degrade over time and may delay to shut off power, or worse, not shut it off at all if a short or surge takes place! This can result in an electrical fire.

Our mission at Advantage Services is to protect you and your family from the threat of electrical hazards and to ensure your continued comfort and safety. When you call us out for service, you'll have the opportunity to get your electrical system into tip top condition and in line with the current electrical standards. By making that choice, you'll be protecting your family today, and in the future. 

But we want to take your protection a step further. We're proud to present you with the opportunity to protect your family and home as a member of our Home Protection Plan. When you join in the Home Protection Plan, you'll gain the peace of mind that comes from knowing the most professional electricians in our community are protecting you and your family.

Here are the Home Protection Plan benefits:

1. Priority Service.

As a Plan Member, you go straight to the front of the line when you call for service. 

2. Electrical Safety Inspection and panel tune-up.

Your family's continued safety is our top priority. We will do a safety inspection for you on the day you sign up, and every year we will return to your home to perform a complete, written electrical protection inspection to spot any new problems areas before they become a hazard to you and your family. We will also perform a complete panel tune-up that will help to extend the life of your electrical panel plus decrease the risk of untimely breakdowns and hazardous situations.

3. Service Satisfaction Commitment.

We promise you'll be satisfied with any service we perform in your home for as long as you"re a Home Protection Plan Member.

4. Exclusive Specials.

From time to time, you'll be able to take advantage of exclusive offers and discounts we make available only to our Plan members!

5. A Home Value Booster.

Your Home Protection Plan is also transferable to a new owner if you sell your home, and the peace of mind that is brings is a huge selling point! Or, it can move with you if you stay within the Las Vegas Valley or Boulder City.

6. Safety Savings.

You receive a 10% discount on the products and services needed to bring your home up to the minimum standards of the National Fire Protection Association and keep you and your family safe in the future. The $79.00 service call fee is also waived if you are a Home Protection Plan member.

There are many benefits to the plan, but the most powerful fact may be knowing that you and your family are safe.  

This safety and peace of mind, as well as the benefits, is all available to you for only $9.95 per month. 

Today, you have the opportunity to ensure the safety of your home and family. Call us at (702) 541-8600, and ask for David Lund, our service manager. He can answer any questions you may have, and can book an appointment to perform a safety inspection on your home. If you feel that you may be living with a potential fire hazard in your home, don't delay; call today.

Are you still using 100 year old technology?

Let me ask you a few questions:
1. Do you use a horse and buggy to commute to work?
2. Do you wash your clothes by hand with a bar of soap and a tub of water?
3. Do you use egg yolks for shampoo?

If you answered "NO" to those questions, then why are you using a light bulb that was developed over 100 years ago?!

Quick facts about incandescent light bulbs:

1. First light bulb Thomas Edison helped invent.
2. Hot to the touch.
3. Burn out quickly.
4. Use massive amounts of electricity compared to newer technology compact fluorescent and LED bulbs.
5. Produce heat making your A/C system work harder and longer to cool the rooms they are in.
6. Costs you more $$ on electric bill and on home maintenance costs due to short life.
7. Highly inefficient as 98% of energy input is emmited as heat.*
*-Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LED_lamp#Comparison_to_other_lighting_technologies

Wikipedia Facts about incandescent light bulbs:

Incandescent light bulbs are gradually being replaced in many applications by other types of electric lights, such as fluorescent lamps, compact fluorescent lamps,cold cathode fluorescent lamps (CCFL), high-intensity discharge lamps, and light-emitting diodes (LEDs). These newer technologies improve the ratio of visible light to heat generation. Some jurisdictions, such as the European Union, are in the process of phasing out the use of incandescent light bulbs in favor of more energy-efficient lighting. In the United States, federal law has scheduled incandescent light bulbs to be phased out by 2014, to be replaced with more energy-efficient light bulbs.^[3] InBrazil, they have already been phased out.<sup>[when?][citation needed]


-Source:</sup> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Incandescent_light_bulb

Thomas Edison began serious research into developing a practical incandescent lamp in 1878. Edison filed his first patent application for "Improvement In Electric Lights" on October 14, 1878.^[27] After many experiments with platinum and other metal filaments, Edison returned to a carbon filament. The first successful test was on October 22, 1879,^[28] and lasted 13.5 hours. Edison continued to improve this design and by November 4, 1879, filed for a U.S. patent for an electric lamp using "a carbon filament or strip coiled and connected ... to platina contact wires."^[29] Although the patent described several ways of creating the carbon filament including using "cotton and linen thread, wood splints, papers coiled in various ways,"^[29] it was not until several months after the patent was granted that Edison and his team discovered that a carbonized bamboo filament could last over 1200 hours.

-Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Incandescent_light_bulb#History_of_the_light_bulb

Quick facts about CFL (compact fluorescent) bulbs:


An ENERGY STAR Qualified Compact Fluorescent Light bulb (CFL):

• can save more than $40 in electricity costs over its lifetime
• uses about 75% less energy than standard incandescent bulbs and lasts up to 10 times longer
• produces about 75% less heat, so it's safer to operate and can cut energy costs associated with home cooling

-Source: http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?fuseaction=find_a_product.showProductGroup&pgw_code=LB


Wikipedia Facts about the CFL bulb:

A compact fluorescent lamp (CFL), also known as a compact fluorescent light or energy saving light (or less commonly as a compact fluorescent tube), is a type of fluorescent lamp. Many CFLs are designed to replace an incandescent lamp and can fit into most existing light fixtures formerly used for incandescents.

Compared to general service incandescent lamps giving the same amount of visible light, CFLs use less power and have a longer rated life. In the United States, a CFL has a higher purchase price than an incandescent lamp, but can save over US$40 in electricity costs over the lamp's lifetime.^[2] Like all fluorescent lamps, CFLs contain mercury, which complicates their disposal.

CFLs radiate a different light spectrum from that of incandescent lamps. Improved phosphor formulations have improved the perceived colour of the light emitted by CFLs such that some sources rate the best "soft white" CFLs as subjectively similar in colour to standard incandescent lamps.^[3]

-Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compact_fluorescent_lamp

Quick facts about LED (Light emitting diode) bulb:

1. Produce very little heat.

2. Extremely long lamp life.

3. Have a life rating of up to 20,000 hours.* Less maintenance costs due to higher lamp life.

4. Very energy efficient in (2) ways: (1) uses very little energy (2) by emitting very little heat, the A/C system in your home or business works more efficiently and runs for less time since it doesn't have to cool down spaces being heated up by incandescent lamps.

5. Initial cost is much higher than that of a CFL.

*Check with your specific lighting manufacturer of lamps you buy for exact life ratings.

Wikipedia facts about the LED bulb:

An LED lamp (LED lightbulb) is a solid-state lamp that uses light-emitting diodes (LEDs) as the source of light. The LEDs involved may be conventional semiconductor light-emitting diodes, to organic LEDs(OLED), or polymer light-emitting diodes (PLED) devices, although OLED and PLED technologies are not commercially available in 2010.

Since the light output of individual light-emitting diodes is small compared to incandescent and compact fluorescent lamps, multiple diodes are often used together. In recent years, as diode technology has improved, high power light-emitting diodes with higher lumen output are making it possible to replace other lamps with LED lamps. One high power LED chip used in some commercial LED lights can emit 7,527 lumens while using only 100 watts.^[1] LED lamps can be made interchangeable with other types of lamps.

Diodes use direct current (DC) electrical power, so LED lamps must also include internal circuits to operate from standard AC voltage. LEDs are damaged by being run at higher temperatures, so LED lamps typically include heat management elements such as heat sinks and cooling fins. LED lamps offer long service life and high energy efficiency, but initial costs are higher than those of fluorescent lamps.

Nevada Energy has some great tips for saving energy as well:

http://nvenergy.com/saveenergy/home/energytips.cfm

Keep up with the 21st century and stop using 100-year-old outdated technology! Save money and help save the Earth by replacing incandescent bulbs with CFL or LED bulbs today!

Why Choose Advantage Services?

There are many reasons to go with Advantage Services. We know that Las Vegas is our family, and we want to treat you that way.

• StraightForward Pricing
• No Job to Small
• Locally Owned and Operated
• All Work Guaranteed
• Prompt Honest & Professional

Call us up and give us an opportunity to show you how dedicated we will be.