Flickering lights, frequently tripping breakers, burnt smells, or hot outlets and switches. Do you witness any of these around you, within your house? Do you know how these could lead to significant issues in the future? If your house is experiencing common electrical hazards, then it should turn the red light on for you. It is a signal that “Hey, you need to schedule a home inspection with electrical safety inspection right away”. The more electricity has become a necessity, the more it could lead to potential issues. This is especially true if the system is not properly installed, maintained, or inspected. So, you can’t just say that getting the system inspected is the last nail to hit. You also need to maintain the electrical system regularly. A qualified home inspector can help you with that. These professionals can identify potential hazards and guide you in maintaining a safe electrical system in your house.
In this blog, we will explore the importance of electrical safety inspections and their benefits that can help keep your family, property, and investments away from electrical risks. Let’s first have a look at the common electrical hazards in homes.
Common Electrical Hazards in Home
The first thing you need to know is the potential electrical hazards lurking within your home. This lets you look exactly where you need to save time. However, the best way to address the issues is by scheduling an electrical safety inspection, but we’ll come to that later.
Following are some of the most common electrical issues and hazards that might be present in your home:
Outdated Wiring
One of the most common issues is old wiring systems. Most houses still use aluminum or knob-and-tube wiring that doesn’t meet the electricity demands anymore within your modern home and poses a major safety risk.
Overloaded Circuits
Most of the time, a circuit happens to handle more current than it should. This surely isn’t a good sign as such events can lead to overheating, resulting in electrical fires.
Unprotected Electrical Connections
At times, your home is missing junction boxes, or they might be damaged, causing the wiring to get exposed and again increasing the risk of electric fires and shocks. This is particularly dangerous in wet areas of your home, mainly kitchens and bathrooms.
Faulty GFCI Outlets
GFCI outlets help protect against electric shocks in areas that are exposed to moisture. If your house has malfunctioning or missing GFCIs, then you need to remain alert for exposure to serious health hazards.
The Importance of Electrical Safety Inspections During Home Inspections
Preventing Electrical Fires
One of the most important reasons for conducting electrical safety inspections is to identify and mitigate potential fire hazards. Faulty wiring, overloaded circuits, and other electrical issues can lead to overheating and sparks, resulting in house fires. According to the U.S. Fire Administration, the estimated number of electrical fires in 2021 was 24,200, which must have increased by the year 2024. These stats are enough to emphasize how common this issue is and how important these inspections are.
Protecting Residents from Electrical Shocks
Electrical safety inspections are important for protecting you from electrical shocks. These inspections identify and address potential hazards within a home’s electrical system by thoroughly examining the following:
- Wiring
- Outlets
- Appliances
- Other electrical components
The inspection uncovers issues such as exposed wires, and once you accidentally touch those it can easily result in an electrical shock. Inspectors also check for unprotected outlets, particularly in areas that have greater risk, like kitchens and bathrooms, where moisture can increase the likelihood of electrical shocks.
Ensuring Compliance with Safety Codes
Electrical safety codes are the most important factor you need to ensure within your house. But don’t worry. Electrical safety inspections can help you with that. These inspections systematically evaluate your home’s electrical system against the set standards and regulations. Inspectors are updated in national, state, and local electrical codes. By checking that your home adheres to these standards, they can promote safety, efficiency, and reliability in electrical installations. During an inspection, they check wiring, circuit breakers, outlets, etc., to ensure all of these meet current code requirements. This includes verifying that:
- Proper materials and techniques have been used
- Systems are correctly grounded
- Circuits are not overloaded
Enhancing System Efficiency
Electrical safety inspections enhance system efficiency by identifying and addressing issues that can impact the optimal performance of a home’s electrical system. If your electrical system is not working as it should, then you definitely need to schedule an electrical safety inspection. During an inspection, professionals thoroughly examine the following:
- Wiring
- Circuit breakers
- Outlets
- Other electrical components
Inspectors detect problems such as loose connections, corrosion, or outdated materials that can cause inefficiencies. They also assess the load distribution across circuits to ensure that they are not overloaded. As this can lead to frequent tripping of circuit breakers and inconsistent power supply.
Identifying Hidden Problems
Electrical safety inspections are essential for identifying hidden problems within a home’s electrical system that you might not identify right away. This is why you need to hire inspectors who can use their expertise and specialized tools to conduct a thorough evaluation of the entire system. During the evaluation, they check behind walls, in attics, and in crawl spaces where wiring and electrical components are usually hidden. This allows them to identify issues like degraded wiring, loose connections, and faulty installations that could pose serious safety hazards. What makes their results more accurate is the use of advanced tools like thermal imaging cameras. These cameras help detect overheating components and electrical loads that are not balanced correctly.
Conclusion
By uncovering hidden problems, electrical safety inspections let you address issues before they escalate into significant hazards. This proactive approach ensures that the electrical system remains safe, reliable, and efficient. Eventually, protecting your home and your loved ones from potential electrical disasters.
Given the potential dangers of an inadequately maintained electrical system, you should especially consider scheduling an electrical safety inspection in different circumstances, like when you’re buying your home, when you are maintaining it and lastly, when you identify the potential issues we discussed above.
Ensure your home is safe and sound with Main Choice Inspections! Our comprehensive home inspection services include a thorough assessment of your electrical system, identifying potential hazards and ensuring everything is up to code. Don’t leave your family’s safety to chance—schedule your home inspection with Main Choice Inspections today and gain peace of mind knowing your home is in expert hands. Contact us now to book your appointment!