Each season comes with its set of reasons to call an emergency electrician. While you hopefully won’t be affected by all of these problems this year, there’s always the possibility that you’ll need to phone a 24-hour electrician to take a look at one or two emergencies on this list.
Summer
- Air conditioner stops working: Check to see if the breaker is tripped. If the breaker is tripped, go to the thermostat and turn off the cooling unit. After you have turned off the thermostat, go back to the breaker and turn the breaker all the way off before resetting it to the ‘on’ position. If the breaker trips again, call an emergency electrician. If it doesn’t trip, turn the thermostat back on. If the breaker trips once the AC is on, you will need to contact an AC repairman.
- Window AC unit trips circuit breakers: Air conditioning and refrigeration consumes a hefty amount of electricity. Running a hair dryer or vacuum on the same circuit as the window AC unit may be enough to trip the circuit breaker. To prevent overloading the circuit, use the labels in the breaker box to connect high electricity-consuming devices to outlets on a circuit other than the one the window AC unit is on.
Spring/Fall
- Trees fall on the electric meter boxes and risers: The weather is unpredictable in the spring and fall, which can lead to a downed tree on your property. Even if it barely scrapes your home, this could be enough to rip the electric meter base and riser off of the outer wall of your house. An emergency electrician is the person you trust to get things sorted out and fixed in order to get the power turned back on to your home.
- Ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) replacement: The spring and fall are as good a time as any to test GFCIs. If you have old outlets in your bathrooms or kitchen, replace them with GFCI receptacles as soon as possible to prevent potential shock. Don’t wait until it’s an emergency; call an electrician for this task.
Winter
Learn what common seasonal electrical emergencies call for an emergency electrician to come take a look.
- Portable electric heaters trip circuit breakers: Portable heaters consume quite a bit of electricity. If they are plugged into an outlet on a nearly maxed-out circuit, perhaps one poweringChristmas lights, they could overload it and trip the circuit breaker. Circuits trip to prevent damage to the wiring of the electrical system, but knowledge of which outlets are on a circuit can prevent this from happening.
- Wet electrical connections could cause your GFCI to short out: Electricity and water don’t mix. If any electrical device in or outside your home gets wet it could cause part of your home to short out. Knowing where your GFCIs are located and which outlets they control, can remedy this problem. If not, an emergency electrician is your best bet for pinpointing and correcting the problem.
If you’re experiencing an electrical emergency, please contact ElectricMan today. ElectricMan is a trusted, local emergency electrician with 27 years of experience.