Smoke alarms have been required in homes, apartment buildings, and offices for many years. Regulations on carbon monoxide detectors are far more recent, but it’s vital to know whether a potential carbon monoxide leak could make your family members sick. The people at Nest, the same company that brought us the Nest Learning Thermostat, recognized a need for a combination smoke detector and CO detector and created a product that alerts you to danger in a unique way that helps you to feel that your home is protected no matter where you are.

We’ll look at the many benefits of integrated fire alarms and CO detectors in this guide, but be sure to call on a professional for installation. At FB Electrical Services, we’ll make sure that the unit is installed in the most accurate location for smoke and CO detection, that all of the electrical components are working properly, and that the detectors in each room are interconnected.

Many people in the Alpharetta area have barns without pole barn lighting. It is still fairly common to see pole barns with no artificial lighting or traditional sodium lights installed. Both options can lead to unsafe situations.

Pole barns have many dark nooks and crannies and often have sharp objects stored in them. Sharp objects plus dark areas is a recipe for injury. To prevent potentially dangerous conditions, you should have a lighting system installed. It is especially important to get these lights installed before winter, as the days are shorter and nights are longer. The pole barn will be left through those long nights without natural or artificial lighting unless you have an electrician install illumination now.

Here are the options:

● Fluorescent Lights. Fluorescent lights are a good option for a relatively small space, especially if the ceilings are low. Fluorescent lights are cheap to buy and run. They are also fairly energy efficient, which means your electrical bill will be lower.

● Halide Lights. While fluorescent lights have long been popular for many residential and commercial applications, halide lights are relatively new. They have been around a few years but are not as common as fluorescent lights due to their more specialized nature. Though halide lights are stronger than fluorescent lights, they do have a few drawbacks. They are more expensive to buy and operate, and they take a while to reach full power after being turned on. Nonetheless, they’re likely the best option for large pole barns because of their power.

We can’t understate the importance of properly-functioning main electrical panels. If this is one aspect of your electrical system you haven’t got checked recently, it’s crucial you do so without delay. When the cooler/extremely hot season rolls in, people tend to spend more time indoors and that results in higher energy usage as the HVAC systems are operated for longer periods of time. At this time, the last thing you want is a malfunction in the main electrical panel; that can prove to be a hazard for you and your family members.

Today, most homes have a large number of electrical installations and the electrical panel plays a key role in connecting and powering all of these. This means, if the latter either malfunctions or stops working altogether, that can impact all the electrical systems on your property; they may be rendered unsafe or may fail to work. When you ensure that the electrical panel is in working order, it ensures these systems are able to keep up with the electrical usage patterns on your property.

It’s not uncommon for homeowners to keep on adding electrical appliances to their home; but this isn’t something you can do unendingly. Your home’s maximum electrical output is limited, as well as determined by the electrical panel installed on your property. In simple terms this means if you are planning on making some additions/extensions to your home or are considering adding some heavy-duty electrical appliances, it’s vital that you consult a reliable local electrician before you do so.

They will inspect the system, test its output and assess whether the existing panel would be able to bear the load of the new, potential output. Even if the former is below the maximum potential output, it might be a better idea to get the main electrical panel upgraded anyway.

It will ensure you are able to enjoy an uninterrupted power supply even if you have multiple heavy load electrical appliances operating simultaneously on your premises. If you are doubtful about whether your electrical panel needs to be upgraded, contact your electrician and get their advice on what the best plan of action would be.

While having an older main electrical panel isn’t necessarily a bad thing, there are certain aspects you should watch out for, such as:

Even the semi-modern panels that have the flappable circuit-breakers are able to keep your appliances as well as your home protected from high electrical surges. When it comes to electrical systems, it’s never a good idea to compromise on the safety aspect and keeping the main electrical panel upgraded is the one way to maintain that.

If you are considering adding any extensions to your home, growing your home’s living space in any other way, are concerned about the safety of your existing electrical panel or are adding any electrical appliances or installations on your property, call us at AllRound Electrical for a consultation today.