Power outages can be a nuisance during any season. Power lines can be brought down by car accidents, windstorms, snowstorms, and many other uncontrollable factors; this inconvenience can easily be avoided by having a standby generator. Whether you are a business that needs operations to continue or at home looking to stay warm, a standby generator is a great idea.

A standby generator houses an engine that is powered by gas, propane, or diesel. When you lose electrical flow you can turn on the generator to create a new supply of electricity. Depending on how the generator is installed, this transition can be seamless so the generator will take over when you lose power. Unlike a portable generator, a standby generator is positioned on a concrete pad outside of your home.

Standby generators are a great idea for businesses. Downtime caused by a power outage can hurt any type of business, especially if your business depends on electricity for its main components. Having an office full of workers with computers that don’t turn on is not a productive environment. Similarly, businesses that have critical components that run off electricity, such as gas stations, will be rendered useless without a backup power supply.

Standby generators are also a smart choice for residential use. Losing air conditioning or heating can create an uncomfortable environment. Those with medical equipment at home will also need a continuous supply of power or there could be life-threatening consequences.

While electricity may be one of the greatest inventions, it still has its weaknesses. To keep your home and business covered from unexpected power outages have a standby generator installed. Our Expert Electricians can help to advise you and install your generator so you can have peace of mind during events out of your control. If you have any questions or want to get started contact your local Expert Electrician.

This is the final post in our four-part series, "The Secret Guide for Super Moms” — tips, tricks and hacks for busy moms who need to know everything that’s happening in their house.

If you believe Pinterest, every home repair or improvement project can be a do-it-yourself job. Apparently, if every blog is to be believed, moms and dads around the country are remodeling bathrooms, rebuilding old houses and refurbishing vintage furniture -- and they do it all the time! And they look great doing it! And they have plenty of time to take lots of photos!

Maybe some people really are able to do it all (and write about it, too). Most of us are too busy and simply don’t have the training to do more than the basics around the house. When it comes to potentially dangerous repairs, a super mom knows that she needs a professional. When the time comes to fix, rewire or repair her home’s electrical needs, she knows she needs an electrician.

Electrical wiring is complicated and can be dangerous -- and it's tough to spot signs you need an electrician. An amateur electrical job may cause poor wire connections, overloaded circuits or faulty grounding. These situations are hazardous to you, your family and your property. While it may be tempting to try saving money by doing it yourself, or trusting your spouse or a friend to help, you're better off spending the money to have the job done right.

Let's take a fairly common scenario: your fuses keep blowing, or your circuit breakers keep tripping. Yes, you can keep replacing the fuses, but do you know whether they're the right type? Screwing in a 20- or 30-amp fuse as a replacement for a 15 is tempting—no electricians needed, right?—but now you've created a fire hazard by overloading your wiring. The smarter move: call a professional, certified electrician to wire a new circuit.

Like fuses, circuit breakers are meant to prevent circuit overload and the risk of fire, but we use much more electricity than people of our parents' or grandparents' generation. As you upgrade and add appliances and gadgets, you may need to upgrade your circuit breaker panels to adequately supply your home with power. Hire an electrician to do the job, not your brother-in-law who swears he did the same kind of work in the navy. The work is extremely complicated and should not be attempted by an amateur.