Fixing the wiring in your home is not something that you want to trust to just anyone. The possibility of shocks and electrocution as well as the danger of electrical fire presented by a poor wiring job are too serious to risk doing your own electrical work, and an inexperienced electrician can provide shoddy work that impacts your safety and your wallet.

For all things electrical, from installing a new outlet to rewiring a new addition, you need the skills, training, and experience of a licensed electrician. There are many good reasons for narrowing your search to only include local electricians.

An electrician who works and lives in the area is most familiar with local building codes, material vendors, and the procedures necessary to get the required licenses. What’s more, electricians are licensed by individual states (and the District of Columbia) and are only permitted to work in those state(s) where they have passed the licensing exam and where they meet the continuing education requirements.

Another good reason for working with a local electrical contractor is that when you work with a local small business, the dollars you spend stay in the community rather than going to the corporate offices of a large company or big box retailer. Local electricians are your neighbors and will spend the dollars you give them at local restaurants, retailers, and community service programs.

Lastly, though possibly most importantly, local electricians rely on their reputation for their livelihood. They’d be out of business quickly if satisfied customers didn’t recommend them to their neighbors, co-workers, church members, and friends. For that reason, a local electrician has an extra incentive to do quality work on your project.

At Kolb Electric, we’ve been helping Maryland, Northern Virginia, and Washington, DC homeowners with their electrical needs for more than 90 years. We live right here in the communities near you, shop in the same stores, and support the same businesses. We’re familiar with the houses in this area as well as the local building codes and licensing requirements. We also know where to get the best prices for you on quality electrical supplies.

To learn more about how Kolb Electric can help you with your next electrical project, large or small, call us at 877 287-1179 or contact us online today.

A backyard pool provides years of fun for your entire family. Gatherings are so much more exciting when there’s a pool available. The sultry Tampa and St. Petersburg evenings provide a wonderful opportunity for adults to entertain around the pool patio, indulging in a late night dip. There’s no more inviting sight than a sparkling pool, just waiting for you and your family.

One of the best ways to enhance your poolscape after the sun goes down is by installing lighting. Pool lights illuminate the dazzling water and create a safe night time swimming environment. They provide security, especially when there are little ones about. But, when your lights start to act up-dimming, cutting on and off, or going out for no reason, you need to locate the source of the interruption in your pool lighting—and fast.

Everyone has had electrical problems with lamps and lighting fixtures. Your favorite lamp may be flickering off and on. You’ve changed the bulb and that doesn’t fix the problem. Now what do you do? The answer can be as simple as replacing worn out light fixture wiring or it may be more complex than that.

Incorrect use of electricity, inefficient appliances and lighting may lead to high energy bills. In addition, the faulty state of your home insulation will lead to heat or cold air escaping when it should not. Other factors include water leakages in the washroom and kitchen sinks, leaking hot water pipes, etc. Any of these will require more energy to heat or cool the air, or pump water to compensate for the lost amounts.

An electrician can assess your entire home and make a recommendation to enable you to save energy and you may even be able to enjoy energy rebates from making upgrades to your lighting system. Address any electrical problems at this time.

Any time of the year is a good time to save money, especially when it comes to the issue of one’s electricity bill. However, it is very understandable that the summer season is when one’s electricity bills tend to go straight through the roof because of the increasingly hot weather! This summer season, make sure that you end up saving some money on your electricity bill with the following energy savings cost cutting tips.

For starters, make sure that you keep your TVs and also your lamps quite a distance away from your thermostat. You see, both TVs and lamps emit heat, therefore prompting your air conditioning to actually run excessively and more than it really has to! Instead, place your TV and lamps across the room and think hard about switching to compact fluorescent bulbs.

Insulation is yet another thing you should do properly if you want to attend to your energy savings and your summer electricity cost cutting steps. You ought to insulate in an intelligent manner, for one thing. This means that you should look to insulate in some areas more than others, such as the attic. When you insulate your attic, you actually lower the negative effects of the heat that stem from the scorching rays of the sun. If you do this correctly, you are going to stop the heat that tends to build up on top of your home from actually filtering down to the rest of the residence.

Sometimes, your summer electricity cost cutting measures are so simple that they may even seem deceptively…simple! Take for instance the issue of your windows. When days get really, really hot in the summer months, just remember to close either your blinds or your curtains prior to leaving for work in the morning. This will minimize the effect of the sun’s blistering rays from beating down into the various rooms of your residence, thereby warming up your home to unbearable levels. As a sweet bonus, the fading effect of the sun’s rays to your rugs and your furniture will also be minimized.

Finally, you should use your microwave more than the oven for when you are preparing dinner. If you utilize your microwave, you can efficiently get your dinner ready in just a few minutes rather than an hour, and you will also be generating a lot less heat than if you utilize your oven!

So as you can verily see, there are a lot of things that you can do with regard to saving some money on your electricity bills over the summer. All that matters is that you have to be committed to adopting some of these money saving tips over the summer.