News / Blog

Outdoor Ceiling Fan Options

Ceiling fans make a great addition to your outdoor porches and gazebos. They can make these areas cool and comfortable on hot summer days and nights.

Note that only properly rated fans should be used in an outdoor area. Even though they aren’t exposed to direct weather such as rain or snow, these areas can still be exposed to moisture.

Outdoor rated ceiling fans are designed to keep moisture from damaging the fans and prevent moisture from penetrating the motor and electronic components.

These two Monte Carlo outdoor fans were installed on a screened-in back porch in Lincoln University, PA.

Generators: A Great Idea For Your Home

Generators can be used to power your home when utility power is lost. There are many options to choose from, with different power sources and capacities.

Most commonly used are the portable gasoline powered plug in types and also the whole house automatic generators that run on propane or natural gas. Both can do the job and keep refrigerators, freezers, pumps and heaters running until utility power is restored.

The advantage of a whole house generator is they can handle a larger load like A/C units and hot water heaters. Also with an automatic transfer switch (ATS) the house changes over from utility power to generator power automatically. This can be a big advantage especially if you’re away on vacation and a bad storm hits at home and knocks out the utility power.

The ATS unit detects the outage and starts the generator, which begins to power the whole house. When the utility power is restored the ATS switches back over and shuts down the generator.

The pictures here show a new Generac generator installation with ATS in Avondale, Pennsylvania here in Chester county.

Summer A/C Unit Safety

During the recent heat wave our air conditioners are running constantly, around the clock. Its important to have good connections from the breaker panel to where we plug them in.

Any loose connection can cause arcing, heat and eventually a fire. It’s a good idea to check and make sure that you have a good tight connection between the plug and the receptacle. Its also important to have your A/C unit on a separate dedicated line on its own breaker.

The picture above shows a burned-up air conditioner cord and the outlet it was plugged into in a home here in Chester county.

Easy Wiring With Wire Mold

In some buildings it’s not possible to run or fish electrical wiring in the walls, like in some old houses that have solid masonry walls. Wire mold is a good option because it has a neat clean look and protects the wire from damage.

These pictures show a dedicated outlet using wire mold, installed for an air conditioner in West Grove, PA.

The Convenience Of Recessed Outlets

Recessed outlets are great for outdoor use, since they are low profile and recess neatly into the wall, eliminating the usual unsightly bubble covers. They can be installed on all types of surfaces such as siding or masonry. An in-use cover allows you to plug in and keep the cover closed and weather tight.

Recessed outlets are also great for your flat screen TVs. They can be neatly installed behind the panel and allow all the hook ups to be behind the tv.

Save With Ambiance Lighting

Ambiance under-cabinet lighting by Seagull is a great way to add light to the kitchen. The lights are low profile and are neatly installed under the cabinets.

They put the light right where needed, on the counter tops. These low voltage lights can be dimmed and the festoon bulbs are easy to replace.

The Little Grey Box

PECO announced that they will no longer have off-peak service  the end of this year. The off peak rate was mostly used for the hot water heaters so that people could save a considerable amount on their electric bills.

Electric water heaters consume a lot of electricity; they run throughout out the day and night to keep the water hot. A water heater timer can help you lower your consumption by only turning on and heating the water when needed.

The Little Grey box by Intermatic is made just for water heaters. It has two sets of trips so it can be set to turn off when you go to bed at night, and then back on in the morning as needed. It can be deactivated while you’re away at work.

Contact us if you have more questions on this device or need it it installed.

Breaker Panel Repairs

Water can cause big problems with electrical service equipment, especially your main breaker panel. It can enter into the outside meter box, causing rust and corrosion that can damage the connections and cause a safety hazard. Water can also make its way into the main breaker panel often coming in thru the service entrance cable.

It’s important that the insulation covering your service entrance cables are in good condition so water can’t penetrate. The picture below shows a old rusted out meterbox in Landenburg, PA. The top photo shows the replacement installation, featuring a 200 amp service.

Using Electric Heaters

Historically electric heat has been an expensive way to heat your house. However, with the high cost of oil and gas this year the use of portable electric heaters has become more popular.

Electric heaters allow you to turn down the heating system for the whole house and just heat an occupied room where needed.

Electric heaters can be a safety hazard if not used properly. Always leave plenty of space around your heater, keep them away from drapes or curtains, and never use a extension cord.

Also, check cords and plugs to make sure they are not getting hot. Be sure that the outlet you use is nice and tight. Any loose connection with these high wattage heaters can cause a fire hazard.

Above you can see a burned up receptacle from a loose connection that this heater was plugged into from here in West Grove, PA.

Tamper-Resistant Receptacles

Each year many children suffer electric shock or burns from inserting objects into electrical outlets on the wall.  For newly constructed homes and remodel jobs in our area, electricians are required to use tamper resistant (TR) receptacles, also known as child proof outlets.

TR receptacles are designed so that a single object like a paper clip or pin cannot be pushed into the outlet. It has a dual spring loaded shutter that only opens when an actual plug is inserted into it.

If you have young children in your house this is a great safety feature and can be a lot more convenient than the little child proof caps that need to be put in all the outlets.

This photo shows one of many decor style TR receptacles available, this one installed in a home in Avondale, PA.