We’ve considered the importance of having a reliable whole home generator for your house in CT, especially if the home is left unattended for long periods of time.
But what if you already own a portable generator and want a safe and convenient way to be able to connect it to your home? The main concerns about hooking up a generator to power your home in the event of an outage or emergency are primarily as regards to safety.
What About “Backfeeding?”
Connecting your portable generator to an appliance outlet and running power backward through the electrical system, known as backfeeding, distributes unbalanced and inefficient electrical loads into your home, possibly damaging systems and appliances, puts an additional strain on your generator, and can be extremely dangerous, even life-threatening.
If the main breaker in your home is not properly shut off, backfeeding electricity will also transfer power to the utility lines outside your property and this could potentially electrocute and kill you, a family member, or an unsuspecting maintenance worker trying to restore power. This could even result in criminal prosecution. The short answer when considering whether or not to backfeed? Don’t.
The Portable Generator Home Solution: GenerLink
When installed correctly, there IS a safe and reliable way to connect a portable generator to your home in just minutes. We recommend and install GenerLink transfer switches for this kind of scenario. The GenerLink device is UL-listed and socket-mounted, installed behind your electric meter.
Instead of attempting a dangerous and potentially illegal backfeed, GenerLink allows you to quickly and easily deliver power directly to your breaker box. This eliminates the hassle of electrical cords running throughout your house. Additionally, units with Bluetooth capability can automatically notify you when utility power has been restored to your property, right on your smartphone! Best of all, it’s perfectly safe, completely legal, and meets the highest manufacturing standards.
With a potentially stormy winter season approaching, get in touch with us today to see if GenerLink is right for your home. If you have any questions about installation or use, we’re here to help you through the entire process!
Were you one of the 800,000+ people that lost power in Connecticut in the wake of Hurricane Isaias this month? If so, your family may have seen the benefits of having an emergency generator installed for your home.
Primetime for Maintenance Work
With the changing weather and winter approaching, the fall season is a good time to look at areas for home and landscape improvement or have maintenance work done for your electrical systems before the cold sets in. We highly recommend servicing your generator(s) during this time, especially if they had to be used for an unexpectedly long period this past month with the Connecticut blackout.
The Benefits of Landscape Lighting
Many homeowners are also looking to beautify their landscaping during this time, particularly by making use of landscape lighting installations and strategically placed fixtures to provide a pleasing outdoor atmosphere for fall evenings.
More importantly, landscape lighting can enhance the security and safety of your home and property. Better-illuminated pathways and steps help to reduce trips and falls. Outdoor landscape and home lighting can even increase the security of your property. In fact, a recent study has shown that outdoor lighting has been proven to reduce crime in some areas by up to 39%!
Professional Lighting Plans
Of course, this doesn’t mean that the solution is simply adding more lights everywhere and anywhere! Hire a landscaping expert to assist you in selecting the appropriate types of landscape lighting that will complement your property, illuminate essential areas, and highlight your home or property from the best possible angles.
The professional placement of lights will help to avoid creating odd shadows or unflattering colors. We also work closely with landscapers and landscape planning experts to install major landscape lighting systems. Making sure these installations are appropriately installed and powered will go a long way in protecting your investment.
If you have questions about landscape lighting and how we can work with you to enhance the beauty and security of your property, please get in touch for the latest information.
Get Ready Now
As mentioned before, this hurricane season has also been a test of emergency electrical preparedness. If you would like to make sure that your family is prepared and protected in the event of a weather emergency, please call us to schedule a check on your electrical systems, have generators installed or maintained, or provide emergency servicing.
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This also applies to homeowners who want to take steps now to prepare for the 2020 hurricane season. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has said that it’s likely we’ll see “above-normal” activity this year. This is due to multiple factors in the current climate, which may combine to create some very interesting and potentially dangerous weather patterns this year, including hurricanes.
Preparation is Key
According to NOAA, the hurricane season in the Atlantic region runs from June 1 and November 30th. As you may have noticed, we’ve already had a few pockets of severe weather and rain this season. This kind of weather can quickly turn into a potentially destructive force.
NOAA acknowledges that, as with every hurricane season, it’s important to prepare beforehand. Because of the shifting COVID-19 pandemic, it’s possible that last year’s plans for disaster preparedness may be affected. This includes what we choose to put in our go-kits (It is recommended to have a bag that we can grab-and-go in the event of an emergency) as well as the places that we designate to be family meet-up points.
In any case, we’ll need to keep our eye on weather forecasts and updates from the Climate Prediction Center as 2020 progresses. We’re already a couple months into the official hurricane season, so it’s more important than ever to be alert to potential weather hazards.
How To Protect Your Home
So, what does that mean for homeowners who want to protect their property and electrical systems?
Take action now to secure your home, and prepare for failures in municipal electrical services.
Energy spikes, brown-outs, and blackouts can all wreak havoc on your home electrical systems, including expensive computer equipment or home theater installations.
First, it’s important to have standard surge-protectors in place around the house. If applicable, consider purchasing surge protectors that are specifically designed for home theater systems.
Computers with sensitive data will benefit from a small battery backup system, such as those made by APC. These units can keep personal computers running for a few minutes after a sudden loss of power, enabling us to save work and shut down the computer safely.
It’s also important to invest in home generators when it’s critical for your house to receive continual clean power, especially in an emergency. Contact us about how a Generac generator could be a sound investment in your property and its electrical systems. If you are an existing customer, make sure that your service and maintenance is up to date!
We’d also like to remind our customers that we provide a range of emergency services and evaluations if you experience electrical situations that require fast professional service. Contact us for safety and service.
Whether a tree gets blown down onto a power line or a lightning strike hits a transformer, we’ve all experienced a power outage during the middle of a severe thunderstorm or windstorm. But have you ever been sitting at home on a sunny day when the power suddenly goes out? It happens a lot more often than you’d think! There are a few common causes of these sunny-day outages—continue reading to learn what they are and how we may be able to help with electrical repair in Trumbull, CT.
Planned Outages
If your electrical company is planning on doing any work in your area, they’ll most likely need to shut off your power for a period of time to complete the task. This is for their safety and to ensure that they’re able to finish the job. Check your provider’s webpage or give them a call to see if any outages are planned in your area before you start to worry about losing power. Luckily, these planned outages often only last for a few minutes!
Non-Weather Related Accidents
A car driving into a utility pole, an animal touching a transformer, or a construction accident can all lead to outages. Depending on where the accident occurred, these incidents—which may seem small—can affect hundreds or even thousands of customers. Rest assured that your power company will be on top of the problem to get your power back up and running as soon as possible.
Issues with Wiring
If you live in an older home, there’s a good chance that your wiring could be the cause of a sudden power outage. Older wiring sometimes can’t handle the necessary electricity load needed for everyday appliances. Consider talking to an electrician about rewiring your home. Though it might be an investment, rewiring could save you from an electrical fire or future power outages.
Another potential wiring issue may stem from pests—or even your own pets. Animals, especially rodents, often chew through wires. As you can imagine, this can lead to significant issues and even cause a power outage. Again, give us a call and let one of our electricians inspect your wiring. You can trust that we’ll get to the root of the problem in no time.
User Error
How many appliances do you have plugged into a single outlet? Two? Three? Four? That’s not wise! Plugging too many appliances into a single outlet can overload your circuit breaker and cause it to trip. The good news is that flipping a breaker back on should solve the problem. However, if that doesn’t work, you’ll need to call an electrician to fix whatever’s wrong.
Call Us for Electrical Repair in Trumbull, CT
If the reason for your outage has something to do with a problem with your wiring, or maybe even user error, be sure to call New England Electrical Contracting, Inc. for electrical repair in Trumbull, CT. One of our 24-hour electricians will be on-site as quickly as possible to repair whatever damage has been done so that you can get back to life as usual.
Regardless of your age, a power outage can be scary and stressful. One moment you’re hanging out watching TV or reading a book, and the next your house is totally dark. Do you know what to do when the power goes out? If not, continue reading. This post will teach you how to stay calm and collected while you wait for the lights to come back on:
Check the circuit breaker: The first thing you should do when your power suddenly goes out is check the circuit breaker, especially if you lose power and it’s not storming outside. The answer to getting your power back on could be as simple as flipping a tripped breaker. If you don’t already know where your circuit breaker is located, take a few minutes to look around for it. Finding a circuit breaker in the dark is a lot more difficult than locating it now.
Call a professional: If your circuit breaker wasn’t tripped and it’s not storming, you should probably go ahead and call a 24 hour electrician in Trumbull, CT to sort out your problem. An electrician can check all of your wiring to determine where the problem is coming from, and fix it as soon as possible. At New England Electrical Contracting, Inc, our pros are on call 24/7, 365 days a year to help with all of your electricity needs.
Light some candles: Unless you’d like to sit in the dark while you wait for your electrician to arrive, we recommend lighting a few candles. They’re not as bright as your normal light bulbs, but candlelight beats pitch black darkness! You should also have a flashlight handy, for when you need to get up and walk around. Make sure you go out and buy some now if you don’t already have any!
Keep your fridge closed: Unless you really need to grab some food from your
fridge or freezer, it’s imperative that you keep both doors closed while your power is out. Obviously, your food needs to stay at the correct temperature while the power is out, and that won’t be possible if you keep opening the door.
Stay cool: Though you shouldn’t keep yourself from overheating by standing in front of your freezer, there are some other things you can do to stay cool and comfortable during the power outage. Taking a cold shower or bath is the fastest way to cool down, but that’ll get pretty chilly. The Boy Scouts recommend putting frozen water bottles under your arms when you’re hot, so freezing a few water bottles now for use later is a good idea. If all else fails and you’re still too hot, just head to a local movie theater! Assuming their power isn’t out, too, you can count on them blasting the AC.
The most important thing to remember is to call a 24 hour electrician in Trumbull, CT when your power goes out. An electrician will be able to put your mind at ease and get those lights back on in no time at all. Write our number down and be sure to call New England Electrical Contracting, Inc. first the next time your power goes out!
