Electricity is a gift that we use every day to power our home appliances and other gadgets, and living without it now seems impossible. Since most of us are busy enjoying its perks, we often tend to forget the hazards that come while using it.
Therefore, this article will guide you with the best electrical safety tips to help you protect your house in the right way. Let’s take a look.
Below are a few Electrical safety tips for your home:
1. Always Follow Appliance Instructions for Improved Electrical Safety
Every new appliance that you buy for your home comes with a Safety Manual that helps you to stay protected from electrical hazards. When you follow the safety guidelines, it allows you to improve the health of the device you are using and also helps with your personal safety. A damaged extension cord or an overloaded power outlet is the most common electrical hazards that we find in our homes. Sometimes, you might also notice a slight electric shock from the devices which you use every day. If you see such problems, make sure you get them fixed.
2. Avoid Overloading Outlets
Overloading the power outlets in your home can lead to many severe electrical problems. Many people think that they can manage to plug in multiple devices when they are far away; however, doing that leads to your electrical appliances getting damaged and sometimes permanently shutting off. Therefore, it is recommended that you stay safe and avoid overloading your power outlets.
3. Replace and repair the damaged and faulty cords
Having damaged and faulty cords in your home is a serious risk that can lead to a fire and other dangerous electrical problems. Therefore, you must regularly check the power cords in your home so you can replace them when you notice the signs of frying and cracking.
4. Unplug appliances when not in use
One of the easiest things that you can do for your safety is to unplug your device before you stop using them. Doing this helps you prevent the risk of overheating and enables you to save some money on your power bill. With our busy schedules, we often forget to turn off or unplug our devices, and if you find yourself stuck in a situation like this, upgrading to a smart plug is recommended.
5. Keep Electrical devices away from Water
Electricity and water are never a good match; therefore, getting an electrical device near water that is already powered on is never a good idea. While interacting with your electrical appliances, make sure you have dry hands because that helps to avoid the risk of electric shock. You should also keep items like iron, blenders, vacuum cleaners, coffee pots, and microwaves away from water because that helps you to avoid the risk of a house fire or permanent damage to the electrical appliance.
6. Use Power strips
You should start using a power strip to protect your electrical devices like TVs, computers, speakers, etc. If lightning strikes your electrical wires, using a power strip won’t destroy your gadgets. Using a power strip also helps you save energy because users can turn them off when they aren’t using the electrical appliances plugged into them.
7. Give Your Appliances Proper Space for Air Circulation to Avoid Overheating
If your electrical appliances start heating up while you use them, the load and the congested space might be the problem in most cases. Devices such as your Laptop, Computer, and Microwave tend to heat up more when they have no area to breathe. Therefore, it is recommended that you give your appliances proper space for air circulation to avoid issues like Overheating.
8. Use the Proper Wattage for Lamps and Lighting Fixtures
Having the proper wattage for the lighting set up in your house plays a significant role in keeping you safe from electrical hazards. Your lighting should be around 40 watts and a maximum of about 60 watts. Make sure that you don’t mix older bulbs with your new energy-efficient bulbs because they consume different power, which sometimes causes flickering in your room. Lastly, if a table lamp gives you too much light, making it hard for you to sleep at night, upgrading to a night light will be a better option.
9. Ensure that all your exhaust fans are clean to prevent fire hazard
Many modern-day appliances come with an exhaust fan which gets dirty and clogged with time. This causes the device to work harder, resulting in a shorter life span. It also brings in device problems such as overheating, which can be dangerous for your home. Therefore, we recommend that you clean your exhaust fans regularly to prevent such issues.
Conclusion
While electricity is an excellent source of energy that helps to power up our devices, taking certain measures to protect yourself from electrical hazards is important. You can do it easily when you keep the following tips in mind, so make sure you do these checks regularly to keep yourself protected from electrical problems.
