Energy Conscious Consultant

Electrical Changes Before Inspection

You need to hire an electrician to wire your new home or the addition to your present home.  He will wire it up to code and have his work inspected. 

House Circuits: What Can They Handle?

To become an electrician, it takes years.  You must first start at the bottom as an apprentice.  Then you can become a journeyman.  Then after approval from the electrical contractor you worked under, you can become an electrician. An experienced electrician has dealt with a lot of problems within the same realm of the electrical field.  He can find and identify a problem - like overloading house circuits. 

Insurance Coverage For Contractors

As a homeowner, you should hire a licensed professional to perform work on your home.  He should be licensed in the state where you live. I have a license that my state sent me when I applied and registered.  I renew yearly for my state license.  I can copy it and show it to homeowners but a piece of paper may not mean much to some homeowners.  It would be better to go directly to a source to obtain that information.  Many states have websites that you can go to for information to find out if a contractor is licensed. 

Electrical Contractor: Professional vs. Handyman

When you have a problem, do you call a professional or a handyman?  A handyman may not always be cheaper.  I had a lady call me (an electrician) to hook up a new TV.  She needed a receptacle for a TV that she wanted placed high on a wall in a bedroom and also install cable to it.  She told me last time she had a cable guy just come and drill a hole through the wall.  I told her I am a licensed professional and can’t just drill a hole through the wall and stick wires in. I am a professional.  I am licensed, insured and I am responsible for my work.

Solar Powered System Installers Must Be State Licensed

Thinking of going green?  Ready to install an alternative energy system? There are many roads toward achieving energy efficiency.  The main course would be to change your energy source.  Instead of purchasing your electricity from your local power company, you need to have your own power source.  You can have solar power, wind power, or thermal power.  Evaluate your needs to see which would be best for you and your family.

Hiring An Unlicensed Contractor

When hiring people to work on your house, it is better to hire local contractors rather than out of state workers.  Customers think they are getting a better deal by going with someone who is not licensed, but that is not always the case.  And your uncle’s second cousin’s neighbor does not qualify.

Air Condition Units Need To Be Efficient

The central air conditioning system in your home needs to be sized correctly.  If you over size the air conditioning unit, it will add humidity in your house.  It will be adding humidity because it short cycles.  It will not be running long enough.  If it short cycles, it will cause mold to build up in your house due to the moisture build up. 

Homeowner Failed To Cancel A Scheduled Job

A customer called me for an appointment to do electrical work.  The customer called me Tuesday night and scheduled a job that same week at her house for a Thursday morning at 8:00 AM.  I arrived at her house and she said “I already got the job done.”  I said, “why didn’t you call me and cancel the job?  You didn’t tell me you got someone else.” 

Adding A Circuit For Window Units

Summer is here and so is the heat.  If you buy window units to supplement your central air conditioning, there are certain facts your local sales person may not tell you.  Before you buy a window air conditioning unit, consider these facts.  Where will you be placing it?  Is that circuit already to its maximum capacity?  People think they can plug in a window unit anywhere but that’s not true. The maximum capacity of a circuit should be 80% of its load.   A window air conditioning unit could be pulling 8 to 10 amps.  If you plug in a unit on an already overloaded circuit, you may burn up the receptacle or burn the wiring in your home.

Energy Audit: Energy Saving Devices

Energy efficiency can be achieved through several means.  One way would be to cut back on energy usage.  But how do you know how much energy you are using?  As an electrician, I’ve come to depend upon multiple meters to see the amount of energy it takes to run different appliances.  There are other ways to test energy usage in your home.

Another device to judge the amount of energy you use would be to purchase devices to plug in between your appliance and the receptacle called a watt meter.  Some appliances use energy for memory.  If an appliance uses a transformer, it will need power continuously to keep voltage low.  Therefore, some appliances plugged in still need electricity.  A watt meter will measure how much that specific appliance is using whether it is on or off.  Just because a device is switched off doesn’t mean it is not pulling power and burning energy.