Learning Home Electrical Basics to Save Money and Improve Safety

There are many reasons why you should learn how your residential electricity circuit works, but the biggest reason of all is for the safety of your family. Knowing the technical specifications for every single aspect of a residential system may not be necessary, but knowing the basics will teach you how to keep your system properly maintained and in safe working order. Here are a few pointers to get you up and running in knowing how everything works.

Getting to know the breaker box/fuse box

One of the most important aspects of your residential electricity supply is the breaker box where the electricity comes into your home. This consumer unit is designed to bring the 240v of power regulated and feed your home’s circuit for you to use. 

The breaker box is fitted with a number of automatic breakers which are designed to cut off power if a fault is detected along a particular circuit. In older houses, fuses are used in place of the breakers, which also have the same use. The consumer unit in your property splits the power coming into your home into separate circuits to feed different parts of your home.

Ring mains and circuit designs

These different circuits are called ring mains, and consist of a ring of cables that feed particular rooms, or individual devices. In a typical setup, a ground floor contains a wall power circuit, a lighting circuit, a heating circuit and a separate kitchen and individual appliance circuits. The upper floor will have a similar, separate lighting and wall power circuit with an additional circuit for a bathroom/s.

For safety reasons, each circuit should not exceed the load of 2,400 watts, so ensure that multiple extension and splitter sockets are not used on appliances with high draw current. You can calculate the maximum draw of each device to ensure that you are not in excess of this maximum limit. 

Finding faults and testing the breakers

When a fault is found in any circuit, the breakers kick into action by cutting off power to that wall socket, light socket or appliance, as well as the other sockets in the same circuit. The distribution panel on the consumer unit will have to be reset to carry on using any appliance or device on that circuit. 

Many residential electricians label each room or device on the breaker box to make it simpler to find which circuit has been tripped, but you can do this yourself in a matter of minutes. If you are in any doubt about your residential electrical system, call in a professional who will be able to explain your home system and how to use and maintain it. 

Call a professional residential electrician

With a few home electrical basics under your belt, you will be able to fault find in no time at all. Ensure that you aren’t drawing too much power from each circuit, ensure that your breaker box is in good working order by tripping the test function on the consumer unit, and call in the professional residential electrician if you need to upgrade or fault find your system. 

When Is The Right Time To Call An Electrician To Your Home?

When it comes to safety, security and the overall good working order of your homes electrical system, knowing when to put down the screwdriver and call out a professional electrician plays a key role in saving you money down the line. Many small electrical jobs around the home can be done yourself, but knowing when to call a pro may just save your life.


The first reason and the most important reason when it comes to safety to call out a professional electrician is when you have absolutely no clue what you are doing. Fault finding should be done by a professional and only a professional when it comes to testing the circuit breakers, voltage reading and cable upgrading.

Don’t risk it, call a professional!

If you every feel out of your depth, then simply call your local electrician who will be happy to assist in giving you advise on a particular question, construction task or upgrade of an entire system. A good electrician will be able to give you an accurate quote and assist in all of your electrical needs.

When you are adding an additional room or conversion to a house, it may be a good time to call in a pro. It is often the case that when converting a room, knocking down a wall or having to relay electrical cabling into a new room will require cutting into a stud wall. A professional electrician will be able to locate the cabling and use the best system in place to upgrade your extra room or conversion.

Tripping circuit breakers and fault-finding

If you ever find that your circuit breakers are constantly tripping without knowing why, call a pro. These kind of fault-finding missions are a daily occurrence for electricians, and with the latest technology at their disposal, will be able to find the problem, isolate the problem and carry out the necessary repairs or upgrades is a safe and certified way.

Hot sockets and light switches is another sign of things not going quite to plan. In these instances it may not be something that your average DIY hobbyist will be able to fix. If there is a problem with the voltage being fed to your house, or too much strain being put on the system, your local professional will be able to point you in the right direction.

Regular maintenance and good upkeep

Regular maintenance is a good ay to help keep your electrical system in good working order over a long period of time. Regular maintenance will be able to help keep down the instances of faults and safety hazards as you use your electrical system, and with professional advice on upgrades and changes to the system, make it worth every penny.

If you have a wiring system that is old, mostly over 25 years old, consider calling out a local professional to give an estimate on how the system is working. In many cases, electrical systems have a strict lifespan and with older wiring systems often using inferior cables and shielding capabilities, a call out in this instance is worth the safety risks alone.

When in doubt, get a sparky out!

Get in touch with your local professional electrician for the best advice you can find. Inquire about the current system you have and the possibility of performing maintenance or upgrades to ensure that your homes’ wiring system is up to modern standards, giving you peace of mind for all the family.

Testing Your Home Electrical Circuit - Tools the Professionals Use

Whether you intend to make additions to your home or to call out a professional Bondi electrician to service the electrics in your home, it is wise to track down the best equipment to test your homes power supply and ensure that it is in optimum and safe working condition.

If you find that you are having issues with your supply, want an extra socket or need to replace a cable, the following test equipment will be a key factor in ensuring your safety, and the reliability of your homes power network.

Before any major work is carried out on your electrical supply, ensure than a professional engineer regularly tests and inspects your wiring circuit to ensure safe working conditions before and after any changes are made.

Multifunction Testing Devices

One of the best new devices available on the market that can help point you in the right direction when it comes to testing your power supply has to be the Wiring Inspector Circuit Tester. This device has the ability to check the electrical circuits of your home and find out if the installation of your power supply complies with the electrical code, just by plugging the device into a power socket.

This multifunction tester allows the user to simply plug the probe into the power socket and allow the on screen display readout to show the correct or incorrect functioning of the power system. Multi-function devices allow readout within a couple of seconds. They are generally used as the main testing device which allows the user to test the line loop, the earth loop as well as PFC and PSC tests within the unit.

Pricing of the wiring inspector circuit tester devices vary with brands, but on average, the device will set you back around $299-$400 for the latest models. Depending on your situation, the cost may be too much to warrant purchase, so this is where your local electrician Bondi will be able to offer their services.

Choose a Clamp Meter for Non-invasive Testing

Clamp meters are a great way for anyone to test their electrical cabling in and around the home. These advance devices use a special clamp that you place over a cable and allow the meter to read the current and voltage being used within. This is a great choice for those not wishing to disturb a cabling system and only wish to take a reading or inspection.

Clamp meters generally have a number of functions available to them, even on the cheaper models which include taking readings of AC voltage, DC voltage as well as OHM readings and ACA measurements.

 

The Right Tool for the Job

The clamp meter is a staple tool in any electrician’s tool box and offers a great, simple to use diagnostic tool when carrying out non-invasive inspections and testing. Priced from around $100+ it is a handy tool for any homeowner’s toolbox.

If you are in any doubt about the reliability or everyday function of your homes’ power supply, consult a professional. Bondi electricians are ready to make an appointment for inspection and any repair or maintenance work you require. When hiring a professional, you always have the right tool for the job.

5 Essential Home Electrical Safety Tips

Electricity is one of the most important inventions this side of the industrialisation of the world, but with it comes great responsibility. Many electrical accidents occur around the home each year across the globe, but with these 5 simple safety tips you can avoid expensive repair costs, the hassle of being without power, as possibly even saving your life.

1. Check Your Electrical Items

One of the main causes of accident and injury when it comes to problems with your electricity is with household appliances and items that require power. Many different items around the home require power and each has their own issue depending on what you are using. By ensuring that all of your household items power cables and outlets are checked on a regular basis you can avoid a sharp sting further down the road.

Items that use a lot of power tend to have a shorter lifespan in terms of electrical safety. Using household items in the way they were intended to be used is a good way to ensure that they do not malfunction or injure someone. Electrical items should be checked on a regular basis to ensure their safety of use.

2. Use Common Sense

It may be simple to say, but using common sense is the easiest way to avoid accident or injury around the home. Keep fish tanks away from television sets, do not lay power cables across busy paths in your home, and do not use a powered radio in the bathtub. Make sure to read the operating guidelines of all of your household items and make sure that they are kept within their operating conditions.

If an item is marked as having a maximum operating temperature of 100c, then do not place it near a fire. Likewise, do not keep or use electrical items outside in the cold, or in wet weather conditions. Use properly insulated cables and equipment that is designed for outdoor use when applicable and you can save yourself time and effort in the long run.

3. Regular Maintenance

Regular upkeep of your homes’ electrical system is a great way to avoid problems. If your home has an aging electric circuit then maybe it is time to call in an eastern suburbs Sydney electrician to handle the job. In most cases a professional will be able to spot a fault before something worse happens.

Walk through your entire system and check that no cables are frayed or damaged, the plug outlets are in good condition and that they are away from debris or other household items that could cause malfunction or general operating safety

 

4. DIY Safety

When performing DIY around the home, safety when using electrical tools and equipment is paramount in getting the job done efficiently and safely. When using power tools read the instruction and ensure that the correct power cables and safety gear are used throughout. When working on electrical equipment, ensure that you have the right tools for the job and not to botch a job due to lack of tools or equipment.

Ensure that power cables are laid safely so as to not cause a hazard to other people, and use power breakers and surge protectors to keep a safety cut off buffer between you and large amounts of amps.

5. Call a Professional

No matter what the task, big or small, if you are in any doubt whatsoever about the safety of the task at hand: call a reputable eastern suburbs Sydney electrician to carry out the job. There is no use in risking injury or death over the position of a few power sockets or a new electric oven installation over the cost of a professional who can carry out the task safely.

The majority of electrical accidents and deaths are caused by people performing DIY on their home, with little or no safety checks being carried out throughout the duration of the job. A professional is qualified to inspect, test and install multiple features to your electrical system, in a safe way to ensure that your home is left in tip top condition.