A skilled electrician at Ampi Electric Inc. can help with any electrical needs you may have. They can work in residential, commercial, and industrial settings.
Smoking outlets or tripping breakers are more than just frustrating; they can be dangerous. An upgraded panel can alleviate the strain on your circuits and reduce your risk of fire and injury.
Electricity is a vital part of our day-to-day lives. We use it to operate everything from our smartphones and computers to lights, appliances, and even our cars and homes. As we become more reliant on electricity, the demand for skilled electricians has increased. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that the number of electrician jobs will grow by 7% between 2020 and 2030. This increased demand is due to several factors, including a rise in new construction, the need for maintenance and repair of older equipment, and advances in power generation technologies like solar and wind.
Those seeking to install these advanced power sources will need the help of a qualified electrician to make the connection. Additionally, the aging electrical infrastructure in many buildings will need upgrades to meet current safety and efficiency standards. This increased demand has caused a shortage of qualified electricians in some areas of the country. This is particularly true in the construction industry, where the need for electricians is highest.
The construction industry is a major source of employment for electricians, but the shortage isn’t limited to this sector. Many other industries rely on skilled tradespeople, including utilities and manufacturing. The shortage is also due to the fact that experienced electricians are retiring at a faster rate than they’re being replaced.
Another factor contributing to the shortage of electricians is a lack of interest in the profession among young people. The perception that the only path to success is a four-year college degree has discouraged some millennials from considering careers in the trades. The good news is that a growing number of contractors and labor staffing agencies are employing tactics to encourage more young people to consider becoming electricians. These include outreach programs in high schools, scholarships to vocational school, and apprenticeships.
If we want to ensure that the United States continues to enjoy a reliable supply of electricity, we need to start drawing more young people into the field of electrical engineering. By encouraging more high school students to take up the trade, we can turn the switch on a new generation of electricians.
Space Constraints
If you want to add new electric appliances to your home or you have been noticing the lights dim when you use a certain appliance, it may be time to upgrade your panel. Electrical panels contain circuit breakers that safely control the flow of electricity to different appliances and areas of your house. Each panel has a specific number of slots that can hold circuit breakers. If all the slots are filled, your panel is overloaded and you will need to have it upgraded by a professional electrician.
Your electrical system is the lifeblood of your home, so you need to make sure it is operating at maximum efficiency. In addition to upgrading your panel, it is also a good idea to consider adding a sub-panel or installing additional circuits in your house to ensure you have enough capacity for all of your electric appliances. Upgrading your panel is a fairly simple and inexpensive project that can be performed by a licensed professional electrician in the space of a few hours.
The National Electrical Code requires that there be sufficient working space around all electrical equipment. In residential settings, this means the space must be at least as wide as the equipment and 30 inches in height. In addition, the space must be clear and must not contain any piping or other foreign equipment. The space must also allow for unobstructed access to and egress from the equipment with the doors open.
Our survey asked residential and commercial electricians to tell us how often they utilize an optimization approach on projects involving a space-constrained panel with excess capacity. We weighted these answers and used them to calculate the rate at which they are likely to choose an optimization approach versus a panel upgrade. The resulting numbers are available in the Residential and NonRes tabs of this workbook.
Tripping Breakers
If your breaker keeps tripping, it may be an indicator that you are overtaxing a specific circuit. Each circuit in your electrical system is sized to match its load-carrying capacity. Over time, as you use more devices and appliances in a given area of your home, the circuit wires can heat up to dangerous levels. A breaker or fuse is designed to sense this and trip, shutting off the flow of electricity. If a breaker or fuse trips repeatedly, it is time to talk to a licensed electrician to assess the situation and recommend an upgrade to your electrical panel.
Frequent breaker tripping can also indicate that you have a short circuit or ground fault surge in your home. These are more serious issues that can cause a fire, but you can often find the source of the problem by inspecting your breaker box. Your electric service panel, or breaker box, is located in your garage, basement, mudroom, or other easily accessible place in the house. The breaker box usually has an inset plastic switch that you can slide to open the door. To identify a tripped breaker, look for the switch to be in an off position and press it gently with your finger. Tripped breakers feel soft or springy, while live/active breakers are firmly on or off (depending on the side of the breaker box you are looking at).
A tripped breaker can also be a sign that something is wrong with one of your appliances or electrical cords. This is especially likely with older cords or those that have been subjected to a lot of wear and tear, such as a frayed or cracked wire.
The easiest way to diagnose problems with your appliances or cords is to unplug all of the devices on the tripped circuit, and then plug them back in. This will help you narrow down the issue to a single device, and allow you to reset your breaker and begin using the circuit again. If you’re still having trouble, contact a professional to perform a thorough inspection of your breaker box and electrical system.
Safety Concerns
Electricians are tasked with a variety of electrical tasks that can expose them to many hazards. They must follow the appropriate safety practices to avoid injury or even death. These include using the proper tools and equipment, maintaining a safe distance from electrical equipment, and keeping water and other liquids away from it. In addition, they must test for voltage before handling any wires and consider all wires to be live until proven otherwise.
Electrical shocks can lead to skin, tissue, and nerve burns, trouble breathing, cardiac arrest, muscle contractions, unconsciousness, and even death. Professional electricians are trained throughout their apprenticeship and beyond in the best practices for avoiding shocks. Other electrical dangers that can affect workers include improper wiring, overloading circuits, and working with power lines. These dangers can cause fires and can lead to the electrocution of people and animals.
Licensed electricians are also at risk for injuries due to ergonomic issues, including repetitive motions and poor lifting and handling techniques. In fact, ergonomic injuries are the leading occupational hazards for electricians and result in the most workers’ compensation claims. They can also be caused by electrical currents, which can spark if improperly handled or from the sudden start of a motor.
A qualified electrician can perform electrical work safely by following these simple precautions:
Always wear personal protective equipment, which includes insulated gloves, flame-resistant clothing, and safety glasses. Use a multimeter to test for voltage before touching any wires. Never jerk cords or pull them by the plug, as this can damage the insulation and lead to a short circuit. Keep water and other liquids at least 5 feet away from electrical equipment and devices. Ensure that all electrical equipment is grounded and connected to a Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter (GFCI).
Electrical equipment should be inspected and tested regularly by a qualified electrician to identify potential safety hazards before they become serious accidents. In high-risk environments, this should be done on a more frequent basis than in lower-risk environments. It is also a good idea to have a competent person sign off on any electrical work before the worker starts.