How to avoid short circuits and other lighting safety tips

Short circuits are the most common electrical problem in homes or workplaces. But don't take these short circuits lightly because they are capable of causing serious damage to your home and electrical systems.

If you are wondering what's a short circuit is? It happens when there is a high passage of electric current which is much or little above the normal. This sudden increase in the circuit leads to power failure and causes damage to appliances, light bulbs, and may cause electrical shocks to people. 

But what causes a short circuit? when the current passage is more than what is prepared to receive and this excessive load is converted into heat which results in melting the wire as well as the potential for a fire. 

Older homes and lack of maintenance of the electricity grid are more prone to short circuits. Here are some of the ways how to avoid short circuits regardless of how old your electrical wiring or grounded outlets are.

Make sure your outlets of working properly

Always ensure your outlet is working correctly before plugging to avoid short circuits. In the case of any burn marks, buzzing or popping sounds, or if any burning smell it is advisable not to use that outlet. 

Further, if any sparks come from that particular outlet never plug anything to stay safe. Older outlets that are said to be 15 to 20 years old require careful observation to check whether is there any faulty wiring or loose connections periodically.

Make use of a circuit breaker to avoid short circuits

How to avoid short circuits with circuit breakers? Circuit breaker greatly helps to protect against to short-circuiting. Make sure you give the utmost care to this circuit breaker to function properly without any failures. 

Check for any loose-fitting, cracks, or any other damage, and label all the fuses appropriately. Ensure proper maintenance to this circuit breaker to avoid the possibilities of short circuits.

Go for Electrical inspection

Your electrical system needs a periodic inspection to avoid short circuits. Professionals can easily diagnose potential issues if any with your circuit breaker or electrical systems. This prevents short circuits and ensures safe working. 

Here are some of the tips discussed for how to avoid short circuits preventing short circuits are crucial but it is vital to keep you and your family in safe hands. Make sure you use well-sized wires to prevent overheating which leads to short circuits. In addition, mount the circuits by grounding which tackles the excess current easily and keeps the electrical circuits balanced.

Lighting safety tips

Make your environment completely safe and secure. With proper lighting, the risk of health problems like headaches, fatigue, and so on can be lowered. Further proper lighting enhances the ambience of your home or workplace. For most people, many hands-on tasks are easy to handle when compared to the routine maintenance of lighting. 

As in the case of lighting, a lot of things can go wrong by damaging the particular circuits or the entire electrical system. Make use of these lighting safety tips to prevent damage to the electrical system with a little thoughtful action.

1. When changing bulbs always give enough time space to let the lamp cool. Ensure before touching the bulbs allow them to cool especially incandescent bulbs create more heat than illumination. Make use of these lighting safety tips to stay safe.

2. Don't change the bulb with bare hands. when you change the bulb in bare hands it may lead to accidental burns if the lamp is not cool enough. Also, it may shatter while changing the lamps that glass pieces will end up in your hands. It is highly advisable to wear work gloves for lighting safety in commercial buildings before touching the bulb or better to use a cloth or towel as lighting safety tips for residences that work identical and keeps you safe and secure.

3. Don't overuse the fixture beyond its maximum specifications. Consider if you are using a 200-watt solution in a fixture when the maximum specification is 60 watts which ultimately leads to fixture failure, lamp shattering, or even serious electrical damages. Make sure you never exceed your maximum wattage and check for more lighting safety online for staying safe.

4. Always use the specified bulb type in the fixtures. Some fixture socket supports multiple types of bulbs to plug in whereas some specify the best-suited types. For instance, you cannot use the LED bulbs in a fluorescent fixture that is retrofitted to accommodate LED bulbs. Make sure you use the right type according to the fixture specification as lighting safety tips for residences.

5. Add more protection to your outdoor and indoor lighting by installing GFCI( Ground fault circuit interrupter). This GFCI installation helps to prevent electrical shock accidents. This offers extended protection to you and your family. Check for more lighting safety online for enhanced protection.

6. Make sure that the power system is completely off when you are working with any wiring issues. In the case of lighting safety tips for residences, wiring issues can make the lights flicker, ensure you shut down the switches and the breaker which controls the lighting system. Search for more lighting safety online to keep you extremely safe.

7. Make sure you use the bulb covers in the case of excessive exposure to heat. When the bulbs are added in high heat operating areas like over stove in homes and garages in workplaces, it is advisable to use the bulb with covers. Make use of lighting safety in commercial buildings to prevent the bulbs from shattering in the case of excessive heat.

8. Choose LED energy-efficient lighting with adaptive control like dimmer, timers, and motion sensors. Opt for dimming or turning off the lights during overnight hours which enhances good lighting practices at your workplace. And use good lighting safety in commercial buildings for a better environment.

9. Check your outlets regularly, in most times overloaded outlets cause electrical home fires. In the case of any electrical repairs check for lighting safety online or call for professionals to fix it properly and ensure the safety of yourself and your family.

Electricity made our life more convenient and enjoyable but still, it poses a great threat in the case of minor defects. Follow some lighting safety tips to keep your home hazard-free.