There are certain changes you can make in your home that can give it an entirely new look and feel. Sometimes, the simplest thing like a light fixture can take a home from drab and dark to modern and brilliant. One common way of changing the look of a room is by installing a new chandelier. Chandeliers can add an elegant look to a dining room or entrance way. Despite how easy it may seem to simply change out one light fixture for another, the task involves some work with electricity. If you are not familiar with electric wiring, it is best to give the job to an electrician in Glendale. You can count on the team at The Electric Connection to take care of a chandelier installation efficiently and professionally.

One of the joys of owning your own home is being able to decorate it and embellish it to suit your tastes. Lighting plays a huge role in the way a room is presented. Take a trip to your local home improvement store and visit the lighting department. There are so many styles and designs to choose from, the process may take a bit as you envision each fixture hanging in your home. Once you have made your decision, it is time to take care of the Glendale electrical wiring.

An electrician will remove the existing fixture and check the wiring before installing the new chandelier. This is an excellent time to have the wiring evaluated for any signs it may need upgrading. Chandeliers are typically installed with dimmer switches. This gives you the freedom to change the mood in a room by making it very bright or dimming the lights. Your electrician will take care of this during the install process if you would like. If you would like to enhance your home with a new chandelier, give The Electric Connection a call today.

Looking to hire the best electrician you possibly can in MD, DC or VA? We don’t blame you. As the economy faces serious challenges and uncertainties, families are forced to live on a stricter budget. Companies throughout the DC Metropolitan area must also operate on a much tighter budget than years past. It only makes sense for you to wonder exactly how to hire an electrician. You want to hire a reliable, quality electrician who can answer your questions and solve any electrical problems you may be having. Here at Kolb Electric, we thought it would be helpful to create a guide for selecting the best electrician.

There are so many electricians in the MD, DC and VA market that it can be difficult selecting one!. To make a list of prospective contractors, get recommendations from your family and friends. If you cannot get any, search online to compile a list of local electrical contractors. This is an important first step in finding the best electrician to meet your needs.

After you’ve prepared a short list of prospective electrical contractors, you may still be wondering how to hire an electrician. One thing you can do is to check the licensing credentials of these electrical contractors. The best electricians are trained, skilled and experienced. You can use the Internet to determine whether a prospective electrical contractor is licensed or not, and you can also check whether the license is still valid or not. An electrician without a license or with an invalid license should raise big red flags!

You should also use the Internet to read reviews posted by others who have some experience working with the prospective electricians you have on your list. This is an excellent way to determine the best electrician for you. However, you should approach these results with a grain of salt. Someone with a bad experience is more likely to post something negative online than someone who has had a great experience. Always put more stock in what you’ve heard from family and friends.

When you reach the point where you have a list of just a few quality prospective electrical contractors, the next step is to contact them so you can secure and compare quotes. Keep track of exactly what services the contractors claim they will provide when compiling quotes. Since your list now features only quality contractors, cost is the next factor you should focus on.

Finally, in order to really know you’re hiring the best electrician you can, ask a lot of questions to prospective contractors. The quality of their answers can go a long way in helping you hire the best electrician. Ask contractors what experience they have dealing specifically with the electrical problem you have.

We hope this helps you better understand how to hire an electrician. There are several steps involved, but they are all essential to helping you select the best electrician you possibly can!

At Kolb Electric, we have specialized in providing professional electrical service since 1925. Impeccable customer service and attention to detail has allowed us to become one of the best electricians in Maryland, Washington, DC and Virginia. Our electricians are:

Contact Kolb Electric for all of your electrical needs. Our licensed, professional electricians are ready to service you 24 hours a day, for all of your commercial and residential electrical needs. No job is too small or large!

Highlights from Hong Kong International Light Fair (HKILF) include exciting new products for boosting energy-efficiency to new heights in home and office illumination.   As the largest autumn light fair in Asia, the HKILF introduces new items from home appliances to maintenance-free landscape lighting and novel LED products.

image from HKILF*

The Hong Kong International Light Fair continues to grow and gain recognition as the world’s most important platform for introducing novel lighting designs and new energy-enriched products.

The 16th edition of the HKILF (Autumn Edition) at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre attracted 180,000 global buyers.* and was the most well-attended, as well as the biggest on record.

“Last year, the four-day event attracted 2,360 exhibitors from 38 countries and regions and produced strong visitor turn-out, with more than 38,000 buyers from 144 countries and regions in attendance.”–www.enlightenmentmag.com october 2014

Show highlights include:

• Energy-efficient, eco-friendly “LED and Green Lighting Zones” looking to meet international sustainability requirements.

• New Product Platforms

• Information Exchange Platforms

• New Trends and Styles

–LED and “green” lighting products are expected to see the highest sales growth in 2015.*

–Retail prices of LED lamps are expected to drop by 8 percent by the end of 2015.*

Many of us can forget about our households energy consumption in the mist of busy daily life.  However, for those who look a bit deeper into specific energy costs, families will be able to determine where their homes’ energy is going and can make adjustments to reduce their energy bills.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, as much as 45% of your homes’ energy goes towards space heating. This means your heating, cooling, and air conditioning system is going to have a huge impact on your usage. Make sure you have checked your house for any leaks and that the appropriate insulation is installed or you will be losing heat that you have paid for.

Much of your other costs are coming from appliances and lighting. Lighting costs can be controlled by using energy efficient bulbs like LEDs. Make sure you are also turning off the lights in rooms you are not using. When running your appliances, try to use them only when you have full loads. It goes without saying that running the dishwasher or washing machine at half capacity will cost you more. If you can bundle more or wait for a larger load you can keep the number of times you are running your appliances down.

One way to determine your usage is to use an energy monitor. These types of devices cost around $30 to $40. They will let you know how much energy you are using to turn on and run these appliances or electronics. BC Hydro has also supplied a calculator you can use to estimate the cost per year. Sometimes upgrading your appliances can save you hundreds per year in efficiency.

Mortgage lenders try to look at the big picture, considering things like taxes and insurance when deciding how much they can loan out to homeowners and buyers. However, there's a major ongoing expense that appraisers currently don't take into account – monthly utility bills. You don't need to be an electrician to understand that the money you pay for power each month makes an impact on your budget and even affects the value of your home. A bill currently in front of Congress – the SAVE Act – would acknowledge that reality and let federal mortgage lenders make energy efficiency part of their formula.

Increasing the Value of Your Home

Essentially, the SAVE Act would make it easier to get financing for efficiency upgrades, even folding funding for it into traditional mortgages.

“This bill would require federal mortgage agencies to recognize the energy efficiency upgrades in a home during the mortgage underwriting process, thereby increasing the value of the home,” President of the Alliance to Save Energy Kateri Callahan said in a statement. 

The SAVE Act claims it would bring a number of benefits in addition to loosening the drawstrings on bank financing for efficiency. Among them:

A Diverse Group of Supporters

The SAVE Act was first introduced in 2013. Although Congress has yet to vote on the measure, it has lined up a diverse group of supporters who aren't typically on the same side of major issues, from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of Manufacturers to the Alliance to Save Energy, the National Resources Defense Council, the U.S. Green Building Council and others.

In the meantime, there are a number of steps you can take around your home today to cut down on your utility bills. If you need any help installing efficient appliances or upgrading your home electric system, contact an expert electrician today.