Without a doubt, a home theater system is one of the most exciting things you can add to your home. Home theaters can range in complexity from a nice TV with some comfortable chairs to a full-on viewing experience, with a flat screen high definition television, surround sound system, and more. Whatever setup you’re going for, there are a number of different components to think about to make your home theater system as enjoyable as possible. Today we’re going to talk about some of the most crucial components of your system: sound systems, wiring, and projectors.

We could spend five blog posts talking about all the different ways you can use custom lighting in your home theater, but for now we’ll stick to the basics. The most important things to consider when installing home theater lighting are:

Lighting arrangement – you can combine the layout of your light fixtures, blinds, and curtains to create the perfect lighting setup. One thing many people do in their home theaters is arrange recessed lights in rows, but ultimately you can do whatever you want-just make sure you have everything planned out so your electrician can wire things properly.

Lighting intensity – nothing makes you feel like you’re at the movies more than lights that dramatically dim just before the movie starts. And with a remote-controlled lighting system complete with dimmer switches, you can achieve the same effect in your own home.

Of course, the goal for your home theater system should always be comfort. Make sure you have soft, even lighting throughout with no glares or sharp contrasts—any excessive lighting will ruin the mood you want. You also want to make sure your TV isn’t so bright that is looks out of place or hurts people’s eyes—try to find a balance between TV viewing, contrast reduction and optimal visual comfort.

Types of light fixtures – to fully customize your home theater, be sure to take a look at all the options you have available for lighting. These include:

After lighting, wiring and projectors should be your next concern when building your home theater. Keep long wires organized and out of site with cable tidies and make sure to label everything clearly so you know what goes where.

In-wall wiring is something to be handled with caution. It’s best to call an electrician to fit your in-wall wiring. To be safe in the home, in-wall wiring should be well-insulated and kept out of reach of children and drafts.

If you decide to go with a projector instead of a TV, make sure you choose a good brand that will fit your wall or screen size. This is key: a projected image that is too small won’t fill the screen, but if it’s too large it may extend beyond the wall.

Your sound system will make or break your home theater experience. A good sound system won’t be too loud or too quiet. Instead, it should fill the room with good quality sound to make your guests feel like they’re really in a theater (or in the movie!).

You can put literally anything you want in your home theater system. So when you’re ready to set it up, call Kolb Electric! We offer home theater wiring and can help set up your lights and wiring to create the ultimate viewing experience.

When you open the door to your home, you are instantly hit with a first impression—so are your visitors. If you are selling your home, that first impression starts outside, but walking through the front door is where you really have the chance to impress a potential buyer. Your home is your castle and you want it to look as nice as possible. It doesn’t have to be a mega mansion or a brand new home to be gorgeous. You can make your home look like a million dollars with some simple adjustments like paint, décor, flooring and lighting. One of the ways to really impress the second that front door is opened is with a chandelier in the foyer or entry way. This is something that can be handled by an electrician. Pasadena homeowners will be amazed at the difference an entryway chandelier changes the entire look of the home. At The Electric Connection, we can help you be proud of your home.

A chandelier gives a room a very elegant feel. Beautiful glass combined with light creates a beautiful sight. This is what you will see when you open that door every day. The chandelier can be accompanied with a dimmer switch installed by an electrician in Pasadena. It gives you the luxury of having full light on a dark night or just a little night light for when you get home after dark.

Chandeliers are not just for the entry way. They are beautiful pieces in a dining room or a sitting room as well. Their simple elegance is enough to be a main focal point in a room with very little other décor needed. You can choose to go big or go small. Your Pasadena electrician will take care of all of the installation for you, even if there isn’t an existing light in the room. Give The Electric Connection a call today and schedule your chandelier installation.

With the right lights and accessories, LED landscape lighting is a breeze to install. Our plug-and-play different brand of lights in a G-LUX system. There are installation options and accessories for LED pond lights/fountain lights, spotlights, path lights, hardscape lights, well lights, and more. Check out the photos below for some landscape lighting ideas and layout options. With easy-to-use G-LUX accessories, such as extension cables, splitters, power supplies, dusk-to-dawn sensors, and waterproof junction boxes, any setup is possible.

Installation Accessories:

Waterproof Junction Box

You can use extension cables to lengthen the reach of or increase the number of lights in your LED landscape lighting system. Splitters are available in 3-way and 5-way options, and extension cables come in 6.56-foot, 16.4-foot, and 32.81-foot lengths. Use any combination of these plug-and-play accessories to add LED landscape lights where you need them. Make sure that the power supply you choose can handle the combined wattage of all your LED lights.

For this type of installation, you’ll need a G-LUX LED landscape light. Connect the female end of the pigtail power cable to your LED light, and connect the pigtail wires to the main line that runs to your other lights and existing power supply. You can also wire your G-LUX LED landscape light directly to your power supply.

You can create a G-LUX landscape lighting system using G-LUX LED lights and G-LUX dusk-to-dawn sensor will turn your landscape lights on at dusk and off at dawn. A sensor with an automatic timer is also available to keep landscape lights on for two, four, or six hours after dusk. The sensor must be plugged into your G-LUX power supply, and anything that you want it to control must be plugged into it. If you want the sensor to control multiple lights, plug your splitter or extension cable that is plugged into the splitter into it.

If you’re using waterproof G-LUX LED well lights or spotlights in ponds or fountains, there are a couple waterproof accessories that you might need. Use a G-LUX waterproof wire connector to do so.

For technical questions, don’t hesitate to call us toll free at 866-590-3533. Our customer service and technical support teams are available from 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. CDT Monday-Thursday and 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. CDT on Friday.

We talk often about how electricity can be a double-edged sword that can help and but also harm. While making sure your house is wired correctly it is also important that you have put safeguards in place to protect yourself and your valuables from accidents. Surge protectors do just that, and they can be applied to an entire house as well for extra protection. Let’s get into more detail about how surge protection applies to you.

A surge happens when there is an excessive flow of electricity through a circuit or electrical connection. Devices will take in electricity they need to function properly, but in certain cases such as electrical storms or problems in your home wiring, too much electricity will be pumped through the electrical system. Much like taking too much water can be harmful to us, the electrical device will “drown” in the excess electricity and become damaged. This is why we use power bars on many of our larger electronics like computers and TV’s.

Surge protectors will help keep your electronics safe as well as yourself. If there is excess electrical flow, the electricity could jump to a nearby person and seriously injure them. Being smart with your protection and guarding your valuables can prevent you from needing to purchase a new TV or computer after a night of lightning. While we do use surge protectors around our home, it is important to have layers of protection. Similar to a car’s metal design and airbag system, there are layers to protect the person or item behind them.

Entire home surge protectors can be applied to the home’s breaker panel to protect specific circuits from surges. For example if you have an entertainment system on one circuit that requires a lot of electricity to run, it would be a good idea to connect a surge protector on this circuit in the breaker panel. This would add a first layer of protection to the electronic devices, and if a surge does trickle through the first line of defense, the power bar surge protector will protect from the second.

While the home electrical system is designed to protect you and your valuables, accidents happen when you least expect it. Protecting yourself against these situations is important. Contact your local Expert Electrician to find out more about how you can protect your family and your belongings with home surge protectors.