Visitors, potential customers, and employees shouldn’t have to be in fear while going shopping, parking for an event, going to the beach, or even going to work. For this reason, we find that the parking lot can lead to many potential hazards.. if the parking lot owner allows for such vulnerabilities.

The number one cause of crime in a parking lot is caused by low security, and unlit areas contribute heavily to this. A dark parking lot doesn’t allow for cameras to pick up all the activity as clearly as it should, and criminnals know this. Additionally, unintentional accidents can occur simply by not being able to see everything that is going on. Thus, we think it is up to the parking lot owner and manager to prevent accidents (both intentional and non-intentional) from occurring and the first part of the equation to doing so is by ensuring the parking lot is properly illuminated.

As we briefly described above, here are all of the potential dangerous that a dark parking lot can potentially cause:

1. Car accidents. Whether it be with another car, an object, or a human; the odds of crashing are much more likely if you are unable to properly see. For obvious reasons, this is not a desirable outcome for a parking lot; especially if it could potentially bring the lot owner liable to the accident.

2. Crime. Think about it, if you are unable to detect movement due to lack of light; it is much easier for people to hide and move around without you, or even the security team, to know about it. For this reason, having adequate light in every corner of your property that visitors will be in is paramount to the safety and security to all of your visitors. Additionally, car thefts and break-ins can be higher when underlit areas are an issue. To resolve this, you need to improve your parking lot lighting design which will, if done right, will allow you to meet the lighting requirements for parking lots.

3. Personal injury incidents. Not only are other people a potential hazard to your visitors, but your property may be of hazard to them as well. By maintaining proper parking lot lighting levels, you can cross this one potential liability off of your list.

For those of you reading this who own a parking lot, here we will explain a little bit about some benefits you will gain, along with how to start the process of getting proper parking lot light fixtures in your car lot. (Note: If you aren’t an owner of property with a parking lot, don’t forget to share this with someone who does!).

For starters, we recommended a lighting technology that will provide proper lumen output throughout its entire lifespan. For this, LED is the technology to go with. Reason being? It maintains high lumen output throughout its life, unlike other technologies such as metal halide which output much less light near the end of their lifespan. So while LED does slowly depreciate in light output too, it is much slower and overall less. Here are some other main benefits that you will realize by converting to LED parking lot lights.

1. Less energy usage. LEDs are known to be virtually the most efficient lighting technology around. And since parking lot lights typically use a lot of lumens, and thus wattage, by converting to LED you will be able to use much less wattage to achieve the same (if not better) light output. In fact, you can realize a reduction in energy by up to 75% in some cases.

2. Longer lifespan. Since parking lot lights are typically high up in the air, it can get expensive to change them out every time they burn out. With LED you will be able to realize 2-3 times longer lifespans, which will allow you to stop buying so many replacement lights. In addition, you will be able to stop paying someone to change them out as often, which is another commonly overlooked benefit of LEDs.

3. Lower lumen depreciation. Like we discussed earlier, lumen depreciation is an especially important topic in regards to parking lot lighting more-so than with any many benefits of LED car lot lights, but these are certainly the main ones that most parking lot owners have told us were the biggest benefit that made them make the switch.

While the physical conversion process is out of the scopes for this post, we hope you take a look at more information regarding over on our blog!

For the average homeowner, electrical panels are not very well understood. Since the job of an electrical panel is to deliver electricity, the common assumption is that if you need more electricity to support your household, you should just be able to add more circuits. This is incorrect, though.

This is only part of your electrical panel’s job. It also acts as a safety device, channeling the electrical flow into circuits so your home gets the amount of electricity that’s allowed by the panel. If your home doesn’t have enough electricity, then it’s time to upgrade your electrical panel, but how do you know when this time has come?

Have you noticed any lights in your home that flicker, dim, or brown out when you turn on major appliances such as your dishwasher or microwave? This is a sign that the draw on your system is too strong, and that you would benefit from adding more amps to your electrical box.

If you have multiple circuit breakers that trip on a regular basis, this is probably a sign that you don’t have enough power coming into your home. If you’re constantly flipping circuit breakers back on in your electrical panel, you could very well need an upgrade.

This is actually an outdated method of managing the electricity in your home. In fact, it can be downright dangerous. Many homeowner’s insurance companies won’t even insure homes that still have fuse boxes instead of an electrical panel. Fuses simply can’t provide the amount of power that the average home needs. The best thing you can do is upgrade your fuse box to a standard electrical panel as soon as possible.

We still have a lot of cold weather to come in the months ahead. We’re encouraging homeowners to schedule their annual heating service as soon as possible, if they haven’t already. It’s not too late, and this preventative maintenance service can help you, your family, and your budget in a few different ways.

This fall, one of the most important things you can do for your home is to get a heating system inspection. During an inspection, a technician will look for issues affecting the performance of your heater.

More importantly, they’ll look for anything that compromises your safety. That includes poor gas connections, faulty electrical wiring, improper ventilation, blocked vents, and a cracked heat exchanger. Carbon monoxide poisoning is a real threat when you own a fuel-burning heater, and it’s so important that you have technicians give you the okay to keep using the heat.

With a complete safety inspection, you don’t have to worry so much about your heating system breaking down suddenly in the middle of winter. If this is something that’s happened to you before (or even if it hasn’t), you know that this is something you really want to avoid.

Heating systems are most likely to break down when they’re working their hardest. Make things easier on yourself for the winter by scheduling heating maintenance ne in the fall.

When a heater gets a thorough tune-up, you can feel confident that the system is running smoothly. And that can mean greater efficiency. Your heating system is able to run smoothly with a cleaned out blower wheel, tightened electrical connections, and other adjustments your technician may make.

That translates to lower bills. And if you complete this service every year, no matter how old your heating equipment is, you can maintain high efficiency levels for years, as heaters that receive regular maintenance are more likely to last for a long time to come.

Although winter is still hanging around, it is time to dream about spring and the warmer temperatures that are just around the corner. After a season of closed windows, things tend to get a bit stuffy in the house. You are itching for a nice, refreshing breeze to roll through and make your home feel a little more comfortable and inviting. While opening your windows is always nice, sometimes it just isn’t possible. You can still stir up the air and get that feeling of fresh with the installation of a ceiling fan by an electrician. Beverly Hills homeowners who are looking forward to summer can get a jump on it by giving The Electric Connection a call.

Your ceiling fan will come in handy all year round, especially on those days when it isn’t quite warm enough to run the AC, but warm enough you need a little cool air. Open a window and turn on your new ceiling fan installed by an electrician in Beverly Hills. You will love the way the fan moves the fresh air around the room and prevents you from needing to turn on the air conditioner. This will save you some money on your electric bill as well. During the summer months, close the windows and let the fan move the cold air around generated by the AC. Again, it can help save you money on your electric bill by keeping the room cooler and lessening the amount of time your AC unit has to run.

Ceiling fans can be installed in any room, even if there isn’t currently a light fixture in the area. Your Beverly Hills electrician will install a new wiring setup and make the hole in the ceiling to accommodate the fan. It is a fairly straightforward process and you will be enjoying your new ceiling fan in no time. Give The Electric Connection a call today and schedule your ceiling fan installation.