Rats and mice are quite common house pests; once they find your home to be a safe place to live in and that there are different sources of food there, they will be reluctant to leave. Not only do they pose a health hazard, they also tend to cause a lot of damage to various features on your property and will chew through the insulation of your electrical wiring.

This can affect the system and impact the supply of electricity throughout your property and can be a fire hazard as well. Here are some effective tips to prevent rodent damage to the electrical wiring in your home:

Since rodents are nocturnal creatures, you won’t really see them running around your home in the daytime. However, if you are wary, you will surely hear scratching and chewing sounds in the walls of your homes. You may also hear scurrying noises coming from the attic. You should look out for nesting material or droppings and will typically find these in enclosed spaces.

It’s important to check the wiring’s insulation with regularity to ensure that it’s intact and that it hasn’t been chewed by rodents. The unfortunate part is that this isn’t something you can do for wiring behind walls. However, if you are undertaking any repairs, renovation or upgrades, take that as an opportunity to check the wiring for signs of rodent damage.

If you notice any flickering or experience power fluctuation in a certain room or part of the house, or if you find that a certain circuit breaker keeps tripping for no specific reason, get the system checked for rodent damage.

If you notice any signs of a rodent infestation, it’s important that you act without delay and take some steps to get rid of them. Buy some spring traps and rat poison from your local hardware store and set these at different places where you have seen rat droppings or heard noises. Even as you do this, it’s equally important that you also identify where these pests are entering your property from. Place the bait or poison at these points along your home’s exterior walls.

If you find the infestation to be too severe or if you aren’t too confident about using DIY rodent control measures, call a licensed electrician to inspect the wiring and check it thoroughly for damage. If they confirm that the damage has been caused by rats, it’s a good idea to call pest control professionals to handle the rodent control for you. They will provide solutions and give you advice on the steps you can take to prevent these pests from entering your property.

While the rodent control professionals will ensure that the rats are eliminated from your property, they will also advise you on how to seal all the possible rodent entry points in your home. Aside from very evident points such as doors and open windows, these pests can easily squeeze their way into the indoor spaces of your property through holes and large cracks. If the cracks are too small, they won’t shy from chewing their way in through the loose concrete of the walls.

If you have noticed any rats or mice on your property, do not hesitate to call us to get the wiring checked. We handle all types of commercial and residential electrical installation, repair and upgrade jobs. For more information, contact the AllRound Electrical team at this number – 1300 169 263. Alternatively, you can write to us at our email address.

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As energy costs continue to rise, we all have to make some adjustments and figure out how to afford the higher electrical bill or how to reduce our electricity use in order to afford a roof over our heads. Obviously, the latter is probably the best and who knows, you just may be able to reduce your bill lower than you ever thought possible. You could actually put a few extra dollars in your pocket every month to put towards the rising cost of food. An electrician in Pasadena has a few tips you can start using today to save money tomorrow. If you would like to learn more, call The Electric Connection and talk with a member of the helpful staff.

1-The easiest thing for you to do is to turn off and unplug anything and everything when it is not in use. You can save a couple dollars every day by reducing your phantom energy draw.

2-Switch to CFLs and save about $20 a month on lighting costs. If you have a big house and typically use a lot of lights, you can save more by switching your incandescent light bulbs to CFLs.

3-Have somebody familiar with Pasadena electrical code install a ceiling fan to reduce your heating and cooling bill. Fans circulate the air in a room to help keep it cool in the summer and warm in the cooler months.

4-Hire an electrician to install dimmer switches on lights in the living room, dining room and even a bedroom. You don’t always need a well-lit room to watch television, enjoy an intimate meal or simply chat. Using a dimmer switch to turn down the lights can save you money on your electric bill.

If you would like to schedule an appointment to have a dimmer switch, ceiling fan or other energy-saving appliance installed, give The Electric Connection a call today.

You have probably heard of standby generators in the past, but have probably also assumed those were things that folks who lived way out of town needed. Unfortunately, as has been proven this winter, power outages are not reserved for those who live in rural areas. Storms don’t pick and choose where they hit. Anybody, even those who live in the city or the suburbs, could experience a power outage. If the outage is short and sweet, it usually isn’t a problem. But when the outage extends for hours or even days, things can become very difficult. An electrician in Santa Monica can help you avoid that trouble by installing a standby generator. The team at The Electric Connection is here to help.

A standby generator is installed outside the home typically in the backyard or along the side of the house. It is enclosed in a metal box and looks like an electric box or similar to the air conditioning unit. The generator will be wired into the electric panel of your home. Before this is completed, you will have some options to discuss with your electrician. Santa Monica homeowners can choose to have the entire panel powered by the generator or just a few breakers. These breakers would run a particular room or set of appliances and/or lights.

Of course, the amount of power you will have at your disposal will depend on the size of the generator you purchase. Typically, the less wattage produced, the less expensive the generator will be. Do not be alarmed when you start shopping around for generators by the pricing. This is an investment into your home. Generators are you way of providing backup electricity to keep your family’s lives as normal as possible despite an extensive power outage. If you have ever experienced one, you can certainly appreciate the initial investment. Give The Electric Connection a call today and schedule your standby generator installation.

Electricians are often looked upon as professionals that have to be called in only when something isn’t working. However, the fact is that a great, reliable and experienced electrician would also be able to provide you advice on the type of fittings and fixtures or electrical installations that would look good and add functionality to your home.

Regardless of how beautifully designed your home is, if it doesn’t have the right type of lighting that can only make the rest of the features and elements look dull and drab. But you can add accent lighting to various areas of your home to add to its aesthetics and functionality. It’s important to plan the lighting well as it helps create enjoyable and beautiful spaces on your property.

Some light fixtures are used only in areas where specific tasks are going to be carried out such as kitchens, study and home office spaces etc. But in addition to this task lighting, your home also needs lighting features that help accentuate the look of various installations in your home; this is referred to as accent lighting. This lighting includes fixtures such as subtle spotlights, or miniature pot lights.

Accent lights aren’t meant to throw bright light and fill the entire room with light; they are used instead to highlight features such as artwork, paintings, pieces of décor or some interesting architectural feature in your home etc.

These lights are soft and add a very comfortable and elegant look to the space. In fact you can use accent lighting to enhance the appearance of the outdoor areas of your property as well. They can be switched on to create a party mood or lend a more casual look to the common living spaces or alfresco areas of your home.

There are a number of benefits to getting accent lighting installed, such as:

While you can use these lights by themselves to maintain a very casual look in a room, they can also be used in tandem with other lighting installations such as track lighting, recessed lighting, under counter lights, floor level lights as well as spot lights etc.

Since accent lights aren’t meant to be very bright, they use less energy; in fact, you can add to their efficiency by using LED bulbs in them – this can make them up to 80% more energy-efficient that standard bulbs.

There are always some areas in a home that don’t get sufficient natural light; you can install accent lights in these areas, and these fixtures look great in basement entertainment rooms as well. You can choose outdoor-grade accent lighting fixtures to add to the beauty of your patio, deck or outdoor kitchen as well. The light that these installations throw lends a very luxurious and relaxing look to these spaces.