Regardless of whether you’re a burgeoning chef or someone who prefers to keep it simple, you rely on your stove day after day to help you prepare meals for your family or friends. Make sure your home is equipped with the right kind of stove – either gas or electric. If you grew up using only a gas or electric stove, you may be partial to that one. However, it’s important to know the difference between the two so that you can know for sure if you’re missing out on certain qualities you could benefit from.

If you have little ones, you may prefer to use an electric stove, as a gas stove produces visible flames that could harm their tiny hands. On the other hand, if you’re a cooking savant, you may prefer to use a gas stove for its accuracy and versatility. If you’re considering replacing your stove soon, take these factors into consideration.

A stove should last you on average 13 years; therefore, it’s important to invest in one that you will love. After all, you’re going to be stuck with it for quite some time. On average an electric stove will run anywhere from $450 to $2,800, while its gas counterpart will run from $400 to $2,500. The price difference between a gas stove and electric stove is close to negligible. This is why it’s important to take into account the operating costs of each type.

Consider your state’s natural gas cost and compare it to the electricity rate. In most states, natural gas costs less than electricity, which would indicate a lower operating cost.

Before purchasing a new stove, take note of what all you like to cook, as well as how often you cook. An electric stove takes longer to heat up and doesn’t respond as quickly to temperature changes. Further, if you’re a chef, you won’t be able to char, toast, or flambé your food. A gas stove reacts almost instantaneously, allowing for efficiency and accuracy. If you’re the kind of person who prefers take-out then your best option may be an electric stove.

Have you ever seen the outlets that have buttons in the center? Or perhaps ones that have a little light that you take to indicate that it is working properly? Then you’ve seen a GFCI outlet.

GFCI stands for ground-fault circuit interrupter; this is indicative of the outlet’s ability to stop the current in the circuit if there is an imbalance between the hot side of the plug and the neutral side.

There are many different circumstances in which having GFCI outlets installed could be beneficial. In fact, there are several circumstances in which building codes require the installation of them by a certified electrician.

Say, for instance, that you’re using a hair dryer and for some reason it isn’t functioning properly. The electricity may want to try and take the shortest way to the ground versus continuing to flow through the circuit. This is one way an electrocution can happen. If the current starts shifting towards the person holding the appliance, a GFCI outlet will register that and trigger in less than one-thirtieth of a second, stopping the continuation of the electric current.

GFCI outlets should be installed by an electrician in places that could experience moisture such as around the kitchen counters, the bathroom, and for outdoor outlets. As we mentioned previously, some building codes require GFCI but any homeowner should consider installing GFCI outlets throughout the house to help prevent over two-thirds of electrocutions that happen.

Contact the Electrical Gurus today for more information about GFCI outlets and how we can eliminate the hassle of installation.

Home remodels are a part of owning a home. You buy a home with dreams of putting your stamp on it and molding it to suit you and your family’s needs. Maybe you need that home office transformed into a nursery or that extra bedroom into a home office. The kitchen maybe a little outdated for your tastes as well. That is part of the joy of actually owning your own home—you get to tweak it to match your needs. If you are considering doing some remodeling, you will need to call an electrician. Pasadena residents should call The Electric Connection to talk about the services we can provide for a home remodel.

Transforming a room into another purpose is usually a fairly easy task. However, it is always nice to have new light fixtures installed that are more suitable to the new purpose. A bedroom being turned into an office could definitely use brighter lights and more outlets as well as an additional phone line. These are all fairly simple tasks your electrician can handle for you.

In some cases, large remodels, like a bathroom or kitchen, will require the services of several different professionals. Lighting and moving of appliances and fixtures is definitely a job for a qualified electrician. Pasadena homeowners will want somebody who is reliable and knows the job. Outlets will need to be moved or more added.

If you are planning a project on a much larger scale, like a full addition or maybe you are building a home from the ground up, you can certainly call The Electric Connection for help. Our electricians have the experience you need and want to tackle those big, important jobs. Give us a call today and we can talk more about the job you have in mind.

Frances Ellen Watkins Harper (1825-1911). Her bio is beyond the scope of this entry, but I encourage you to follow the link and check her out. Get a little perspective on life today by reading a paragraph about this amazing human being and poet.

Harper’s poem, “Let the Light Enter,” depicts light in an interesting and fresh way, fresh still, even 100 years after her death. Poetry, generally speaking, is like a vast collection of opportunities to learn about yourself and the world in which you live. I invite you to take a minute to read “Let the Light Enter.”

The Dying Words of Goethe

He just urgently wants to watch the “balmy sunshine/ Play around” his deathbed. He just wants to experience the sensation of light doing it’s thing. “More light!” he demands. It strongly suggests that appreciating and enjoying the beauty of light is what Goethe, a lifelong thinker and poet who lived from 1749 to 1832, finds most worthy of his final precious minutes. That’s a big deal. In choosing between the pleasure of thoughts and the pleasure of the material world, he chooses the latter. It’s like all the things that seem to separate us from the natural world are shown to be false in the final moments. Think of a dog lying on a rock in the sun. Maybe that’s the purest state of being, just lying there, not thinking much, and enjoying the pleasure of the light, the sound of a brook. And maybe that’s why Goethe wants to pass away in such a state.