When your business grows and expands, you may find that it is necessary to build an addition to your office or retail space. Rather than attempting to perform your remodel on your own, you will want to trust all of your electrical work to a commercial electrician in San Jose . From hanging lights to installing electrical outlets and more, your electrician will be able to safely and efficiently manage the electrical components required for your addition project. Here is an overview of what business owners need to know about setting up an electrical system when planning an addition.

Proper Lighting is Key

One of the most important aspects of your business addition is your lighting design. The proper lighting design will provide visibility for your employees and clients, while also highlighting the architectural components of your new space. Working with a licensed electrician will allow you to plan out the perfect lighting design for your property. Your electrician can help you find and install the right types of lights for each area of your addition.

Electrical Outlets Should Be Strategically Placed

Along with choosing the lighting design for your commercial addition, you will also need to think carefully about the placement of all of your electrical outlets. Your workers will use outlets to power appliances, computers, and other types of electrical equipment that is needed for your daily work tasks. Having your electrician place outlets in strategic locations will help you improve the productivity and efficiency of your business.

Safety Is a Top Priority

As you are planning an addition to your commercial building, you will want to keep the safety of your workers in mind. A properly installed and maintained electrical system will help to keep your new addition safe and protected from electrical fires and other dangers. For answers to your questions about your upcoming commercial addition, be sure to get in touch with an experienced electrical company.

Whether you have a growing family or you would simply like to expand the usable living space in your home, renovating your basement is a great way to add additional square footage to your property. During a basement renovation, your residential electrician serving San Jose will assist you with your lighting installation . Hanging lights in the right areas around your basement will help you brighten up your newly restored space. To help you get ready for your work with a residential electrician, here is a look at some basement lighting tips.

Illuminate Key Areas

As you are creating a lighting design for your basement renovation, you will want to consider which areas will need the most illumination. Places where you will be performing tasks such as reading or playing games should be illuminated with task lighting. Some examples of task lighting include recessed lights and pendant lights. Pointing a focused light at a certain area of a basement room can also emphasize a beautiful architectural feature, such as a built in bookshelf.

Create Overall Illumination

Whether you have a daylight basement, or your basement is low on natural light, you will want to make sure that your space is properly illuminated overall. Hanging light fixtures can be used to bathe your newly updated basement rooms in a cheery glow. When you are choosing lights to hang from your ceiling, you will want to pick out fixtures that help to create a sense of spaciousness and elevation.

Choose Energy-Efficient Products

In order to conserve energy when you are lighting your basement, you will want to choose energy-efficient lighting products for your design. LED light bulbs, for example, are extremely efficient choices for any homeowner. By going with LED bulbs, rather than conventional products, you can enjoy energy savings, while also achieving the same level of illumination. An electrician that specializes in lighting will be able to provide you with more energy-saving tips for your installation.

Fuses, like circuit breakers, are designed to protect electrical wiring in San Jose by interrupting excessive electrical currents caused by, among others: overloaded outlets, malfunctioning devices, and short circuits. Though they may be rather simple things, fuses provide a very important service. Here’s a look at how they work.

How Fuses Work
Like the filament in an incandescent light bulb, fuses have thin wires that electricity can flow through. These wires are designed to carry a specific amount of electricity safely—the thicker the wire, the higher the current it can support. When an excessive electrical current attempts to pass through this wire, it heats up the wire to the point of melting or burning. This destroys the wire and interrupts the circuit. In the case of burning, the wire gets very hot very quickly, and it blows out, producing a loud and characteristic popping sound. When a fuse is blown, it needs to be replaced.

Which Size to Use
Fuses come in a range of sizes and amperages. Generally, you want to replace a blown fuse with one that has a similar rating—i.e. a five-amp fuse with a five-amp fuse. If you’re not sure which kind of fuse to use, you can use your discretion based on logic. Since large appliances and devices tend to need more electricity to operate, they most likely require larger fuses. Likewise, smaller devices require smaller fuses. If you’re uncomfortable making a decision, contact a qualified electrician for assistance. Using a small fuse for something that draws a large current will blow out the fuse quickly. Using a large fuse for something that draws a small current will overwhelm it and can cause a dangerous situation.

How Fuses Differ From Circuit Breakers
Both fuses and circuit breakers protect homes from electrical mishaps. Unlike fuses, circuit breakers have reusable mechanisms that, when tripped, cut-off power to outlets. These mechanisms can be easily reset once they are tripped. Circuit breakers can also be used in conjunction with ground-fault circuit interrupters (GFCI). Fuses are the more economical choice of the two. They are more sensitive than circuit breakers, which may or may not be useful depending on their application. They also tend to be more prominent in older homes.

In the 1960s, copper prices skyrocketed in America, causing residential electricians and homeowners to turn to aluminum as a cheaper alternative. Unfortunately, aluminum wiring really is not compatible with older electrical outlets and switches in homes and has a high potential to cause house fires. If you happen to know that your home is wired with aluminum, you should consider calling an electrician serving San Jose to have your wiring repaired or replaced.

One way to repair aluminum wiring is to replace it with copper wiring completely. Otherwise, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) approves two repair methods that involve splicing new copper wires into existing aluminum ones. The more expensive method utilizes specialized connectors called COPALUM, which is considered to be reliable and permanent. The other repair method uses a smaller lug-type connector called AlumiConn. For peace of mind and safety reasons, hire a certified electrical contractor to perform any of the jobs mentioned. That way, you’ll know it’s done correctly. Contact Delta Electric today!

If you have children, you know how important it is to make sure home is a safe place. Children are naturally curious and don’t always know about the dangers of electricity, which can easily put children in a position to become seriously injured—or worse. As a parent, one of your main responsibilities at home is to make sure your children understand the dangers of electricity. Fortunately, this video makes it easy. Watch this entertaining clip with your kids to teach them about the importance of electrical safety.

Keeping your children safe around electricity is important, but so is making sure your home is electrically sound. That’s why it’s important that you contact a licensed residential electrician in San Jose for all of your home’s electrical needs. From small jobs like lighting installation to big projects like replacing the electric panel, a professional electrician will make sure your home’s electrical system is safe and up to code.

Did you know that most home fires are the result of faulty electrical wiring? According to the U.S. Fire Administration, approximately 2,300 people are injured and close to 500 people Americans die in home fires each year that are directly or indirectly related to electrical problems. To make sure your home (and your family) is safe, schedule an inspection with a licensed residential electrician in San Jose . Also, be sure to leave all of your electrical and wiring needs to a professional electrician. You can also prevent a tragedy by avoiding or addressing these common electrical risks in your home.

Overloaded Electrical Outlets
Power strips can be a real lifesaver, but they can also be incredibly dangerous. According to statistics by the Consumer Product Safety Commission, overloaded outlets cause an estimated 5,300 house fires in the United States each year. If you have lots of electronics plugged into a single outlet, find another source of power before sparks start to fly.

DIY Electrical Wiring
If MacGyver taught us anything, it’s that duct tape and elbow grease can fix just about anything. Unfortunately, this is only true in television shows. You may think you’re prepared to tackle your home’s electrical needs, but all you’re really doing is putting yourself and your family at risk. No matter how small your wiring project is, hire a licensed electrician to make sure the work is done safely and correctly.

Outdated Breaker Panel
If your breaker box is more than ten years old, contact an electrician in San Jose about an upgrade. Old breaker panel are not designed to handle the number of high-voltage appliances and electronics commonly used in homes these days. Not only will an outdated breaker panel not supply you with the electricity you need to power all of your appliances and gadgets, but it might also start a fire if it becomes overloaded.

Like most of the homes in San Jose, yours is probably full of outdated appliances and plumbing fixtures. But while some outdated features are only a problem aesthetically, others can be quite dangerous. Take outdated electrical panels, for example. Old breaker panels weren’t designed to handle the enormous voltage requirements of today’s high-powered appliances and consumer electronics. In addition to an inconsistent supply of electricity, your home’s outdated electric panel may also pose a fire hazard.

The best way to determine whether your home’s electric panel is adequate is to schedule an inspection with a licensed residential electrician in San Jose. A home electrician is a good contact to have regardless, since all of your home’s electrical needs should be left in the hands of experienced electrical technicians.

The spring season is right around the corner, and now is a great time to schedule an electrical safety inspection with an electrician in San Jose. There are many benefits to electrical safety inspections. By having a residential electrician take a look at the electrical system in your home, you can catch small repair problems before they become major issues. In addition, a safety inspection from your home electrician can also protect you and your loved ones from potential electrical dangers, such as faulty wiring or an electrical fire. Finally, a safety inspection will provide you with total peace of mind at home. During your inspection, a licensed electrician will carefully review every major aspect of your electrical system. If a problem is found, you will be able to schedule immediate repairs. Overall, an electrical safety inspection is a terrific service to incorporate into your yearly spring maintenance routine.

If you are a parent, it is highly important to teach your children about the fundamentals of electrical safety. By stressing the importance of electrical safety at home, you can help reduce the chances of accidental harm or injury. Some major electrical components, such as the circuit breaker or electrical wiring, can cause significant harm if they are not treated with the utmost caution. To enhance the safety of your home electrical system, you may schedule a safety inspection with electricians serving San Jose . A professional electrician can help you make sure that your home electricity is safe for your children. Here are some top tips for keeping your children safe around your electric supply.

Avoid Overloading Your Outlets
One of the best ways to keep your children safe around your electrical supply is to avoid overloading your electrical outlets. When you plug appliances into your electrical outlets, be sure that you only plug a few items into each socket or extension cord. In addition, you may want to teach your children to stay away from electrical outlets when they do not have parental supervision.

Install Tamper-Resistant Receptacles
Another way to ensure that you children are safe around your electrical outlets is to install tamper-resistant receptacles. These innovative devices will ensure that all of your sockets are completely child-proof. The electricians at a highly rated electrical repair company can help you evaluate where tamper-resistant receptacles should be installed in your home.

Make Sure That You Have Ground Fault Circuit Interrupters
To enhance the safety of your electrical appliances, you may want to ensure that you have ground fault circuit interrupters installed in key areas throughout your home. These devices will prevent the chances of a family member being shocked in the event of an unexpected ground fault. Your electrician will be able to answer all of your questions about electrical safety at home.

There are many indicators that can signal it is time to rewire your home. Some of the most common signs of bad electrical wiring include inadequate power to switches or outlets, aluminum or cloth insulated wiring, ungrounded wiring, and an unsafe electrical panel. Rewiring your home can also provide additional outlets and protect your valuable electronics. Here is a look at the process of rewiring a house, including tips for choosing an electrician in San Jose .

Create an “Electrical Inventory”
The first step of rewiring your home is to create a list of all the electrical devices and appliances you’ll be using in the house, and where. Figuring out where and how you’ll be using power makes it easier for your electrician to install an adequate electrical system.

Research Local Building Codes
Building codes set electrical standards for everything from what kind of wiring is permitted to how many outlets you are allowed to put in each room. Designing and installing an electrical system that is not up to code can result in fines or having to pull out finished work.

Identify Existing Infrastructure
To help your electrician perform the rewiring job as smoothly as possible, identify and mark existing electrical and plumbing infrastructure in your home. If you do not have the blueprints for your home, hire a contractor to mark pipes and existing wiring before your electrician arrives.

Hire an Electrician
When you are ready to hire an electrician in San Jose, look for a licensed professional who has experience rewiring older homes in the Bay Area. Rewiring is a complex, demanding, and difficult process, so make sure the electrical company you hire is licensed, insured, and experienced. And if you aren’t sure whether your home needs to be rewired, schedule an electrical inspection to determine the best course of action.