A home fire is devastating, and the fact that most of them can be completely avoided just adds insult to injury. Thousands of homes experience an electrical fire each year which leaves homeowners with millions in repair costs. The problem often lies in outdated electrical wiring, that had it been replaced, would have eliminated the risk all together. Sentry Electric is here to talk about some of the hidden dangers within the walls of old homes, and the steps that need to be taken to ensure your home is safe.

Inspect Old Electrical Wiring

Did you know that most old homes were built with electrical wiring prepared to handle about 30 amps? With the increase in appliances as well as electronics that we use, your home needs to be equipped to handle much more. Today, the electrical wiring in your home needs to be able to handle at least 200 amps to avoid risk of fire. Signs of inadequate power may include frequent power loss due to blown fuses or tripped circuit breakers. Another huge sign that you need to update your wiring is the overuse of extension cords. Too many extension cords is a red flag and a qualified electrician should be called to assess the situation before danger strikes.

How to Make Aluminum Wiring Safe

In the 1960s and 1970s, many electricians used aluminum wiring. For short term use this is okay, but over the years this type of wiring oxidizes and corrodes much faster than copper wiring will. Terminals and splices are known to overheat and are a real risk of electrical fire. You may not need to have the entire system replaced right away, but an electrician will be able to assess the situation and repair potential problems. Copper connectors can be used to buy you a little bit of time before replacing the entire system.

Electrical Arcing Faults Are a Leading Cause of House Fires

When there is any damage to the wiring in your home, it can cause an arc fault. This happens when electrical current veers off the intended path due to damaged wire. Arc faults are the leading cause for electrical fires, and can be avoided completely. Damage to your wiring happen easily when you are hanging pictures on the walls and other small household tasks. When you have an AFCI, or arc fault circuit interrupter, installed in your home, these abnormalities in the wiring or your appliances will shut down the circuit before it gets the chance to overheat. AFCIs are very valuable in older homes where there is often undetected damage to wiring.

Electrical Wiring & Lighting Consultations in Greenwich, New Canaan, Darien, Norwalk, Westport, Southbury, Stamford, CT & Fairfield County, Connecticut

If you live in an older home and are concerned about the electrical wiring, you have good reason to be. The skilled electricians at Sentry Electric offer electrical inspections and upgrades to get your electrical system up to code and safe for your family. Don’t let an ignored issue end up causing an electrical fire in your home. Call us today!

When you are looking to add lighting to your home there is a lot to consider. Not only are you trying to decide the type of lighting but how you will power it all. There are lights that act as a spotlight through your yard and garden to attract the eye to important or key focal areas. This might be an entry point or a beautiful tree. You may also have string lights that are out near your patio or deck. This helps to add light to your outdoor space that can increase the usage in the night. You may also have walkways lighted whether by additional lights or lights that are embedded in the actual steps. This illuminates the walkway or path but it also acts as a safety measure. The lighting you use all has to be run to some aspect of power. Then the power has to be activated so that the lights around your home and yard come on at the appropriate time. The problem is when you have to manually turn them on. If you leave on vacation they will stay on or off alerting people that you are not there and possibly wasting energy. You also might just simply forget and leave them off or even on all day long. This is a waste of energy that you have to pay for. Fortunately, there are programmable timers that can be used to power the lights and save you time and money.

Sentry Electrical Outlines Different Types of Timers You Can Use to Activate the Lights Around Your Property

Analog Timer Switch for Lights: This is an option you can use that will make it so that the lights come on at a set time. They will also shut off at a time that you choose as well. The timer will have a dial on it that has a set of hands. The hands are set to show the time you want the lights to come on at night and what time of the day you want them to turn back off. This is a great way to save you money by not lighting the house in the daylight hours. The problem is that as the seasons start to change and the time changes the adjustment has to be made manually. If you forget to get out there and set it, the lights will remain on the original time.
Photocell Controlled Outdoor Timer: If you want to have a timer that works with the sun then a photocell is right for you. The photocell will turn on the lights when the sun sets and back on when it rises. There is no need to make adjustments for the season and the time of day. The problem is that the photocell has to be in an area that has access to the sun at all times of the day. It also may not work correctly on a really cloudy day.
Astronomical Timer to Control Outdoor Lights: This is a great option because it will work based on the area that you live. It will automatically know when there is a change in the time or season and make the adjustment accordingly. The timer is great for large or small jobs and is the most high tech of all. There is less to worry about if you choose this timer.

Electrical Wiring & Lighting Consultations in Greenwich, New Canaan, Darien, Norwalk, Westport, Southbury, Stamford, CT & Fairfield County, Connecticut

Sentry Electrical can handle all the electrical wiring and lighting in you home or business including installing outdoor light timers! Contact us today to discuss your next project.

One of the most important rooms in your home is the kitchen. Traditionally the kitchen is a place of gathering; more time is spent in the kitchen during waking hours than any other room in the home. The way we light our home, especially the kitchen, affects the way the space functions and how it makes us feel to spend time there. Your choice of lighting is one of the most important decisions you will make when updating or remodeling a kitchen. Rather than attempt to DIY, consult a professional to guide you in your lighting selection and installation. Sentry Electric is the premier electrician and electrical contractor servicing residential, commercial, and industrial clients in Fairfield County such as Stamford, Greenwich and Norwalk CT.

Sentry Electric recommends layering your lighting. There are four layers of light:
• Task Lighting – illuminates work spaces.
• Accent Lighting – highlighting that adds depth and dimension.
• Decorative Lighting – adds interest to a space.
• Ambient Lighting – gentle light that fills the room and bounces off the ceiling

It doesn’t matter if you have a lot or a little space, these four layers of lighting can be incorporated into any size room. Your family and friends will be drawn into your kitchen with the following easy strategies.
• Many kitchens have an open floor plan, so consider the adjacent areas of your home. Match the color of your light fixtures so the whole area flows.
• Use different shapes and go beyond the traditional style oval fixture design.
• Use adjustable fixtures to light artwork and other hanging keepsakes.
• Adding glow to cabinets creates dimension, visual interest and depth.
• Toekick lights underneath base cabinets illuminate the floor and serves as a functional nightlight.
• Under-counter lighting; when opening dark draws you can see inside.

Lack of Power Outlets

A common problem area in the kitchen is a lack of power outlets when you need them most. Not only are outlets limited in number, they are often positioned in odd locations that are just not functional. Sentry Electric suggests a kitchen pop-up tower. These towers are installed directly into your kitchen countertop, allowing for a multi outlet bar to pop up at the push of a button. Pop-up towers are specifically designed for spaces where spills are often common and feature a rubber ring which forms a seal to prevent water from leaking into the device. What you don’t see can often be as important as what you do see. Another power strip option is to reduce visual clutter by hiding power outlets in an unused spot under the cabinets.

Professional Lighting Fixture and Power Solutions

Contact Sentry Electric today and speak with a customer service professional about your new lighting and power installations. We are a local family owned and operated, licensed and insured emergency electrician company serving residential, commercial and industrial customers in Fairfield County and surrounding areas for over 40 years. Our skilled and highly trained technicians offer all kinds of electrical installations & repairs, new construction, remodels and troubleshooting including: outlets, switches and surge protection, circuits, breakers and panel’s Interior lighting, exterior lighting and much more.

Every home owner should know a licensed electrician and should have someone they can trust. The reason why is to make sure that if there is a problem, an electrician who is familiar with your home and the setup of your electrical is key. It will help to find the problem and repair it much faster. Every home has a plethora of electrical work and any of these areas can cause a problem in some way. The electrical encompasses the electrical outlets, lighting, audio visual, and all the appliances. This basically covers something in every single room in your home including your garage and exterior. Each residential home has an electrical panel that houses all the circuit breakers that should help make an electrical problem any bigger than it might already be. Doing any residential electrical work can be intimidating and should be left to a professional like Sentry Electric in the Stamford area and Fairfield County. What are some reasons that you may need to call a residential electrician?
 

Circuit Breaker Trips can Leave you in the Dark

Left in the dark – The most often reason that a home or an area of the home is left in the dark is because the circuit breaker trips. This means that the electrical current is stopped at the circuit panel temporarily and needs to be reset. Each circuit also has a fuse that can go back and cause the same reaction in the home. Either of these two problems could be solved quickly by calling Sentry Electric.
 

Flickering Lights

If you start to blow dry your hair and you notice that the bathroom light dims unintentionally or flickers on you may need an electrician. A lot of the electronics that you plug in to use such as a hair dryer pull a lot of amps quickly and can temporarily take away from the room. An licensed electrician can set up a designated plug to use that won’t have any interruption to the rest of the room.

Upgrading Outlets

Three doesn’t fit in two – This can be a problem for some older homes. If you have outlets that only accepts a 2 prong plug you are missing the ground. The ground helps keep you from having a disaster if the unit that is plugged in goes haywire. If you have any old outlets they can be updated and new 3 holed outlets can be installed.
 

Recessed Light Fixtures

Still too dark – A problem that many homes have is the amount of recessed of installed light fixtures. If you are unhappy with the amount of light or simply want a fan installed you would want to get an electrician to come out and run the wiring for these 2 upgrades.
 
Be sure to hire a reliable and trustworthy electrician like Sentry Electric today to handle any and all your residential electrical needs. Contact us today!

Flipping on the kitchen light switch or turning on the television takes little effort and often not much thought goes into how the light actually illuminates or how the television screen actually flickers on. Thanks to the amazing power of electricity we can enjoy many every day luxuries that are most often taken for granted. Think about a regular day and how many times you actually use the power of electricity. The number will grow quickly when you begin to think about your alarm clock going off, blow drying your hair, toasting your bread and watching the morning news while you sip your hot cup of coffee.
 

Speed of Electricity

Electricity is a staple of our everyday life. Other than lighting our homes and powering devices like cell phones, tablets, and televisions, electricity is pretty interesting. Electricity is extremely fast and travels at the speed of light. It travels more than 186,000 miles per second, which is pretty fast. Next time you switch on a light, think about how quickly that electricity is traveling, at a highly impressive speed. If you have ever slid your feet across the carpet so you can shock one of your siblings, then you have channeled electricity. Sometimes you can even see a spark when you do this, a spark of static electricity can measure up to 3,000 volts.
 

Electricity is Lightning

A lightning storm can be very exciting to watch as it lights up the sky and makes a loud crack. Lightning is one of the most powerful forces that come into contact with the earth. A lightning strike is a discharge of electricity in the atmosphere. Lightning bolts can travel at around 130,000 miles per hour and can reach extreme temperatures as hot as 54,000 degrees Fahrenheit. The thought of being struck by lightning now seems even worse than you had previously imagined.
 

Electrical Circuits

Keeping away from power lines is important to avoid getting electrocuted. At one time or another you have probably noticed a group of birds sitting on a power line; so how are they not getting harmed from this action? If a bird and his friends are sitting on just one power line, then they are safe. However, if this bird and his group of friends decide to touch another existing line with one of their wings or feet, this will create a circuit and electricity will immediately flow through the bird’s body. This will probably result in feathers going everywhere and possibly some good old home fried pigeon.
 

Professional Electrical Service Electricians

Electricity is a wonderful power that should be respected by all who use it. If your home or property is experiencing electrical difficulties, it is time to call in a professional. Never attempt to take on an electrical problem on your own. It is better to protect you and your family by contact a professional. Sentry Electric will take care of all your electrical needs with the proper service and care that you deserve.