In today’s digital age, our homes are filled with valuable electronics and appliances, from computers and televisions to refrigerators and air conditioners. These devices are essential to modern living, but they are also vulnerable to power surges—sudden spikes in electrical voltage that can cause irreversible damage. Surge protection is crucial to safeguard both your home’s electrical system and the valuable appliances and devices connected to it. Today, we at Sentry Electric would like to explore why surge protection is essential for your home and how it can save you from costly repairs and replacements.

Understanding Power Surges

A power surge occurs when there is a sudden increase in voltage in the electrical system. These surges can be caused by several factors, such as lightning strikes, power outages, faulty wiring, or even the startup of large appliances like air conditioners or refrigerators. When a surge happens, the voltage spikes above the normal 120-volt range, and this excess power can overload your electrical components, potentially frying circuits and damaging sensitive electronics.

The Dangers of Unprotected Electronics

Most modern electronics are designed to function at very specific voltage levels. When a surge occurs, the excess voltage can overwhelm the circuits inside these devices, causing them to malfunction or even burn out completely. Without proper surge protection, the damage to these devices can be costly. For instance, a $500 television or a $1,000 computer can be rendered useless in an instant if subjected to a significant power surge. Surges don’t always cause instant damage, though. Sometimes, they can gradually degrade the components over time, leading to performance issues and eventually complete failure. Without surge protection, this slow damage may go unnoticed until it’s too late, and repairing or replacing the affected appliances can cost hundreds or even thousands of dollars.

How Surge Protection Works

Surge protection devices (SPDs) are designed to protect electrical systems from power surges by diverting the excess voltage safely away from your sensitive electronics and appliances. These devices are typically installed in the electrical panel or as standalone surge protectors for individual devices. A whole-home surge protector is installed directly at the electrical panel and is designed to protect the entire house from power surges. It works by redirecting the surge energy to the ground, where it can dissipate safely without damaging the electrical system or connected devices. This provides a first line of defense against both external and internal surges, such as those caused by lightning strikes or large appliances cycling on and off. Additionally, power strips with built-in surge protectors are useful for protecting individual devices like computers, televisions, and home entertainment systems. These power strips absorb excess voltage and prevent it from reaching your devices.

The Cost of Not Having Surge Protection

The cost of installing surge protection is relatively low compared to the potential financial burden of replacing damaged electronics and appliances. A whole-home surge protector cost depends on the size of your home and the level of protection needed. In contrast, the cost of replacing a single damaged device could easily exceed that amount. Also, power surges can damage not only electronics but also the electrical wiring in your home. In extreme cases, this could lead to a fire hazard, posing significant risks to your home and family. Surge protection is an investment in both the longevity of your devices and the safety of your household.

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In an age where nearly every home has multiple electronic devices, surge protection is no longer optional—it’s a necessity. Power surges are unpredictable, and the damage they cause can be expensive, both in terms of repairing or replacing devices and the potential hazards to your home’s electrical system. Installing surge protection devices is a simple and affordable way to protect your home, preserve the lifespan of your electronics, and ensure the safety of your family and property. Don’t wait until it’s too late—protect your home from the dangers of power surges today. Call Sentry Electric for your electrical needs.

Whether you are moving into a new commercial property, experiencing electrical problems or just can’t remember the last time you had one; it may pay to start out with an inspection. Flip a switch enough times and it wears out. Push and pull a plug into wall so many times it will wear to the point it won’t hold a plug anymore. An electrical inspection will detect these problems early before they escalate into bigger issues. Lights and lighting are what makes life bearable no one wants to live in a dingy cave.

How Bright is 100 Lumens?

A certain amount of light is 30 lumens per square foot depending on the room. For a 100 square foot room dining room that needs 30 -40 lumens per square foot that is 3000 lumens. Take for instance:
Room – Lumens per Sq. Foot
Living Room – 10-20
Dining Room – 30-40
Bedroom – 10-20
Bathroom – 70-80
Hallways – 5-10
Kitchen (General) – 30-40
Kitchen (Task) – 70-80
Laundry – 79 80
A 100-watt equivalent LED is about 1500 lumens. LEDs have radically changed lighting. An LED should last over 19 years based on 3 hours of use per day. A 100-watt incandescent equivalent only uses about 15 watts of energy. No flickering light like fluorescent lights. Another advantage of an LED is that fixtures with low rating bulbs can now be upgraded with brighter light bulbs and increased light capacity without having to replace the fixture.

Ground Fault Circuit Interrupters (GFCI)

Shock is usually a grounding issue. Make sure you properly grounded. With the quality of power from online sources deteriorating surges and brown outs have become just a part of normal life. Grounding issues tend to surface when surges are the primary concern. Being around water, outlets in the kitchen and bathrooms need to be protected by GFCI or ground fault circuit interrupters.

Enough Power & Light for Your Needs

Adequate lighting is a security issue for both the home and business. Some lights tend be on all the time after dark at home and business. Overloaded and unlabeled circuits should be avoided. Proper labeling aids in troubleshooting. Also, single circuit issues can be addressed without having to shut down power to the whole house.

Smoke & Carbon Monoxide Detectors

Many smoke detectors are hard wired in the homes wiring. Along with carbon monoxide detectors they offer early warning of a pending disaster. CO (carbon monoxide) detectors should be in any room with open wood burning fireplaces.

Electrical Junction Box Code & Other Mistakes Homeowners Make

When purchasing a new home, an electrical inspection is a great idea as you’ll know the property is safe and not at a high risk of an electrical fire. Some common mistakes homeowners make are:
• Failing to install a junction box. This is the plastic or metal box that contains a switch or outlet. In needs to be installed flush with the drywall to prevent sparks contacting the wooden framing of the home.
• Cutting wires too short. You need slack to work with wiring and have enough to strip a required length for connection.
• Over filling a junction box, makes too crowded and you may find it violates the National Electrical code.
• Receptacles should be tight and not move.
• Don’t mix wire gauges. Most residential services require 12-gauge wire for all 20-amp circuits. Older standards allow 14-gauge wire for lighting only circuits, but all new construction specifies 12-gauge wire for lighting and receptacles. 14-gauge for 15 amps, 12-gauge for 20 amp, and 10-guage for 30-amp circuits.
• Failure to install a GVCI outlet but remember only the first outlet in the circuit requires require a GFCI, wired properly all down-line outlets are protected by the first.
• Cables need protection. Never leave exposed cables.

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A thorough electrical inspection will allow you to rest easy and know what you have for wiring expansion in the future. Call Sentry Electric to schedule your electrical inspection or other service today!

A rather complex process is designing and installing lights inside your home. To optimize the lights and their impact, there are quite a few factors to consider. In order to avoid serious injury or property damage, always hire a licensed electrician perform the installations when it comes to adding new lights in your home. Electrical work requires understanding and training for efficiency and safety. Also, to ensure the wiring and securing the light fixtures are all in accordance to the building’s codes and regulations, having a licensed pro in your corner will make sure the job is done right. Having more and/or upgraded lights installed in your home is not only practical, but it will contribute to mood, ambiance, and the overall style of your home. To help you plan the light enhancement in your home, we at Sentry Electric have compiled a few tips and suggested listed below.

Colorful Accent Lights

When the furniture is seemingly plain, and the room is heavily drained in neutral shades, a splash of colorful lighting or within the fixtures itself can help a room be a little spicier. Without some kind of pizzazz, the room will be washed out. For instance, a room with a minimalist design typically has white or black couches and the room may be painted in primarily white or cream colors. Implement bright gold or bronze fixtures to offer more to the room.

Soft Lighting in Bathrooms

In areas such as the home office or garage, you need the powerful task-based lighting. As opposed to powerful lighting, try softer lighting in the bathroom, where there is still plenty of lights. Since the bathroom is the last place you are before bed and first place you go in the morning, you do not want the harsh blast of powerful lights. To make it easier on the eyes, install softer lights with warm coloring, perhaps install the small wall with scones and track lighting on separate switches to keep the lights minimal when you do not need too much, but it is there when you are getting ready for the day.

Front Entrance Indoor Lighting

Make the entrance more welcoming by starting with the exterior of the doorway and increase the lights on the side of the doorway. Flood the entryway with lighting to give people a better opportunity to see where they are going by flanking each side of the front door sconces and hanging the chandelier in the center of the walkway. With so many styles, you can find one that fits your tastes and your home’s design.

Ceiling Lights

Living rooms and kitchens are great places to take advantage of the ceilings for improved lighting. Instead of under the counter on the table lighting, you can install recessed lighting options to ceiling above. If the room has an exceptional amount of natural light on its own, install dimmer switches to soften the light or add just enough light. Also, LED energy-saving bulbs added to the recessed lighting is also ideal.

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Where every home is designed with architectural focal points, you can choose to easily enhance these details with the right lighting. Many homeowners have created impressive displays as the lighting accentuate the overall look of your home with so many design options to customize your home. No matter what you choose, when installing lights inside your home, call in the experts of Sentry Electric and let our talented and licensed professionals get the job done safely and efficiently.

There is right way to do things and a wrong way. This statement is especially true when it comes to electrical work. The smartest decision you can make when it comes to electrical work is to hire professionals. Hire the wrong people and the consequences could be big. Sentry Electric explains further below.

The Cost of Poor Electrical Installations & Work in Your Home

1. Wasting money. if your money isn’t handled the right way, you’re just wasting it. Spending money to try and do electrical work yourself or hiring the wrong people is not a good idea. You will probably need to get the work you did fixed and spend more than you would have had you hired the right people to begin with.
2. Wasting time. You have a lot to do. Trying to figure out how to do something you’re not trained to do will just take time. You will also need to spend time getting all the tools you need, not to mention the time you’ll waste getting it the job done. Chances are it will take you a few attempts.
3. Creating a bigger electrical problem. If you don’t know what you’re doing, you will probably make the problem worse. When it comes to electrical issues that means it can become more dangerous and more expensive to fix.

Electrical Mistakes to Avoid

1. Trying to do the electrical work yourself. The how-to videos you watch make everything look easy. But if you cut a wrong wire or put one where it shouldn’t be there can be serious damage that can lead to more repairs that weren’t there to begin with. That means more money or having to call in an expert. All to fix the problems you created by trying to fix it yourself. You can’t assume that the repair you watched is identical to your situation -even it looks the same.
2. Having a friend do the electrical work. Our friends are helpful for so many reasons but not to take care of electrical issues. Again, just because they may have fixed a similar problem at their home doesn’t mean they can do it in yours. Your problems become worse if they injure themselves on your property and who’s responsible for added repairs when parts get broke or problems become worse? The answer is you. Don’t risk spending more than you have to and putting a strain on your friendships and hire the professionals.
3. Hiring the first electrical contractor company you see. It’s important to do some research before you hire an electrician. You want to make they are licensed and certified. You also want to find out what people are saying about them. Read reviews and ask your friends and family. Any reputable company will also be more than happy to provide you with references.

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Bottom line – avoiding these mistakes will save money! You can trust the professionals at Sentry Electric to perform any electrical work in your home or business. You can be sure the work will be done right the first time. Give us a call today!

There are some areas of your home that you want to make sure work for you and make your life easier. This might be the flow of the house, the appliances that you are using and even the way that your furniture is set up. One area of the house that is made just to make life better is the electrical system. Having electricity is a benefit and not a necessity. You may take for granted how much you rely on the electricity you use in your house. You want to make sure you know what upgrades and additions you can make to your house when it comes to the electrical system. The more understanding that comes to the electrical world that we live in the more you will start to see it in your house. There are some advancements that you can use in your house if you call an electrician to make the upgrades for you. Sentry Electric outlines some of the best electrical upgrades you can make in your house.

Wall Outlets with USB Charging Ports

One of the things you will notice in your house is that kids and adults alike are looking for a spot to charge their phone. The issue is that the plugs are being used for other things such as fixtures, fans, appliances and more. That means the options left for charging your phone may be slim to none. You want to have enough areas to charge the phones in your house and there is a great option that is available to you now. You want to talk to your electrician about installing USB plugs in your house. You can talk to them about a specialty plug that can be wired right into the wall. The USB is part of the plug so that you can charge your smart phone and have a standard plug as well. This is a great way to increase the functionality of your home and make it easier to live your life.

Pantry Closet Lighting

Have you ever gone to the kitchen in the night for a midnight snack and not be able to see what your options are? The problem is that if you have a pantry with no lights it can be hard to see what you have. One of the upgrades you can make to your house is to have an electrician install pantry lights. The pantry lights are a great addition and can be made to come on when the doors open. This is the same thing that happens when you open your refrigerator. That way when you open it you can have light come on and you can see clearly what you have in your cabinet.

Dimmer Switches

Having a light turned on or off is the only option that most homes have. One of the best lighting additions you can make to your home is to have dimmer switches installed. The dimmer switches are a great addition so that you can adjust the amount of light you are using. You can use a soft amount of light when you first are up in the morning.

Electrical Upgrades & More in Greenwich, New Canaan, Darien, Norwalk, Westport, Southbury, Stamford, CT & Fairfield County, Connecticut

Sentry Electric can come to your house and make plans to upgrade your electrical system. Call us today!