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Joined: Oct 2000
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ESFI LAUNCHES CAMPAIGN TO HELP PROTECT HOMES FROM ELECTRICAL HAZARDS
"Inspect and Protect!" Campaign Heralds the Beginning of National Electrical Safety Month
(Arlington, Va.)—The Electrical Safety Foundation International (EFSI) celebrates the start of National Electrical Safety Month by launching its safety campaign—"Inspect and Protect!" today. The campaign provides consumers with basic information and simple tips to safeguard their homes from undetected electrical issues.
This May during National Electrical Safety Month, homeowners are encouraged to 1) inspect wiring systems in homes 40 years and older, 10 years and older with major renovations or new appliances added, or that have been newly purchased; 2) learn the potential hazards posed by aluminum wiring systems; and 3) consider installing arc fault circuit interrupter (AFCI) technology. As electrical systems age they can deteriorate and become overloaded. It is important that consumers have their electrical systems inspected by a licensed electrical inspector or electrician to identify and correct hidden hazards before they become tragedies.
Electricity is uniquely unforgiving, even the smallest mistake can cause fire, injury or death. Between 1994 and 1998, according to statistics from the National Fire Protection Association, there was an average of 406,700 residential fires a year, and nearly 17 percent were related to electrical distribution or appliances and equipment. Another 42,700 or 10.5 percent were related to heating and air conditioning systems. These combined to cause an average of 860 deaths, 4,875 injuries and nearly $1.3 billion in property damage. Many of these incidents could have been prevented by having an electrical inspection of the house to find the hidden hazards lurking behind the walls and in the electrical panel and appliances of the home.
"Many homeowners don’t understand the dangerous effect age has on their home’s electrical system," said Michael G. Clendenin, ESFI executive director. "Our goal is to make them aware of the potential hazards and provide them with the information they need to protect their homes and their families. At the conclusion of this campaign, we hope homeowners will regard an electrical inspection as an essential part of routine home maintenance."
The spokesperson for this campaign is Cliff Meidl, who survived a near fatal electric shock in the workplace in 1986 only to go on to participate in the 1996 and 2000 Olympics in sprint kayaking, carrying the American flag during the opening ceremonies in Sydney, Australia.
"I learned firsthand that the key to electrical safety is awareness. It is important to me to teach others about the potential dangers of electricity on the job and at home and the importance of electrical safety," said Meidl. "As spokesperson for the Electrical Safety Foundation International’s safety campaign I urge you to protect yourself and your families by Inspecting and Protecting your home." For More Info Go To >> www.Electrical-Safety.org
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Joined: Jul 2002
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We had a similar scheme over here, a couple of years ago, it was called a "Wire-Check". Where an Electrician, would come into a persons home and check ALL of the wiring, do loop-tests on all of the sockets, check the Hot Water Cylinder temperature(good for homes with small children!), check the condition of all of the lampholders(for over-heating) and check the protection at the switch-board, to see that it was appropriate for each circuit. And anything else that the person there(most of them tenants in Rental properties), wanted checked out. We done 100's of houses over the 2 months that the campaign ran and I think that it is due for another round-up later on in the year. The results we got were frightening, to think that people were actually living in these houses, in this state of Electrical dis-repair!. ![[Linked Image]](https://www.electrical-contractor.net/ubb/frown.gif)
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Joined: Aug 2001
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I couldn't agree more. Far too many people in this country will make a big fuss over things in their houses which are of a purely convenience or cosmetic nature, yet when it comes to the electrical system they apply the ostrich-style "out of sight, out of mind" approach, and only get somebody in when something stops working or the smoke starts to rise. check the Hot Water Cylinder temperature(good for homes with small children!), As a matter of curiosity, what temperature would they specify for the hot water? I seem to recall seeing somewhere that the latest codes in California (or parts of CA?) require the 'stat to be set at no more than 120 degrees. Could any of our West Coast members confirm that? I generally set 'stats to around 140 here.
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Joined: Apr 2002
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120° may have been incidental to child safety, with the primary intent energy reduction, if sponsored by a group like the tragically-hip Calfornai Energy Commission.
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Joined: Jul 2002
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Paul, It is recommended, that the temperature of Hot Water be no higher than 55*C(130*F), at the tap(Faucet) when it gets to it's hottest point. Which is rather difficult to set up, because the thermostat controls the water in the Cylinder, not the tap temperature!. Other side of the coin though, I saw heaps of cylinders that were wound right up to 90*C(195*F)!.
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Joined: Aug 2001
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I've seen that too, along with plenty of cylinders where the thermostat has long since gone faulty so it just starts bubbling away until somebody runs some hot water off.
Most of eastern England has very hard water, and cranking the temperature up above 140 tends to result in much greater build up of limescale.
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Joined: Jul 2002
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I certainly agree with this pro-active programme, it just gives the everyday Homeowner, a chance to have thier Electrics checked over in a rather intensive process. How otherwise would this happen?, apart from a Fire Investigation, after half or more of the house, is on the ground. IMHO, nip it in the bud, before it happens!. ![[Linked Image]](https://www.electrical-contractor.net/ubb/wink.gif)
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Joined: Jul 2002
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Oddly enough, There was a survey released over here today that gave the result of this: - 95% of all home-owners believe that thier home is in a GOOD state of Electrical Integrity.
- 65% had had an Electrician repair part or most of thier wiring in the last year.
- 80% of those surveyed, had had a faulty Electrical appliance, that they returned to the dealer, in the last year.
- 25% had had an Electrical Fault serious enough for the Fire Service, to be responded.(Hmm, I thought that 95% of those surveyed thought, thier house was Electrically safe?.)
(Figures from CM Research-NZ) This is really strange, as most of these polls are done over the phone and people are generally quite honest with a survey company like this one. Doesn't say much for the appliance manufacturers though.
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