The Electrical Safety Foundation International (ESFI) recommends that you always contact a qualified, licensed electrician to perform any electrical work in your home. It’s critical to recognize and distinguish between those repairs that you are qualified to undertake and those that only a professional electrician should handle.
If you decide to undertake even a simple electrical project yourself, here are some important things you will need to do to avoid serious injury:
- Before touching any wires, always turn off the power to the circuit that you plan to work. Do this by switching off the circuit breaker in the main service panel.
- Be sure to test wires with a voltage tester before you touch them to make sure that the power has been turned off. Test from the black wires to both the grounded box and the white wires, and test from the white wires to the grounded box.
- Always test your voltage tester in a live receptacle to be sure it is working.
- Never touch plumbing or gas pipes when performing a do-it-yourself electrical project.
- Make sure that you are not standing on a damp floor and that your body is dry.
- Be sure to unplug any lamp or appliance before working on it.
- Use only Underwriters’ Laboratory (UL) listed appliances and electrical supplies.
Pick up the phone and call an electrician if:
- Your service panel is hot, sparking, making crackling noises, blackened or rusted
- You smell something burning
- Extensive repairs are necessary and you are not familiar with local code
- You begin working and encounter something unusual
Oak Electric Service is one of southeast Michigan’s leading electrical contractors. Give us a call at (800) 964-7070. We are standing by to answer all of your residential and commercial electrical questions. We will always personally answer your phone call – you will never reach an answering service! Be sure to ask about our “Free Electrical Safety Inspection” with every job. We invite you to visit our website at www.oakelectric.com to learn more about us.
