4 Warning Signs Your Home Is in Danger of an Electrical Fire

The electrics in your home are an essential part of your daily life. You may not think about them much but you’re always using them. Whether you’re turning a light on, doing some cooking, or charging your phone, electricity is a constant and needed companion.

But, have you ever considered how good your electrics actually are? Did you know that approximately 20% of all fires are started by electrical issues?

There is no point in spending thousands improving the look and feel of your home unless you have a level 2 electrician check your electrics at least once a year.

The good news is that a regular survey and a little knowledge of the most common fire warning signs will help you to protect your home.

Tripping Breakers

Your circuit breaker is designed to trip, specifically when a circuit is overloaded or if there is any other issue, such as a short. A breaker will trip so fast that the electrical current shouldn’t seriously hurt you.

If yours trips, you can simply reset it, you may have simply overloaded it.

However, if it keeps tripping you’re going to have to unplug everything on the circuit if it still trips then you have a wiring issue that can cause a fire and you need help. If it only trips when a specific appliance is plugged in then there is a problem with the appliance, don’t use it again until it’s been checked.

Finally, if it only trips when everything is plugged in again you’re probably overloading the circuit and need to plug some items into a different circuit. Overloads create heat which increases the risk of fires.

Burning Smell

When you smell burning in your home then the first thing you’ll probably think of is fire. It may simply be a device being used that hasn’t been used for a long time. But, if the smell is persistent and you can’t identify it then there’s a good chance that you have a bit of faulty wiring or a loose connection.

This will cause the current to jump which creates the burning smell ad makes it likely that you’ll have a house fire.

Charred Sockets

This is one of the easiest things to spot and shows that you’ve already had electrical issues in your home. Charred or otherwise damaged sockets suggest a previous overload and potentially a short in the circuit, both result in fire.

You’ll need to remove the socket and assess the issue to discover if it’s the socket or the wiring between it and your fuse box.

Old Wiring

In fact, one of the most common warning signs isn’t anything wrong with your electrics! It’s simply checking out your electrics and finding that they are 50 years old, or more.

Wiring slowly degenerates other time, or through the interference of pests, when it gets old the protective covering will have eroded leaving bare wires exposed and increasing the risk of two wires touching and a fire being started.

Houses with old wiring need to be completely rewired for your own safety.