Emergency Electrician | Conway, SC

9/30/2020

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Unless you live in no man’s land, you are most likely a heavy consumer of electricity within your home. In fact, electricity is one of the most consumed energy sources in the home. Almost everything you own needs electricity to work from power to your water heater to your stove. Even gas stoves need an electrical hookup to light the pilot. So it stands to reason that at some point in your life you are going to need help from a Conway, SC emergency electrician.

Outside of natural gas, the electrical system in your home is also the most dangerous. This is even more true if you have limited experience with electrical wires and do not own the appropriate tools. There is no need to worry if this is the case because that description fits the majority of homeowners. The good news is that an emergency electrician can quickly and safely troubleshoot almost all major electrical issues.

Unsure whether or not you need an emergency electrician? Sometimes it can be hard to tell if an electrical issue needs to be addressed right away or can wait until the morning. When in doubt, you can always call your local electrician and ask for their opinion. However, the following is a useful guide that can give you a brief idea of what types of situations definitely demand a call to an electrician to protect your home and your family.

Circuit Breaker Keeps Tripping

It is fairly normal for home circuit breakers to trip from time to time. However, if a circuit continues to trip even after you reset it then it’s time to call an electrician for help. Your circuit breaker box is designed to trip when it is overloaded or carrying too much current to prevent an electrical fire. Therefore, while it may seem like an annoyance, it is actually protecting you. However, the problem needs to be addressed before any permanent harm is caused to your home or your electrical box.

Discolored Switches or Outlets

Outlets or switches should not be discolored or stained. Outside of occasional accidents that may result in some sauce on an outlet, they should be the same color as when you installed them. If you happen to notice smoke near an outlet, an ashy residue, or any black smudges you should immediately call an emergency electrician in Conway, SC.

It is even more important to make the call if it is an outlet that you use on a regular basis. Until a professional electrician replaces the switch or the outlet you should not use it. The black smudges or residue are most likely signs that the outlet or switch is overheating, and that means the wiring behind it is unsafe. It could become both a fire hazard and an electrocution hazard.

You Smell Burning Rubber or Electrical Smells

It is hard to describe the way that electricity smells, but most people know it when they smell it. It is almost a sharp, metallic smell that instantly irritates your senses. If you notice this or the smell of hot, burning rubber you should immediately call an emergency electrician. You should never smell either of these in your home, so if you notice them this is a sign that something is seriously amiss.

The situation worsens if you notice that smells are coming from your circuit breaker box, at which point you need to throw the main breaker for your home and shut off all of the electricity in your home and call the electrician. Alternatively, you can attempt to turn off everything in your home and unplug everything you can find. However, most modern homes are heavily dependent on electricity so this task may be impractical. Killing the electricity to the entire home is often the safer option.

If you notice the smell is coming from an appliance, you still need to take proper action. If you suspect that the smell is coming from the outlet it is plugged into you will need help from an emergency electrician. It is possible that the appliance is overloading the circuitry and the wires are melting. It is also possible that something has gotten into your wiring like mice. Either way, you need an emergency electrician who can identify and fix the problem.

On the other hand, if the appliance is simply throwing the breaker the best thing you can do is turn it off and call the customer service department of your appliance. If you can’t get anywhere there, it is never a bad idea to have an electrician take a look. Either way, you need to turn off and unplug the appliance until you get some answers. You can troubleshoot some situations on your own as well. For example, if you smell burnt rubber coming from your dishwasher you may want to stop the cycle and look for something plastic melting inside.

No Power

If your home has no power, but every other home on your street does then it may be time to call an emergency electrician. The best thing to do is first call your electric company to make sure that there is not an outage in your area. Especially if you live in a rural area and are unable to see your neighbors. Once you rule out an outage, then you need to get an electrician into your home to further investigate the problem and get your lights back on.

All of the above are great reasons to call an emergency electrician, but there are dozens more. As a general rule, if you are in doubt it is always better to call your local electrician then to take a chance. Electrical issues are the most common reason for home fires in the US, so it’s really not worth it to take a wait and see approach. Mister Sparky of Myrtle Beach is a premier electrical company in South Carolina that offers emergency services and will be happy to help you if you are worried about an electrical issue in your home. Give us a call today to see what we can do for you.