When To Call For Emergency Electrical Service | Myrtle Beach, SC

When To Call For Emergency Electrical Service | Myrtle Beach, SC

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You and your family depend on electricity every single day. It is necessary to run our kitchens, bathrooms, and recreational areas. When you start having problems with your home electrical system, it is impossible to continue with your regular life. While it is true that you can experience problems with any system in your home, such as your gas supply, water, and sewer, a problem with your electrical system can put you at serious risk for fire.

The U.S. Fire Administration has reported that around 24,000 home fires each year in the United States are caused by electrical trouble. It only takes a spark to turn a repair issue into a fire emergency. Your professional electrician can help you determine whether you have any signs of high risk for fire in your electrical system. But if you find yourself in one of the following situations, you should call for an emergency electrical service professional immediately.

You Smell Burning or Overheating Electrical Odors

An electrical short has an odor that is very noticeable. Electrical wires are covered with insulation for safety. When the wires begin to overheat, they start melting the insulated covering on them. This results in the smell of burning plastic and can leave nasty black smoke residue on your walls.

The reason the insulation is so necessary for electrical wiring is because the wires can arc when it is missing. This can send sparks from the exposed wiring to other close wires or metal objects. Arcs may give off the smell of ozone. Ozone is created when the sparks break the molecular bonds of oxygen. When the molecules recombine, the result is ozone. That is the distinct electrical smell that is released when there is a problem.

As soon as you notice either the smell of burning plastic or that electrical smell that tells you something is wrong, you should immediately trip your circuit breaker controlling the origin of the smell. In this circumstance, your circuit breaker is not responding as it should and is letting your electrical system overheat instead of shutting off automatically. This creates a high risk for your house to catch on fire.

You need a professional emergency electrical service company to immediately take care of an issue this serious. The welfare of your entire household is at stake. Don’t risk the lives of your loved ones by ignoring a problem that could destroy everything in minutes. Let your emergency electrical service professional take care of your trouble quickly, so you can rest easy.

You Have a Broken Circuit Breaker

Most electrical surges that occur originate right inside your home or business. Your circuit breaker is designed to stop severe electrical surges. But if yours is malfunctioning, it could cause terrible problems.

In the past, fuses were what kept overloaded circuits in line. They had a wire inside them that melted if there was a surge that overloaded them. This broke the flow of current to the circuit instantly. Today, we have modern circuit breakers that serve basically the same function.

Your circuit breaker contains a sensor that keeps track of the current in a circuit. If the sensor detects an issue, such as too much current flow, it activates the breaker. This spring-loaded switch will trip when the sensor finds a problem, ending the flow of electricity to the circuit. One of the advantages of the circuit breaker over the fuse system is that each fuse was good for only one use. A circuit breaker can be repeatedly reset after it has been tripped.

Circuit breakers do last longer than fuses but they can also break down. If either of the two main parts of the circuit breaker, the sensor or the spring-loaded switch, malfunction, your circuit breaker might not stop the overload next time one occurs. If you have a broken circuit breaker that fails to shut off the power to the circuit, you could be at major risk for fire. Your emergency electrical service professional can replace your circuit breaker and make certain your home is protected.

Your House Is Flooding

You could experience flooding for a variety of reasons. The water could be coming in from outside the house, as in a storm or flood, but most often the water comes in from a plumbing problem. It does not matter how much water is filling your home. Electricity and water are a destructive match.

Water can corrode your electrical contacts and wiring, and salt water is especially harsh. Salt water is also a great conductor of electricity, unlike its freshwater relation. In addition, if you turn your electricity back on in your home before it has dried out completely from flooding, you run the risk of triggering electrical shorts all through your system. You risk being electrocuted or starting a house fire by rushing to return power to your home before it is ready.

If you are having or have had a flooding problem in your home, you need to contact your emergency electrical service pro right away. That way you will know when it is safe to turn the electricity back on in your building.

Choosing the Best Emergency Electrical Services in Myrtle Beach, SC

Before you can call for emergency electrical services, you need to know which company to choose. By following a few basic guidelines, you can find the right professional for the job.

First, you need to make sure you are working with a legitimate professional. Your emergency electrical services provider should be licensed by the state and properly insured. Only then will you know you are in professionally trained hands. And if anything were to go wrong, you are protected.

Next, check into their references and reviews. Find out as much as you can about how happy other local customers were with their work before you decide.

Finally, find out how long they have been in business. You deserve a company with experience to handle your home or business electrical system in Myrtle Beach, SC.

Contact us today at Mister Sparky of Myrtle Beach for more information about our emergency electrical service.

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