Power Outages

How to Prepare for When the Power Cuts Off

Power outages are frustrating because they cut us off from the comforts of modern life while also being completely uncontrollable. While nothing can prevent a power outage from happening, being prepared for one can help you stay well-situated in an emergency.

Why Do Power Outages Happen?

Power outages are rare in the United States and typically happen because of severe weather. When heavy rain or wind affects a power company’s equipment, thousands of people might be left without electricity until that company remedies the issues. In some cases, a power company might only need to repair a power line, a repair that can only take hours. In other instances, they can have catastrophic failures that take days to fix.

Steps to Take for Power Outages

Watch the Forecast

While most storms don’t guarantee a power outage, knowing when a big one is coming will help you be prepared. Severe storms knock trees into power lines or cause other disruptions to power systems.

Have an Emergency Kit

Stock your home with supplies that will help you get through a power outage. Make sure all flashlights have good batteries, have an emergency radio ready to receive updates, and store plenty of water. Additionally, make sure that you have plenty of non-perishable foods that are edible without cooking or preparation. Finally, make sure your home is stocked with blankets as power outages could mean facing freezing weather with no heating source.

Have a Backup Plan

In most cases, power is restored within hours of failure. However, some situations might cause the power to be lost for days. For these instances, speak with friends or relatives about the possibility of staying with them as power is restored to your home.

Generators: The Ultimate Insurance Against Power Outages

If you have health complications and need a medical device to have power constantly, it’s important to have a backup generator installed in your home. Backup generators are also great options for families who don’t like the idea of facing a significant storm unprepared for the worst.

At Mister Sparky®, we offer a range of backup generators and have a team of electricians who are ready to provide professional installation. We’ll come to your home, examine its needs, and consider your preferences and budget to suggest a generator to you. Then, we’ll install it according to manufacturer specifications. Best of all, we back our work with a 100% satisfaction guarantee! Ever Mister Sparky® is locally owned and operated so you can be certain that someone familiar with the needs of your area will be helping you make a generator decision.

Call our team of generator repair and installation experts today at (415) 548-2753. Our electricians take calls 24/7 for emergency service.

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Getting an electrical panel upgrade isn’t easy, all sorts of hurdles to jump cause of the current codes. Mr. Sparky is well versed in navigating this sort of thing. Everyone from the person who came out to give me an estimate to the installers were top notch. Super professional, competent and polite. Highly recommend them.

- simon malouf

Had a wonderful experience with a Mr. Sparky technician field supervisor Samuel. He came out to our home when we needed an emergency at 3:00 AM yesterday evening PG&E had shut down our power because we had an old hazardous panel and it was deemed unsafe due to this reason we had to call an electrician to replace it immediately. Samuel was quick and responsive and showed up within 30 minutes of calling and was able to get our power restored within 24 hours, not only did they provide a wonderful service at a fair price but they were professional and efficient. Wonderful company. I will be calling them again for any future electrical needs.

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Our electrician, Tim, was fantastic!! He was on time - very knowledgeable, courteous, friendly and thorough as far as explaining each step - our house was cleaner than when he started!!! We highly recommend Mr. Sparky and Tim and will ONLY use their services in the future -

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We needed a bathroom light fixture moved, an outlet installed up higher and the cable cords relocated to the other side of the room. Mister Sparky sent Tim out who was amazing. He explained all the steps he would take and made sure we were aware of the cuts on the wall he would need to make. Nothing we couldn’t fix on our own after the fact. It was also an extremely hot day (100 degrees) and Tim had to go under the house. I definitely did not envy him, but he did it with no complaints. I highly recommend Tim and Mister Sparky because the work turned out great. There were a few safety recommendations discussed along the way which is more than appreciated. Thank you!

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Tim-expert and excellent technician. Theresa-excellent customer service rep. She goes above and beyond in her communications assistance. Sam-excellent project manager. They are all professional and personable. This is the top of customer service. I appreciated their patience, kindness, and educating me as to what electrical needs were warranted and why. They presented all options in terms of helping me to make an informed decision. I highly recommend this company.

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