Perhaps everyone is enjoying some of the first official days of fall? We’ve been busy as always around here! In the past, we’ve discussed how exterior lighting can help keep homes secure. Here are a few key points to remember:

According to Forbes, exterior lighting and certain types of landscaping help keep burglars away from homes. Bright and highly responsive outdoor security lighting works best to protect your home.
A Mister Sparky home electrical inspection will help us analyze your home situation so we may provide the best suggestions moving forward with your exterior lighting installation. However, now we’re moving on to discuss the main electrical panels. Yes, we’re talking about electrical panels because they’re important! We’ll discuss the purpose of electrical panels service and top manufacturers we prefer. Then we’ll go into the life expectancy of electrical panels, and what to do when you face problems with them.

Electrical Panels

First, what is the purpose of an electrical panel? Well, the electrical panel is much like a heart. Hearts pump blood to your lungs and other important systems in your body through veins and arteries to keep you alive. Electrical panels serve as distribution centers for electricity, as they push electricity through wires or circuits to different electrical systems in your home to keep it powered on.

Without a highly reliable and functioning electrical panel, you can expect that nothing will work the way it is supposed to. That’s why picking an electrical panel made by a trusted, reliable brand is important. When we do the installation we use Cutler Hammer and Square D electrical panels because they are the best! However, we do repairs on many brands of electrical panels and we do lots of them- especially on Zinsco and Federal Pacific electrical panels. These brands cause lots of problems from over-current or short circuits due to the overheating of bus bars. This is one of many reasons why it’s important to have a certified electrician check the functionality and safety of your electrical panel annually.

As people age, their hearts may face complications. The same goes for your home. As it ages, your home’s electrical panel may stop protecting the home against over-current or short circuits, among other problems. Electrical panels normally last around 25 years, but this depends on how you treat them. Exposing electrical panels to harsh environments or overloading will only cause them to stop working faster. If you experience a problem with your electrical panel, call a professional, certified electrician.

If you are sure something with your electrical panel isn’t working correctly or you think it may need an inspection, get a hold of a certified electrician (preferably Mister Sparky). DIY electric work is often dangerous. We would be happy to come out to your home to help. If you want to save money, check out our preventative maintenance program, PowerClub. With a PowerClub membership, you get a 10% discount on all service and repairs, special privileges, and other perks.

Well, we hope this blog has enlightened you regarding all things electrical panels. It’s always enjoyable to have the privilege of sharing our passions. Don’t forget to come back and visit our website soon since we’ll be blogging regularly each month. Contact us if you have any thoughts, questions or concerns.

Mister Sparky® of Northwest Arkansas, America’s On-Time Electrician in Bella Vista, Bentonville, Rogers, Springdale and Fayetteville services the Northwest Arkansas area with a team of licensed electricians. In addition to flickering lights, some of the electrician services provided by the company include electrical outlet/switch repair, ceiling fan installation, lighting installation, electrical wiring repair, landscape lighting installation, and home electrical inspections.