One of the leading causes of house fires is faulty wiring. If your switches or outlets feel warm to the touch or emit a burning smell, that is a sign you should call an electrician immediately.
Electricity flows quietly between connections, but if something is amiss, the current can jump, creating buzzing sounds. It could also mean your lights share an outlet with a high-power-consuming appliance.
Flickering Lights
The occasional flicker of your lights might seem harmless, but if this problem becomes frequent and intense, it could indicate a severe issue with your wiring. Flickering lights are caused by a reduction or fluctuation in household voltage, which can damage appliances and sometimes lead to electrical fires.
A quick and easy way to check your home’s voltage is by using a voltmeter. A standard circuit should register between 115 and 125 volts, so any reading lower than this indicates an issue with your wires.
Larger appliances like refrigerators and air conditioners can draw a lot of electricity when they’re running, which can cause a temporary dip in voltage and result in the lights flickering. Putting these appliances on dedicated circuits can prevent this from happening.
Light switches can also become loose or wear out over time, causing the lights to flicker. Try wiggling the switch on the light fixture to see if it helps, but in most cases, you’ll need to call an electrician to replace the switch. If the lights are flickering throughout your house, it’s likely because your neighbor’s load impacts yours since most homes share a transformer in their neighborhood.
High Electricity Bills
Faulty wiring can lead to electricity leakage, causing your appliances to heat up and consume more energy. This extra consumption can be costly. If your electric bill exceeds normal, faulty wiring could be the culprit.
Another sign that you have faulty wiring is if your circuit breakers are frequently tripping. This is a clear indication that the circuit is overloaded with electrical voltage. You can reduce the number of high-power-consuming appliances drawing power from a single outlet or switching to GFCI outlets.
It’s essential to regularly check for any signs of faulty electrical wiring in your home or business. You can call in an electrician to fix electrical problems by identifying the symptoms.
Sparking Appliances
A spark is never a good sign and should always warrant immediate action. It’s especially concerning when the sparking originates from the breaker panel, fuse box, or outlets. The sparks can indicate that the wire is exposed and could easily lead to a fire or electric shock.
It’s also a sign of an overloading circuit. It should be relatively challenging to overload a specific outlet in a well-wired house, so if you’re consistently blowing the same fuse or frequently trip your breakers, it’s time to call in a pro.
Also, look for any odors in your home that are strange, rotten, or burnt. These could indicate that the wiring is a fire risk and should be replaced immediately. Tens of thousands of residential fires occur annually due to defective wiring. Early identification of problems could save lives and prevent property damage.
Hot Outlets
It may indicate that your outlets are overheating or that your wiring isn’t in good condition if they feel hot to the touch. This is a problem that could lead to serious safety issues. If you notice that an outlet feels hot, call an electrician as soon as possible.
Overheating can happen when too many items are plugged into one circuit. This causes the circuit to overwork and become too hot to handle. You can fix this by unplugging and moving some items to different circuits to reduce demand on the problematic outlet.
Another common reason for overheating is that the outlet’s connections are loose. This can be caused by backstabbing, which is when the wires are pushed into the outlet instead of being screwed in, or incorrect use of wire nuts, which are fasteners used to keep the wires tightly connected. If you notice any blemishes on or around an outlet, this is also a sign that it’s faulty and should be replaced immediately. This includes dark discoloration, melting, and cracks.
Smell of Burning
If you notice a burning smell, it could indicate that the wiring is heating up and melting its plastic insulation. This severe problem could lead to a fire if not immediately addressed by a licensed electrician.
If the smell is powerful, turn off the power to the outlet or switch and remove all plugs if the odor comes from your breaker or fuse box, shut off those.
While it can be challenging to determine why wire connections are loose, there are a few common causes of this problem. One of the most common is when two bare copper grounding wires are wedged under one screw terminal on a switch or outlet. This major code violation can lead to dangerous sparking and arcing. It also indicates amateur work that a licensed electrician should handle. Another common issue is a breaker box that trips frequently. This often indicates that it’s overloaded and needs an additional circuit. It could be caused by old wiring or improper home renovations.
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