Examine Your Electrical Decorations
Your Christmas lights have more than likely sat untouched in a box in a basement, attic or closet since being taken down. Before any of the lights go up on or in your house or on your Christmas tree, look them over. Examine them thoroughly for any electrical damage. Check for broken or damaged sockets, damaged wires and loose connections. These are all potentially extremely dangerous hazards, leading to electrical shocks and possible home electrical fires.
Review your Christmas decorations for a label noting they have been thoroughly inspected and marked certified by UL, CSA or other trustworthy and authorized inspection firms. Additionally, always purchase your electrical decorations from trustworthy retailers. This applies to decorations purchased on-site in brick and mortar stores and online purchases.
Make a Plan and Include Your Electrical Requirements and Considerations
Before any decorating begins, take the time to come up with your decoration and electrical plan. Consider how many outlets you have available and where they’re located in relation to where you’d like your decorations to go. Think about what might already be connected to the circuits you’re planning on utilizing. Outside lighting also requires a thorough plan. Do a careful perimeter search and don’t forget to look upwards. Look out for any potential hazards including power, telephone and cable wires.
Pair up the amperage, also known as the power requirements of your electrical decorations with the amperage string of any potential extension cords you’re using. Make sure that the cord has an equal or higher rating than the connected power loads. Additionally, always unplug and turn off electricity-based decorations when managing and installing them and unplug or turn off the circuit breaker before doing any light bulb or fuse repairs or replacements.
Avoid Overloading Electrical Circuits
Overloaded electrical circuits and outlets are one of the most common causes of home electrical fires. With this in mind, being aware of what your electrical circuits can handle is one of the most important electrical safety tips. Before plugging in any electrical decorations, add up the electrical requirements of the electrical load you’re connecting to the circuit or outlet with current loads already connected. Make sure it’s equipped for handling additional electrical loads. Also, keep the 80% rule in mind. This means 15 amp circuits can only be connected to 12 amps and 20 amp circuits to 16 amps.
Pay Attention to the Lights
Energy loads accumulate quickly. This is particularly true for Christmas lights you might have owned for a while. For this reason, keep track of how many strings of lights you’re plugging in all in a row. Always follow the manufacturer’s instructions on how many sets of lights to plug in together. As an added tip, replace your older incandescent bulbs with LED lamps. These are more energy-efficient and run cooler.
Use Proper Outdoor Electrical Equipment
Only use extension cords and electrical decorations for outdoor decorations specially designed for outdoor use. Follow proper outdoor electrical safety tips. Keep all extension cords and lighting cords away from snow and water. Make sure anything flammable is out of the way and not in contact with anything known for causing electrical fires and other safety issues. Again, use energy-efficient lamps and bulbs if possible.
Also, consider connecting all outdoor lighting to a residual current device (RCD). RCDs help prevent electrical shock if you come across a bare, live wire when decorating. Connecting all outdoor lighting to an RCD not only prevents potential fatal. electrical shocks, but also protects against electrical fires.
The decorating tools used also require electrical safety considerations. Metal ladders are electricity conductors. With this in mind, use wood or fiberglass ladders if possible when decorating outdoors. If you are using a metal ladder, move with extreme caution.
Protect Extension Cords
Extension cords can become easily damaged if not used and stored properly. Never string lights in a way that may damage the insulation of an extension cord. Make sure no wires are crushed by furniture, crammed into small spaces, placed under rugs or near heat sources or held down by nails or staples. Additionally, never place cords where they’re a tripping hazard like in doorways or open spaces.
Consider Your Christmas Tree
Artificial and live trees have different safety requirements. Live trees require a little more specialized care. Live trees become dry, causing an additional fire hazard. Therefore, use non-flammable decorations and LED or other low-heat producing string lights. Additionally, make sure your artificial tree is fire resistant. Avoid using electrical decorations or string lights with metallic leaves or branch coverings. If they come into contact with live wires or broken light bulbs they can cause electrical short circuits. Always keep your trees at least three feet away from direct heat sources such as portable heaters and fireplaces.
Mind Your Kitchen
According to the National Fire Protection Association, unattended cooking equipment and appliances are the leading cause of home fires. Therefore, always stay in or around the kitchen when cooking your holiday meals. When your holiday cooking and baking is complete, make sure the stove and oven are turned off all the way and small appliances like toasters and coffee makers are turned off and unplugged.
Develop a Safety Routine
Inspect all the electrical features inside and outside your home before going to bed or leaving your home. Turn off and unplug everything and keep flammable things like presents and Christmas trees away from direct heat sources. If you tend to be forgetful about turning off lights and unplugging things, consider purchasing decorations with automatic timers you can set to turn off at a dedicated time.
No matter how you celebrate, the holidays are a time for joy, laughter, family and fun. At United Electrical Contractors, electrical safety is a top priority. We’re offering these electrical safety tips to ensure your holiday times are happy and safe! Contact us today for tips about maintaining a safe living environment.
Photo Credit: Daniil Silantev