How Do I Prevent Electrical Fires at Home?

If you’ve ever watched an episode of Property Brothers, you know electrical wiring can be a hidden danger in your home. You may not know the difference between a circuit breaker and a surge protector, but when the renovator pops open that wall, and you see knob and tube wiring, you throw up your hands and say, “That’s a fire hazard! There goes the whole budget!”

We know it’s scary, and you might have a lot of questions about your own electrical system. What’s in your walls? When was the last time you did fire alarm testing? What even are the causes of electrical fires? How often do you need to have an electrical inspection? Do you need an electrician to do a smoke detector install, or can you do it yourself? What are surge protectors and circuit breakers even supposed to do?

It’s okay. Take a deep breath. We got you!

At TLC, we’re electrical experts, and we can answer any questions you might have, inspect every wire in your house, and handle all of your fire alarm testing. Just one call and we’re on our way!

But if you want to be proactive, here are a few useful tips on electrical fire causes and prevention: 

If you want to keep your home safe from fires, we will tell you why you should: keep up maintenance on your smoke detectors, replace any frayed or old wiring, replace loose outlets, watch for discoloration or warm outlets, not modify plugs, and use up-to-date appliances. 

10 Easy Electrical Fire Prevention Tips:

1. Test and change the batteries in your smoke detectors regularly:

Did you know that smoke detectors with low batteries are programmed to start beeping as soon as you lay down in bed? I mean, I can’t prove it scientifically, but that’s always what happens with me. 

The reality is, by the time most smoke detectors start beeping, the battery is already almost dead. If that beeping starts while you’re out of town, you may never even know it was going off. The National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA) says you should change your smoke alarm batteries every six months. Mark it on your calendar or, better yet, make it a habit to change the batteries as part of the daylight savings time routine. Change the clocks and batteries at the same time. Something that will make this an easy task to remember every year.

2. Replace your smoke detectors every 10 years:

Is your relationship with your smoke detectors the longest relationship in your life? Listen, there is no place on a smoke detector where you can fit a ring, and it shouldn’t be a lifelong commitment. 

Even the best smoke detectors need to be replaced every 10 years. Many new smoke detectors say when they were manufactured, but if you have an older home, you may not be sure how old your smoke detectors are. We’re here to tell you that you can do better. There are other fish in the sea (or in the aisle of your local hardware store). In fact, they are hard-wired detectors that work together or even combine carbon monoxide and smoke detectors. As your friend, I recommend changing your smoke detectors. 

3. Replace old heating appliances:

Oh no, we used the relationship metaphor too early with the smoke detectors! We were going to make a joke about having something dependable that keeps you warm at night! Okay, actually this one’s serious.

If you have a heating appliance that flickers, turns on a little weird, shuts off for no reason, or that you have to jiggle a little bit to make it work – REPLACE IT! Heating elements are dangerous enough on nights you have to sleep with a space heater on; you do not need something that’s going to start sparking or short out in the middle of the night. With a brand new heater, not only will you be safer, but your power bill will probably go down thanks to more efficient modern devices. When you don’t have to worry about heating your house with sketchy heaters, it’s worth it. 

4. Remove items from your home with a cloth, wire cord:

Our great grandparents used to do things differently, or at least that’s what the local electrical cord inspector keeps telling me. Back then, he says, men used to wrestle bears and make electrical cords out of cloth. Apparently, both these things are now against code.

If you have an old lamp or appliance that has a cloth covered cord, you need to replace this item. These appliances may not meet modern safety standards and can overheat. And if the cloth rips, you can end up with exposed live electrical wire. It doesn’t look as scary as a bear, but if you wrestle it, it will hurt you just as badly.

5. Check for discoloration around outlets:

When was the last time you noticed discoloration around something important, only to find it was a good thing? Was that a joke? Suddenly I’m not sure.

If you notice any discoloration around your outlets, you need to call a licensed electrician to come and evaluate the source of the problem. Odds are that some wiring has come loose, and the discolored area may be catching sparks or receiving a live electrical charge. You shouldn’t use any outlets with discoloration until a professional gives you the okay to use them.

6. Check for loose outlets:

There are some things that are perfectly fine loose: the legs of your cargo shorts, your schedule on vacation, even cannons from time to time, but electrical outlets, like roller coaster harnesses, are not things you want to be loose.

When you plug a device into your electrical outlet, if the plate or the outlet itself shifts position, that can be very dangerous. It could cause wear and tear on your wires’ protective covering, or it could be a sign that the wires have already come loose. We do not recommend that you address this issue yourself; call us and have an experienced electrician evaluate the problem and possibly replace the outlet.

7. Don’t use outlets or light switches that are hot or warm to the touch:

Don’t flatter yourself. A light switch being warm when you touch it does not mean it has a crush on you. What it does mean is that something is VERY wrong with your wiring.

If you notice that an outlet or light switch is hot to the touch or warm, you need to call a professional to evaluate. Your outlets should not give off any heat, ever, regardless of who it has a crush on. If it is warm or hot, something is wrong. Either the circuit is overloaded, or you may have a loose connection, and heat is escaping and radiating. Where there’s heat, there could very soon be smoke. Where there’s smoke, there’s an electrical fire inside your wall. You should call an electrician to evaluate as soon as you can.

8. Check for frayed or worn-out cords:

Nothing lasts forever, not even the cord on that novelty clear alarm clock you got for cashing in five hundred tickets at the local arcade back in 1995. It’s cool to see all the mechanisms inside the clock. However, if you can see the wires sticking out of your electrical cord, it’s time for that thing to hit the trash. 

You should never plug in a cord that is frayed or worn out. A frayed wire can send heat to combustible surfaces around it and cause a fire. Replace cords and appliances if the cords are frayed. Maybe you can get one that you can program to play your favorite CD when you wake up!

9. Don’t force fit plugs into a 2 prong outlet or vice versa:

Guys, we’ve had a lot of fun talking about see-through alarm clocks and wrestling bears in this article. However, if you start cutting pieces off of your electrical cables to make them fit in outlets, we might have to meet you in the parking lot. 

A 3-prong plug can only be plugged into an outlet that has 3 prongs. Don’t ever try to remove the prong. It is needed to ground the charge. It can start a fire if you force it into an outlet that’s not designed for it. It’s like a puzzle; the piece is only supposed to fit one way. 

10. Get An Electrical Inspection:

Hold on! Did the knob and tube wiring bit from the beginning come back around? It did? Fantastic.

A lot of safety codes have changed over the years, but in older houses, many of the things that should have been changed are hidden in the walls. If you’re having consistent electrical problems – flashing lights, dimming lights, regular tripping of circuit breakers – you may have outdated wiring.

Don’t take that sledgehammer to the walls yet! That’s why we’re here. Call TLC, and one of our experienced electricians will help you get to the root of the problem.

These are just a few of our top electrical fire safety tips from our electricians. If you’re concerned about any of these issues we described above, please call a professional for assistance. TLC offers electrical service and inspections as a part of our preventive maintenance program.