Source: http://blog.atselectricinc.com/2013/02/home-inspection-electrical-repairs-10/
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Wednesday, July 31, 2013
Home Inspection Electrical Repairs
I remember the first call I received many years ago from a client that was panicked over a home inspector’s report that said she needed to re-wire her entire house that she was selling. Her older home was built before ground wires were required in the electrical cabling. Home inspections are a valuable part of [...]
Using Wall Lights To Highlight Your Home’s Decor
If you have filled your San Gabriel Valley home with treasures and artifacts that you would love to display to guests and visitors, perhaps the installation of some well-placed wall lights could be the solution to all your problems. With a number of unusual and attractive designs available, lights that are installed on the walls of your home could be very beneficial in accentuating a picture, fireplace, nook, plant or other architectural element.
But why are wall lights so useful in highlighting the decorative features of our home? For one, they are known for being highly suited to the provision ambient lighting, which looks nice but isn’t overly useful for completing tasks by. For two, the way in which light is cast out from these fixtures is perfect for illuminating decorative elements that are placed on or around the walls of your home.
In the bathroom, it is essential that you have proper lighting installed by your San Gabriel Valley Lighting electrician, so that you can complete the daily tasks of shaving and applying makeup. Wall sconces, when fitted with the proper globes, are highly effective at casting a more natural appearing illumination across the space. They also avoid the creation of dark shadows, which can make a person appear tired or unwell.
In the dining room, wall lights are used to provide that finishing touch by adding an understated illumination to the walls (which are often left in shadow by ceiling fixtures). They are quite useful in making a space feel bright and cozy rather than dark and dingy, which makes for a much more pleasant dining experience.
In the living room, the correct sort of illumination is essential for setting the mood of your ‘relaxation space’. Wall sconces are widely used in these areas for drawing attention to particular elements of the room, such as a fireplace or a picture, and they are also suitable for lighting around the television without casting an annoying glare across the screen.
In the hallway, it is important that you get the amount of light right, as these rooms are renowned for being the darkest areas of the home. Well-spaced wall lights will effortlessly provide adequate illumination that really opens the space up and banishes those dark corners.
Source: http://www.accurateelectricalservices.com/CA-Electrician/lighting/wall-lights-highlight-homes-decor
Don't Dig Until You Call 811!
Digging a hole seems easy to most, I suppose, but what lies below may give you more of a headache than you think. Buried below may be water lines, electrical lines, sewage lines, gas lines, phone lines, and cable lines, just to name a few. You may think that digging by hand would surely be a safer method than digging with a backhoe or something, but it can be just as deadly to the operator of the shovel.
...Source: http://electrical.about.com/b/2013/07/23/dont-dig-until-you-call-811.htm
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Time of Use Electric Meters
Our family has taken advantage of “time of use” electric meters since they were first introduce by SRP many years ago. These meters track when electricity is used and charge a higher rate during “peak time” and a lower rate during “off-peak time”. Since a utility company has to build a system to deliver enough [...]
Source: http://blog.atselectricinc.com/2013/02/time-of-use-electric-meters-17/
A Guide To Choosing Ceiling Lights For Your Bathroom
Have you ever heard the saying ‘a change is as good as a holiday’? There is plenty of truth to this statement; take, for example, changing the ceiling lights in your bathroom – this small act alone could make it feel like a whole new space. There is more to this decision, however, than just walking into a showroom, pointing at a fixture you like and saying ‘that one’. Use this guide to ensure that you are making the right choices for your bathroom in regards to San Gabriel Valley lighting.
Our bathrooms need to be functional above everything else, and the ceiling lights that you ultimately choose for your space will help to determine with this is the case. There is no point in installing a fixture that looks stunning if it prevents you from completing all of the tasks that you would normally undertake in the space, such as shaving and applying make up. This is not to say, however, that homeowners should forget about the aesthetics of their lighting fixtures – instead, it is about finding a balance.
One way to achieve this is by choosing ceiling fixtures that you can easily adjust in both direction and levels of illumination.
- Illumination: the best way to control the level of illumination in your bathroom is by installing dimmer switchers in conjunction with your ceiling lights. You could also opt for the traditional fixture that includes both heat and normal lights. Whilst this only gives you the choice of two levels of brightness, it may be sufficient for your needs.
- Direction: the best way to control the direction of lighting in your bathroom is by installing ceiling lights that are mounted into moveable supports. Halogen and LED lights are often mounted in this way, and their fixtures allow you to point the lights in the direction that you need the most illumination (such as over the vanity or the shower stall).
Thankfully, there is plenty of aesthetically pleasing ceiling lights out there that also achieves adequate illumination that can be dimmed or brightened and directed to a certain area. Recessed lights and downlights sit flush with the ceiling and appear as if they’re not even there during the day, whilst a chandelier will make a luxurious and elegant statement. If going for a ‘wow-factor’ fixture, such as a pendant or chandelier, it is recommended that you do the rest of your bathroom as minimalist as possible to avoid overpowering the space.
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Licensed Electrician supports Decarcerate PA March for a People’s Budget
Here’s why Philladelphia licensed electrician Robert Monk Electric is supporting marchers walking from Philadelphia to Harrisburg on May 25. Will you #walkthewalk with us?
Philadelphia Licensed electrician Robert Monk believes a budget by the people is good for honest businesses who seek to be a part of a sustainable future.
Unfortunately, as a small sole-proprietor contractor, I will likely be catching up on paperwork and paying taxes into the very treasury the march will try to take control of (politically speaking, of course).
So it’s up to you to help make sure our PA taxes build community and support productive infrastructure rather than expanding the scourge of incarceration.
Got a bus or mobile home/travel trailer?
Help me help Decarcerate PA and the March for a People’s Budget!
If you or someone you know has a 30′ – 40′ passenger bus or mobile home conversion bus or RV, or fifth-wheel travel trailer for sale, please be in touch, as I would like to purchase something along these lines and make it available as people-mover and/or logistical support in time to arrive for the demonstration in Harrisburg on June 3rd, 2013 (you, I, or someone at Decarcerate may be able to find a pickup truck to pull a trailer, a driver/operator for a class A mobile home conversion bus or RV, or a commercial class C driver for a passenger bus). Afterward, I would use the vehicle for my own business, but hope to find ways to make it available for logistical support of other worthy demontrations in the future, as well.
For a passenger bus or conversion bus, I would probably like to negotiate a 15-day lease that includes some or all of the march days, as well as a couple before or after, to run the thing by my mechanic and get their opinion before making an offer for purchase.
I am also interested in property, ideally near zip 19143, for either short- or long-term storage of the bus/trailer, and possibly a 20′ or 40′ ISO shipping container, in addition.
My budget for a bus and a place to keep it is $15-40K.
Licensed Electrician Robert Monk Licensed Electrician supports Decarcerate PA March for a People’s Budget Copyright Robert Monk, 2012
Landscape Lighting
Low voltage landscape lighting is an easy and cost effective way of providing dramatic lighting effects in your outdoor spaces and significantly enhance the beauty of your home. These systems have come a long way from the original tiered “pagoda” fixtures, with many styles, materials and power options to choose from. Fixtures with photovoltaic cells [...]
Source: http://blog.atselectricinc.com/2012/08/landscape-lighting-9/
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Tuesday, July 30, 2013
What to Keep in Mind This Hurricane Season
Over the past couple of weeks we’ve been doing our part to keep you safe this hurricane season.
You can ensure your safety, as well as the safety of your family and your home, by knowing what steps to take at the start of hurricane season, once a hurricane watch or warning has been issued, during a hurricane and once a hurricane has passed.
Staying informed and knowledgeable can make all of the difference this hurricane season, and your safety is important to us!
In the event that a storm does hit Florida this hurricane season, keep in mind:
- You can save time and money while protecting yourself during a potential storm by taking the time to properly prepare before a hurricane hits—and even before the threat of one.
See: Hurricane Season Has Begun… Now What? - Creating a successful and thorough emergency supply kit can make a significant difference in your experience this hurricane season. By following a check list, you can ensure you have everything you need to keep your family and home safe this hurricane season.
See: Hurricane Supply Checklist Basics - Once a hurricane is headed toward Florida, don’t panic! Securing your home and personal belongings should be your top priority. You may only have a day or two to prepare once a watch or warning has been issued, so use your time wisely to cover any potential issues that can arise during a storm—you’ll thank yourself later!
See: Staying Cool, Calm and Collected Once a Hurricane’s Approaching - You can be one step ahead of the storm by knowing when to evacuate and what to do while you’re waiting out a hurricane.
See: What to do During a Hurricane - It’s important to know how to properly assess damage and what to avoid after a storm hits.
See: A Hurricane Has Come and Gone: Now What?
Stay safe this hurricane season! It has been predicted that there will be 18 names storms, 9 hurricanes and 4 “intense” hurricanes.
Source: http://powergenerationinc.com/966/
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Home Inspection Electrical Repairs
I remember the first call I received many years ago from a client that was panicked over a home inspector’s report that said she needed to re-wire her entire house that she was selling. Her older home was built before ground wires were required in the electrical cabling. Home inspections are a valuable part of [...]
Source: http://blog.atselectricinc.com/2013/02/home-inspection-electrical-repairs-10/
electrical estimating licensed electricians residential electrician electrician company electrician tools
Offshore Alaska Drilling: Private Effort versus Regulatory Constraints
Royal Dutch Shell has spent billions of dollars over six years preparing to drill for new oil in Alaska. The hidden treasure is an estimated 20–25 billion barrels of oil beneath the Beaufort and Chukchi seas.
Not surprisingly, drilling for oil in Alaska is complicated and expensive (See map of proposed offshore exploration and drilling in Alaska). Part of the complexity is the distant Arctic location and short summer exploration and drilling window, and part is caused by drifty U.S. federal regulations.
Oil exploration and production is never easy (as in “the ‘easy oil’ has been found”), and new frontiers, technological and geographical, are always the challenge. And in this case, federal regulation from an anti-oil administration is at work.
Shell’s Coming Restart
on Shell’s suspended Arctic drilling operations for 2013, the company hasn’t given up. Shell just needs time to repair its ships. U.S. government agencies will continue review and regulation while Shell ships are repaired. As reported in the New York Times: “The Interior Department, the Coast Guard and the Justice Department are reviewing Shell’s operations, which have included groundings, environmental and safety violations, weather delays, the collapse of its spill-containment equipment and other failures.”
The NYT article also reports:
Shell has had numerous serious problems in getting to and from the Arctic, as well as problems operating in the Arctic,’ said Lois N. Epstein, Arctic program director for the Wilderness Society and a member of an Interior Department offshore drilling safety advisory panel…. “Shell’s managers have not been straight with the American public, and possibly even with its own investors, on how difficult its Arctic Ocean operations have been this past year,” she said.
Well, maybe so, but this is an assertion by a program director at an environmental advocacy group, also chosen to advise the Interior Department on regulations.
Insight on the advice received from this Wilderness Society (WS) program director can be found on their webpage, Save the Arctic from Oil Drilling. Another Wilderness Society story (or fund-raising blurb) is titled: On the brink of catastrophe: Help protect Arctic animals from devastating oil spill.
Safer than Critics Want You to Believe
No one desires a “devastating” oil spill for ecological or other reasons. But there are reasons for optimism and against drilling obstruction in this major new energy frontier.
Royal Dutch Shell is a very large company with extensive expertise in drilling for oil in difficult places. Deep ocean drilling technology has advanced a lot. The average depth of the Beaufort sea is 1,000 meters. Deep water oil drilling offshore in Brazil is 2,000 meters down (Economist story). Shell’s drilling in the Arctic is about 20 miles offshore and in water about 120 feet deep according to this Interior Department review (pdf). It is very doable, in other words.
But the negativism is wide. A September 14, 2012, Popular Mechanic article, “Everything You Need to Know About Shell Oil and Arctic Offshore Drilling in Alaska,” could as easily be titled: “Everything You Need to Know About Why Shell Oil Arctic Offshore Drilling in Alaska is Really Risky.” The website introduction to the article provides background: “After years of arguments over drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), the debate about Arctic oil exploration has moved offshore, into the waters of the Chukchi and Beaufort seas.”
Clean Air Act Issues
Clean Air Act regulations limit NOx and VOC emissions to reduce ozone that is harmful to people (and presumably polar bears). So maybe EPA is concerned Arctic volatile organic compounds (VOCs) will mix with the NOx released by the Shell drilling ships to create harmful Arctic ozone.
Such is far fetched. You can see from the EPA image the VOCs emission sources, and there are few trees, motor vehicles, consumer solvents, or industrial commercial processes in the Arctic.
Maybe there is some other harm caused by NOx emissions from a factory-like drilling ship twenty miles offshore in the Arctic. But whether people or polar bears can be harmed by these emissions seems less the issue than Clean Air regulations as a tool for regulators to slow or stop projects deemed dangerous or environmentally immoral.
This online editorial from the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner suggests the permitting process is a bureaucratic mess:
Environmental and North Slope community groups appealed the permits to an internal EPA review board. … The first stumbling block was an argument about how to define the precise moment when a drilling rig becomes “stationary.” Air quality rules are different for mobile and stationary sources, so it’s obviously an important definition. The appeals board, made up entirely of former EPA attorneys, said agency personnel didn’t explain their decision well enough. After decades of such work in other U.S. offshore waters, how could such an essential question still be in play?
The editorial also noted that
the agency failed to analyze the potential health effects of the hour-to-hour variations in nitrogen oxide levels that exploratory drilling equipment would cause in the air breathed by North Slope residents. The agency analyzed the annual effects and found them insignificant.
But a new requirement for hourly analysis came down the regulatory pipeline about the same time. So, the board said, the agency should have reviewed the emissions’ effects in an hourly time frame. It’s a good bet the conclusion would be the same, but no matter — it’s back to the drawing board.
The objections that stopped the permits were neither new nor substantive. That didn’t prevent them from provoking bureaucratic fussing of the highest order.
Treasure Awaits
There is lots more oil in Alaska. But is it safe to drill there? Should Shell should be allowed access to a reasonable Federal permitting process? Should Arctic oil reserves should be left untapped due to harsh winters and difficult logistics, human ingenuity aside. To say “no” is to shortcircuit the entrepreneurial process–resourceship in this case–that is responsible for human betterment.
There are risks of oil spills, but it cannot be said that unsafe practices, neglect, and actual accidents are profit-maximizing. The Valdez accident (1989) in Prince William Sound, Alaska, involving as much as 750,000 barrels, rocked the mighty Exxon Mobil. And the Deepwater Horizon blowout (2010), relreasing 4.9 million barrels in the Gulf of Mexico, has cost BP tens of billions of dollars. Company and industry-wide reforms in the wake of these accidents, however, have lead to new investments and safety protocols, all part of the oil-finding challenge.
Can the self-interest of private parties to assess the risks and be ready to pay a pretty price if things go wrong? Can government under real world political pressures be assumed to know what is best and act accordingly? Thousands of students are now debating these key public policy questions.
—————————
Reform of federal marine natural resource policies is one of the national debate topics this year. Greg Rehmke directs EconomicThinking.org and holds economics workshops on debate topics. For a longer version of this post, see here.
Source: http://www.masterresource.org/2013/07/drilling-oil-alaska/
Keep Your Electric Motors Turning
Here's a look at ways to protect and maintain electric motors. Electric motors are used in many applications throughout your home. There are furnace blower motors, ceiling fans, sump pumps, garbage disposers, fans cooling compressors on refrigerators, dishwasher motors, exhaust fan motors, and air conditioner motors. That's just the indoor motors. Outside, on the farm you may have grain bin drying motors, auger motors, ventilation motors, air compressor motors, etc... The list goes on and on. They all need to be kept clean and oiled if possible to keep them from overheating and tripping a thermal protective device that is built in to many of the previously mentioned motors.
...Source: http://electrical.about.com/b/2013/06/27/keep-your-electric-motors-turning.htm
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California Energy Policy: Southeastern States Beware
“Two recently approved solar power plants in California ranged from $100 to $200 per megawatt hour, compared to the $16 consumers will pay for natural gas generation. That’s six to twelve times the cost of gas–and for an intermittent supply that must be backed by natural gas to even be usable.”
As states across the nation ponder what to do next on energy policy, there is no case study more important than California. One of the world’s largest economies, with nearly 30 million inhabitants, California for decades has lived on the progressive edge of American energy policy.
The state’s renewable energy mandate of 33% by 2020 has served as a beacon for anti-fossil fuel advocates nationwide. But as I have written elsewhere: “California isn’t a beacon of progress; it’s a lighthouse, showing the path to disaster.” Think of power outages when elevators are stuck, traffic lights go out to snarl transportation, and much more–with human lives, not only human comfort, at the margin.
California’s experience with renewable energy has been far short of what its advocates promised. And, ironically, the drive toward deploying more renewables has only heightened the need to build more fossil fuel generation. Starting to sound more like a warning siren than a clarion call?
A recent report detailed how California’s Riverside County has become the epicenter of the state’s renewable power movement, producing more solar power than anywhere else in the United States. But consider one of the impacts on the local economy. A 500-megawatt natural gas plant in the county pays nearly $6 million in property taxes, while a solar plant built just a few miles away pays less than $100,000.
And the jobs impact? Stated Riverside County Supervisor John Benoit:
On the face of it, it looks like a good deal. They talk about all these huge jobs and long-term benefits to the county. The truth is, it’s a very short term. “We’re going to be carrying the burden of having these types of facilities for decades to come, and because of the incentives that have been provided by federal and state government, there’s virtually nothing left for the county government or the local people to get benefit back after the small number of construction jobs are gone.
Alabama, Georgia Beware
That’s a far cry from the claim recently made by Alabama Environmental Council Director Michael Churchman that transitioning to renewables will create stronger local economies.
“Economic and environmental interests work in tandem,” Churchman tells us. Of course, his point of view is speculation, while California is living the reality. It’s the same reality that Spain lived through, as it lost two existing jobs for every one renewable energy job it created. You might call that ‘applied math.’
Stanford economist Frank Wolak, a California energy expert, says solar power for on-grid users could boost power bills as much as 50 percent, a conclusion similar to the one made by the state’s Public Utilities Commission.
In fact, two recently approved solar power plants in California ranged from $100 to $200 per megawatt hour, compared to the $16 consumers will pay for natural gas generation. That’s six to twelve times the cost of gas–and for an intermittent supply that must be backed by natural gas to even be usable. Solar is wildly uneconomic where there is an electricity grid–and thus a niche product for where there is no plug-in power.
Supervisor Benoit politely massages the cost premium:
[G]etting back to the old equation, do you want to spend a little bit more to be green? And the legislature and the governor in California have said clearly, we’re going to do that.
Meanwhile, in Georgia, solar industry advocates like Mark Bell of the Georgia Solar Energy Association, tell consumers that more solar energy is going to bring electricity rates down. Who are we to believe? Leaders in California who are dealing with the realities of aggressive renewable energy mandates, who oversee some of the nation’s highest power bills and who believe the jobs argument for renewables is overhyped?
Or environmental groups and solar industry spokespeople who are asking us to believe that the laws of energy economics wreaking havoc in California don’t apply to Southeastern states?
Now for the irony. More renewables in California is meaning more fossil fuels. Consider the picture painted by the Los Angeles Times in a recent article, Rise In Renewables Will Require More Fossil Fuels:
The Delta Energy Center, a power plant about an hour outside San Francisco, was roaring at nearly full bore one day last month, its four gas and steam turbines churning out 880 megawatts of electricity to the California grid.
On the horizon, across an industrial shipping channel on the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, scores of wind turbines stood dead still. The air was too calm to turn their blades — or many others across the state that day. Wind provided just 33 megawatts of power statewide in the midafternoon, less than 1% of the potential from wind farms capable of producing 4,000 megawatts of electricity.
Golden-State Irony: Fossil-Fuel Rescue
In California, it is not uncommon for local power grids to lose as much as a thousand megawatts of wind and solar generation in as little as half an hour. That’s as much generation as a nuclear reactor or a small coal-fired plant. Such volatility on such a large scale threatens California’s grid with instability, meaning more back-up generation from fossil fuels must be built, mostly from natural gas.
“This issue is someplace between a significant concern and a major problem,” says electricity system expert Severin Borenstein, a professor at UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business. “There is definitely going to be a need for more reserves.”
The price to California electricity ratepayers of building such reserve generation, on top of the already high cost of renewable power, will likely be billions of dollars in the coming years. So much for the notion that renewable power will save anyone money.
In fact, California is showing us just the opposite. Ratepayers are paying more money for inferior energy–and misallocating scarce resources in violation of Economics 101.
It’s a lesson to which lawmakers and policy leaders across the rest of the U.S. should pay close attention.
Source: http://www.masterresource.org/2013/07/california-energy-policy-southeastern-states/
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Hurricane Supply Checklist Basics
In the event that a hurricane hits this season, it is imperative that you prepare in advance to keep both you and your family safe and your home intact.
The 1st of June officially marked the start of hurricane season in Florida, so, appropriately enough, we’ll be covering some hurricane basics over the next few weeks: we will outline what to do at the start of hurricane season, once a storm watch has been issued, during the storm and after the storm.
Last week, we provided a few tips on what to do at the very start of hurricane season.
This week, we’ll focus on helping you create a successful and thorough emergency supply kit. Take a look at the check list below to make sure you have everything you need to ensure the safety of your family and home this hurricane season!
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Water: one gallon per person per day for at least three days, for both drinking and sanitation purposes.
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Food: at least a three-day supply of non-perishable food for each person who will be with you.
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Battery-powered or hand crank radio and extra batteries
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Flashlight or lantern and extra batteries
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First aid kit completely stocked with Band-Aids, cleansing solution, burn ointment, eye wash solution, thermometer, latex gloves, pain relievers, anti-diarrhea medicine, antacid, laxative, scissors, tweezers, petroleum jelly and any prescription medications or equipment you or your family typically uses
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Whistle and/or emergency light to signal for help
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Dust mask to help filter contaminated air and plastic sheeting or a tarp and duct tape in the event you need to create a last minute shelter
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Moist towelettes and garbage bags
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Zip ties
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Wrench or pliers to turn off utilities
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Manual, old-fashioned can opener for food
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Local maps and list of emergency services in your area
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Cell phone with chargers (including car and solar chargers)
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Cash or traveler’s checks and change for large bills
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Important family documents, insurance information and other paperwork for your family and your home
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Weeks’ worth of clean clothing
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Fire extinguisher
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Candles and a lighter or waterproof matches
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Disposable plates, cups, utensils and ziplock bags
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Books, games, puzzles and other forms of entertainment
Stay tuned for our next post, which will outline what to do once a storm watch or warning has been issued.
Source: http://powergenerationinc.com/hurricane-supply-checklist-basics/
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Infrared Inspecting New Equipment
WHY BRAND NEW INSTALLATIONS NEED TO BE THERMALLY INSPECTED
- New Installation Thermo PDF
- Thermography Inspection Performed on December 14th 2011
- The Image is of a “Factory Installed” Bus Connection from the 3,000 amp vertical bus to the primary side of an 800 amp distribution circuit breaker.
- This temperature abnormality was found during the Thermography inspection on phase c of the newly installed GE switchgear. The temperature difference between phase C and phase B is 20 degrees ferenheight (Image #2). The breaker was aproximatley 30% loaded at the time of inspection (phase C-278amps phase B- 284amps). After removing the factory installed GE circuit breaker we found that the insulation tape had overlapped and restricted the current flow from the main bussway in the gear to the circuit breaker lug (Image #1).
- The repair was made and the tape was properly removed from the switch gear (Image #3). A re-scan was perfomed on the circuit breaker (Image #4) and phase c was actually running 2 degrees cooler than phase b.
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Copyright © Cooper Electric [Infrared Inspecting New Equipment], All Right Reserved. 2013.
Source: http://cooper-electric.net/infrared-inspecting-new-equipment/
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Using Wall Lights To Highlight Your Home’s Decor
If you have filled your San Gabriel Valley home with treasures and artifacts that you would love to display to guests and visitors, perhaps the installation of some well-placed wall lights could be the solution to all your problems. With a number of unusual and attractive designs available, lights that are installed on the walls of your home could be very beneficial in accentuating a picture, fireplace, nook, plant or other architectural element.
But why are wall lights so useful in highlighting the decorative features of our home? For one, they are known for being highly suited to the provision ambient lighting, which looks nice but isn’t overly useful for completing tasks by. For two, the way in which light is cast out from these fixtures is perfect for illuminating decorative elements that are placed on or around the walls of your home.
In the bathroom, it is essential that you have proper lighting installed by your San Gabriel Valley Lighting electrician, so that you can complete the daily tasks of shaving and applying makeup. Wall sconces, when fitted with the proper globes, are highly effective at casting a more natural appearing illumination across the space. They also avoid the creation of dark shadows, which can make a person appear tired or unwell.
In the dining room, wall lights are used to provide that finishing touch by adding an understated illumination to the walls (which are often left in shadow by ceiling fixtures). They are quite useful in making a space feel bright and cozy rather than dark and dingy, which makes for a much more pleasant dining experience.
In the living room, the correct sort of illumination is essential for setting the mood of your ‘relaxation space’. Wall sconces are widely used in these areas for drawing attention to particular elements of the room, such as a fireplace or a picture, and they are also suitable for lighting around the television without casting an annoying glare across the screen.
In the hallway, it is important that you get the amount of light right, as these rooms are renowned for being the darkest areas of the home. Well-spaced wall lights will effortlessly provide adequate illumination that really opens the space up and banishes those dark corners.
Source: http://www.accurateelectricalservices.com/CA-Electrician/lighting/wall-lights-highlight-homes-decor
electrical training electrician apprenticeship electrician contractors electrical testing commercial electrical
Monday, July 29, 2013
Why? Smoke Detectors
Smoke alarms that are properly installed and maintained play a vital role in reducing fire deaths and injuries. Having a working smoke alarm cuts the chances of dying in a reported fire in half. Almost two-thirds of home fire deaths in 2005-2009 resulted from fires in homes with no smoke alarms or no working smoke alarms. When smoke alarms fail to operate, it is usually because batteries are missing, disconnected or dead. Almost one-quarter of the smoke alarm failures was due to dead batteries. At Southern Coast our highly trained electricians in Boca Raton and West Palm Beach can install newly updates smoke alarms (which now are directly connected to your power). We know home safety is your #1 concern and that being prepared is your ultimate goal. We can make sure that every South Florida home in and around Boca Raton, West Palm Beach and Ft Lauderdale are safe and sound for their families to enjoy.
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Licensed Electrician supports Decarcerate PA March for a People’s Budget
Here’s why Philladelphia licensed electrician Robert Monk Electric is supporting marchers walking from Philadelphia to Harrisburg on May 25. Will you #walkthewalk with us?
Philadelphia Licensed electrician Robert Monk believes a budget by the people is good for honest businesses who seek to be a part of a sustainable future.
Unfortunately, as a small sole-proprietor contractor, I will likely be catching up on paperwork and paying taxes into the very treasury the march will try to take control of (politically speaking, of course).
So it’s up to you to help make sure our PA taxes build community and support productive infrastructure rather than expanding the scourge of incarceration.
Got a bus or mobile home/travel trailer?
Help me help Decarcerate PA and the March for a People’s Budget!
If you or someone you know has a 30′ – 40′ passenger bus or mobile home conversion bus or RV, or fifth-wheel travel trailer for sale, please be in touch, as I would like to purchase something along these lines and make it available as people-mover and/or logistical support in time to arrive for the demonstration in Harrisburg on June 3rd, 2013 (you, I, or someone at Decarcerate may be able to find a pickup truck to pull a trailer, a driver/operator for a class A mobile home conversion bus or RV, or a commercial class C driver for a passenger bus). Afterward, I would use the vehicle for my own business, but hope to find ways to make it available for logistical support of other worthy demontrations in the future, as well.
For a passenger bus or conversion bus, I would probably like to negotiate a 15-day lease that includes some or all of the march days, as well as a couple before or after, to run the thing by my mechanic and get their opinion before making an offer for purchase.
I am also interested in property, ideally near zip 19143, for either short- or long-term storage of the bus/trailer, and possibly a 20′ or 40′ ISO shipping container, in addition.
My budget for a bus and a place to keep it is $15-40K.
Licensed Electrician Robert Monk Licensed Electrician supports Decarcerate PA March for a People’s Budget Copyright Robert Monk, 2012
electrical supplies electric repair contractor electrical electrical contractor in what is an electrical contractor
When to upgrade your electrical panel
Is it time to upgrade or replace your electrical panel
The average life-span of a building today is around 30 years. Frequently, when a building is updated and renovated, the electrical wiring remains the same. This means that many businesses are operating with insufficient electrical support for their modern electrical appliances. The steady increase of consumer electronic use and energy consumption means that these electrical systems could become easily overloaded. Fortunately, many of the dangers associated with older electrical systems can be prevented simply by upgrading the electrical panel. Upgrading the electrical panel helps to ensure that your electrical system is equipped to meet your energy needs and protect your employees and property. If you work in an aging building, we can inspect your building’s electrical wiring and distribution system to determine exactly what your electrical service panel needs are. Upgrading or replacing important components can help prevent electrical emergencies before they occur. Call Southern Coast Electrical Services to find out how a panel upgrade can improve your property .
How Your Electricity Flows
We as consumers take electrical power for granite at times. We just assume that it is always going to be there, ready for us to use at all times. The convenience of outlets to plug electrical devices into sometimes make us forget all of the safety devices connected to the circuit long before it gets to the outlet or switching the home. Electrical power flows from the utility company's power lines through an electric meter that is used by the utility company to track the usage of power used by each home.
Connected to the meter is an electrical disconnect that provides a safe means of disconnecting from the utility company. This is just one of the many disconnects that are used to disconnect power from deices in the home. These devices like fuses and circuit breakers help control the amount of amperage allowed on each circuit, thus protecting the user, you. Let's take a closer look at how electricity is distributed in the home.
...Source: http://electrical.about.com/b/2013/07/26/how-your-electricity-flows.htm
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Licensed Electrician supports Decarcerate PA March for a People’s Budget
Here’s why Philladelphia licensed electrician Robert Monk Electric is supporting marchers walking from Philadelphia to Harrisburg on May 25. Will you #walkthewalk with us?
Philadelphia Licensed electrician Robert Monk believes a budget by the people is good for honest businesses who seek to be a part of a sustainable future.
Unfortunately, as a small sole-proprietor contractor, I will likely be catching up on paperwork and paying taxes into the very treasury the march will try to take control of (politically speaking, of course).
So it’s up to you to help make sure our PA taxes build community and support productive infrastructure rather than expanding the scourge of incarceration.
Got a bus or mobile home/travel trailer?
Help me help Decarcerate PA and the March for a People’s Budget!
If you or someone you know has a 30′ – 40′ passenger bus or mobile home conversion bus or RV, or fifth-wheel travel trailer for sale, please be in touch, as I would like to purchase something along these lines and make it available as people-mover and/or logistical support in time to arrive for the demonstration in Harrisburg on June 3rd, 2013 (you, I, or someone at Decarcerate may be able to find a pickup truck to pull a trailer, a driver/operator for a class A mobile home conversion bus or RV, or a commercial class C driver for a passenger bus). Afterward, I would use the vehicle for my own business, but hope to find ways to make it available for logistical support of other worthy demontrations in the future, as well.
For a passenger bus or conversion bus, I would probably like to negotiate a 15-day lease that includes some or all of the march days, as well as a couple before or after, to run the thing by my mechanic and get their opinion before making an offer for purchase.
I am also interested in property, ideally near zip 19143, for either short- or long-term storage of the bus/trailer, and possibly a 20′ or 40′ ISO shipping container, in addition.
My budget for a bus and a place to keep it is $15-40K.
Licensed Electrician Robert Monk Licensed Electrician supports Decarcerate PA March for a People’s Budget Copyright Robert Monk, 2012
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Renewable Installation Value Varies With Location
That’s what this write-up — of results of a Carnegie Mellon U. researchers’ study — claims:
The benefits vary not only by where wind and solar power is generated, but when. Wind production is generally best at night, so it tends to displace coal-fired “baseload” generators. Solar output peaks at midday, so it is more likely to offset on-demand natural gas generators.
As a result, a megawatt-hour of wind energy can displace more emissions than a megawatt-hour of solar energy, depending on where it is installed. Wind delivers 30 percent more benefit than solar in Virginia and Maryland, but the difference is “negligible in much of the country.”
Source: http://electricalcontractor.com/?p=10406
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When do I need a home electrical service change ? Broward Electrician
Bob Frank, owner of Perfect Electric and Air Services, in discussing in this video tips on how to indentify the need for an electrical service change for your home. There are factors that increase electrical hazards and potential exposure to serious electrical issues that homeowners, at least most of them, wouldn’t be able to spot. Perfect [...]
What You Need To Know About Solar Panel Installation
There are a lot of interesting facts and tidbits about solar power and its usage. If solar panel installation is something you are considering, here are four points you may find helpful in making your decision: It does not cost as much as you think. Solar panel costs are not as high as most people [...]
Source: http://www.theelectricconnection.com/pros-solar-panel-installation/
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Sunday, July 28, 2013
Give Your Air Conditioner a Break During the Heatwave!
The heatwave is on across the nation once again! Temperatures are soaring into the 90's and everyone is urged to be careful in the heat. You should avoid exposure to the hottest part of the day to avoid heat stress and heat stroke.
...Source: http://electrical.about.com/b/2013/07/16/give-your-air-conditioner-a-break-during-the-heatwave.htm
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What YOU Can Do to Reduce Pollution?
What YOU Can Do to Reduce Pollution?
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has prepared this fact sheet to answer some of the most common questions about reducing emissions from private vehicles.
This is an important concern, as cars are a major source of air pollution in the United States. Vehicle emissions contribute to health and environmental problems such as urban smog, air toxics, and global warming. Yet individual driving habits make a big difference in the amount of pollution a car produces.
Three easy things you can do to help keep emissions as low as possible are:
• Avoid unnecessary driving
• Maintain your car properly
• Drive your car wisely
By combining these strategies, you can very effectively reduce the amount your car pollutes. And there are additional benefits — your car will last longer and you will save money.
Avoid Unnecessary Driving
The most effective way to reduce emissions from your vehicle is to use it less.
Vehicle travel in this country is doubling every 20 years. Traffic trends that see
more and more cars driving more and more miles will soon begin to outpace
technological progress in vehicle emission control.
Several options are available to help you reduce the amount you drive. These
include consolidating trips, telecommuting, carpooling, using public transit, and choosing clean transportation alternatives such as biking or walking.
By planning errands, you will get the most out of time you do spend behind the wheel. For example, call ahead to confirm that the product you need is in stock before you drive to the store. Plan to do several tasks when you go somewhere.
Drive to a central location and park. Then walk between nearby destinations.
Ridesharing can be an ideal way to reduce your personal contribution to pollution.
Every time you share a ride and eliminate a trip, you help the environment. Try pairing up for trips to work or to social events — even an occasional carpool or ride on public transportation will make a difference.
Biking or walking to your destination creates no pollution at all. And you’ll
increase your fitness level at the same time.
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About the Author:
<p>RunGreenPower.com will teach you how to build solar & wind power systems foryour home within a weekend.</p><p>Check It Now: <a rel=”nofollow” onclick=”javascript:_gaq.push(['_trackPageview', '/outgoing/article_exit_link']);” target=”_blank” href=”http://www.rungreenpower.com/2010/09/21/buy-diy-solar-power-kit/”>Why to Buy DIY solar power Kit?</a></p>
Article Source
Source: http://reschelectrical.com/what-you-can-do-to-reduce-pollution/
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Offshore Alaska Drilling: Private Effort versus Regulatory Constraints
Royal Dutch Shell has spent billions of dollars over six years preparing to drill for new oil in Alaska. The hidden treasure is an estimated 20–25 billion barrels of oil beneath the Beaufort and Chukchi seas.
Not surprisingly, drilling for oil in Alaska is complicated and expensive (See map of proposed offshore exploration and drilling in Alaska). Part of the complexity is the distant Arctic location and short summer exploration and drilling window, and part is caused by drifty U.S. federal regulations.
Oil exploration and production is never easy (as in “the ‘easy oil’ has been found”), and new frontiers, technological and geographical, are always the challenge. And in this case, federal regulation from an anti-oil administration is at work.
Shell’s Coming Restart
on Shell’s suspended Arctic drilling operations for 2013, the company hasn’t given up. Shell just needs time to repair its ships. U.S. government agencies will continue review and regulation while Shell ships are repaired. As reported in the New York Times: “The Interior Department, the Coast Guard and the Justice Department are reviewing Shell’s operations, which have included groundings, environmental and safety violations, weather delays, the collapse of its spill-containment equipment and other failures.”
The NYT article also reports:
Shell has had numerous serious problems in getting to and from the Arctic, as well as problems operating in the Arctic,’ said Lois N. Epstein, Arctic program director for the Wilderness Society and a member of an Interior Department offshore drilling safety advisory panel…. “Shell’s managers have not been straight with the American public, and possibly even with its own investors, on how difficult its Arctic Ocean operations have been this past year,” she said.
Well, maybe so, but this is an assertion by a program director at an environmental advocacy group, also chosen to advise the Interior Department on regulations.
Insight on the advice received from this Wilderness Society (WS) program director can be found on their webpage, Save the Arctic from Oil Drilling. Another Wilderness Society story (or fund-raising blurb) is titled: On the brink of catastrophe: Help protect Arctic animals from devastating oil spill.
Safer than Critics Want You to Believe
No one desires a “devastating” oil spill for ecological or other reasons. But there are reasons for optimism and against drilling obstruction in this major new energy frontier.
Royal Dutch Shell is a very large company with extensive expertise in drilling for oil in difficult places. Deep ocean drilling technology has advanced a lot. The average depth of the Beaufort sea is 1,000 meters. Deep water oil drilling offshore in Brazil is 2,000 meters down (Economist story). Shell’s drilling in the Arctic is about 20 miles offshore and in water about 120 feet deep according to this Interior Department review (pdf). It is very doable, in other words.
But the negativism is wide. A September 14, 2012, Popular Mechanic article, “Everything You Need to Know About Shell Oil and Arctic Offshore Drilling in Alaska,” could as easily be titled: “Everything You Need to Know About Why Shell Oil Arctic Offshore Drilling in Alaska is Really Risky.” The website introduction to the article provides background: “After years of arguments over drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), the debate about Arctic oil exploration has moved offshore, into the waters of the Chukchi and Beaufort seas.”
Clean Air Act Issues
Clean Air Act regulations limit NOx and VOC emissions to reduce ozone that is harmful to people (and presumably polar bears). So maybe EPA is concerned Arctic volatile organic compounds (VOCs) will mix with the NOx released by the Shell drilling ships to create harmful Arctic ozone.
Such is far fetched. You can see from the EPA image the VOCs emission sources, and there are few trees, motor vehicles, consumer solvents, or industrial commercial processes in the Arctic.
Maybe there is some other harm caused by NOx emissions from a factory-like drilling ship twenty miles offshore in the Arctic. But whether people or polar bears can be harmed by these emissions seems less the issue than Clean Air regulations as a tool for regulators to slow or stop projects deemed dangerous or environmentally immoral.
This online editorial from the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner suggests the permitting process is a bureaucratic mess:
Environmental and North Slope community groups appealed the permits to an internal EPA review board. … The first stumbling block was an argument about how to define the precise moment when a drilling rig becomes “stationary.” Air quality rules are different for mobile and stationary sources, so it’s obviously an important definition. The appeals board, made up entirely of former EPA attorneys, said agency personnel didn’t explain their decision well enough. After decades of such work in other U.S. offshore waters, how could such an essential question still be in play?
The editorial also noted that
the agency failed to analyze the potential health effects of the hour-to-hour variations in nitrogen oxide levels that exploratory drilling equipment would cause in the air breathed by North Slope residents. The agency analyzed the annual effects and found them insignificant.
But a new requirement for hourly analysis came down the regulatory pipeline about the same time. So, the board said, the agency should have reviewed the emissions’ effects in an hourly time frame. It’s a good bet the conclusion would be the same, but no matter — it’s back to the drawing board.
The objections that stopped the permits were neither new nor substantive. That didn’t prevent them from provoking bureaucratic fussing of the highest order.
Treasure Awaits
There is lots more oil in Alaska. But is it safe to drill there? Should Shell should be allowed access to a reasonable Federal permitting process? Should Arctic oil reserves should be left untapped due to harsh winters and difficult logistics, human ingenuity aside. To say “no” is to shortcircuit the entrepreneurial process–resourceship in this case–that is responsible for human betterment.
There are risks of oil spills, but it cannot be said that unsafe practices, neglect, and actual accidents are profit-maximizing. The Valdez accident (1989) in Prince William Sound, Alaska, involving as much as 750,000 barrels, rocked the mighty Exxon Mobil. And the Deepwater Horizon blowout (2010), relreasing 4.9 million barrels in the Gulf of Mexico, has cost BP tens of billions of dollars. Company and industry-wide reforms in the wake of these accidents, however, have lead to new investments and safety protocols, all part of the oil-finding challenge.
Can the self-interest of private parties to assess the risks and be ready to pay a pretty price if things go wrong? Can government under real world political pressures be assumed to know what is best and act accordingly? Thousands of students are now debating these key public policy questions.
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Reform of federal marine natural resource policies is one of the national debate topics this year. Greg Rehmke directs EconomicThinking.org and holds economics workshops on debate topics. For a longer version of this post, see here.
Source: http://www.masterresource.org/2013/07/drilling-oil-alaska/
Stop Searching for Outlets! Call an Electrician in Beverly Hills Today
Let’s face it, in today’s very technological world, nearly everything we own needs to be plugged in and charged so it is ready to go when we are. Cell phones, laptops, tablets and even out cars rely on our home’s power to get charged. When there are several people in the home all fighting to [...]
Source: http://www.theelectricconnection.com/stop-searching-outlets-call-electrician-beverly-hills-today/
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GFCI Outlet Benefits
GFCI oulets can play a major role in the safety of your property and the content in it.
The main advantage of a GFCI outlet is that it prevents shocks and electrocution. A GFCI outlet has a built-in sensor that monitors the inflow and outflow of electricity from an appliance. GFCI outlets are necessary for shock prevention. Although they are slightly more expensive than regular power outlets, this massive advantage makes them well worth the additional cost. The second function of a GFCI outlet is to detect ground faults. Since grounding errors can be present, which occur when the flow of the electrical current leaves a circuit, can cause electrical fires, it is safe to say that one of the advantages of installing a GFCI outlet is the prevention of fires. Third as insulation breaks down, a certain amount of electric current begins to leak into household appliances or other electronic items. If the outer body of the equipment is not made of metal, you may not get a shock, but this constant leakage of current will damage the equipment. These are important feature that could play a huge role in the safety of you property and your life. With these benefits in the proper area of your property it will only cost pennies on the dollar. Talk with your local electrician or call Southern Coast Electrical Services to find out more on how GFCI outlets could benefit you.
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