When Do You Need an Emergency Electrician?
Identifying an Electrical Crisis, and Finding the Right Service
With the influx of huge summer storms – complete with lots of lightning and torrential downpours – we have encountered a serious surge in customers who encounter unusual electrical circumstances and turn to us, Colorado Springs Highest-Rated Electrician, to answer some pertinent questions. One of the most important steps is to first assess your situation, understand where emergency responsibility lies, and get your urgent circumstance resolved as quickly as possible.
What Constitutes an Electrical Emergency?
Let’s be honest here – what might seem like an electrical emergency to my daughter (i.e., her hair straightener not getting power) is not in reality an emergency to me. On the opposite hand, if someone dropped off a hot tub on my front porch I would definitely consider it an emergency to have someone come hook it up for me – but my husband would point out that I could survive just fine without it for a couple of weeks. Then again, if my husband got a new power tool that required a dedicated circuit, HE would consider it an emergency to have an electrician come out and wire it in so he could play with it – I mean put it to use – right away!
In reality, however, the category of ‘what is an electrical emergency’ can be relatively narrow. We can help identify an ‘urgent service situation’ by asking ourselves some questions, like these:
That is not to say there aren’t urgent electrical problems – there are tons of them! It is also important to be able to identify – when do you call an electrician, and when do you call your electrical service provider? (Utility or POCO – power company.) Depending on your location, this can vary – but in our region, most utilities provide service, whether underground or overhead, to the point of the electrical meter. At the point where electricity enters your electrical meter, the responsibility for the meter, its parts, and everything beyond that service point becomes part and parcel of your property. This very thin line can be really difficult to understand sometimes – but don’t ever hesitate to ask a trained professional, who should be able to understand and explain the difference to you.
Who Do I Call During My Electrical Emergency?
The first few tasks to troubleshoot electrical problems you can tackle yourself – such as troubleshooting your GFCIs, AFCIs, and checking for tripped breakers. If your problem is persistent enough, or your situation is urgent enough, then there are a couple of deciding factors to let you know whether you should be calling your power company/utility provider, or an electrician. Does it matter who you call? Absolutely! Your utility has troubleshooting and emergency response teams whose sole purpose is to make sure your electrical service is correctly connected to the grid supply.
When Do I Call My Power or Utility Provider?
- If you have a complete and total loss of power. Check your neighbors and street lights or nearby facilities to make sure they aren’t experiencing an outage as well. If it appears to be isolated to just you, try resetting your main breaker first, and then checking your home to see if power has been restored. After that, please call your utility as it could be a service-side issue, or part of a larger power-grid issue.
- If you have intermittent or sporadic loss of power to half your home, and your 220V appliances are not working. To be clear, we are not referring to circuits that are controlled by GFCI or AFCI outlets or breakers, but rather to things like 3 separate circuits that aren’t getting power (i.e., lights in your kitchen, outlets in your living room, and your kitchen appliances) as well your electric oven and dryer not getting up to temperature, then there is a distinct possibility it could be a service-side issue.
Why do we recommend calling your utility for assistance first, and an electrician second? Because your electrical service provider must maintain your access to power, and can offer twenty four hour emergency service at no cost to you! But make no mistake – Swartz Electric offers twenty-four hour emergency electrical service for any and all customers who are in need.
Swartz Electric – Your Colorado Springs Electrician performs electrical work throughout Colorado Springs, Monument, Black Forest, Fountain, Falcon, Woodland Park, and everywhere in between. We are the electricians in Colorado Springs to solve your electrical problems and meet your electrical requirements.
Call, e-mail, visit our website, or stop by our office today, and allow Swartz Electric to serve YOU.
This is an original article written by Mai Bjorklund for Swartz Electric. This article may not be copied whole or in part without the express permission of Swartz Electric, LLC.
© Copyright 2016. All rights reserved.