Home Improvement

Spark up a conversation with your area electrician and sign up for home efficiency cash rebates

Jinal Shah

November 4, 2024
3 min read

Our national trades workforce is over-tasked. We can’t build houses fast enough because we can’t train the skilled trades. You would be wise to schedule an inspection with them and save emergency call rates. They are busy because they are skilled and electricity can kill you, in a flash.

I am an aviation and marine engineer, and no stranger to advanced systems. When addressing a home electrical issue, I call experienced electricians without hesitation. They are safe, trained, experienced and appropriately equipped for the task. Verify your electrician is licensed and insured for your safety and property.

If you have kids, you know they will try some amazing things to avoid trouble. I did when I was a boy. Electricians can tell if something has been broken before and you tried to “fix” it. If you’ve overloaded a circuit, tell them. They know what to do and where to look for further damage.

Have them install a new power point or fault-isolated outlets where you need them to prevent future overloading. Refrain from running extension cords as long-term solutions to outlet placement in your home. By increasing and decreasing electrical cable size or quality you create a heat fuse that can ignite.

Do you experience power surges or fluctuations in your power supply? Do you occasionally get a little shock when touching home appliances, faucets, or ducting? You could have a bad ground. An electrician can identify the quality of your Earth wire and connection.

All trades offer 24-hour service. Why not? You are going to pay for it. It would be wiser to have your heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems checked before each season. Summer approaches. Is your air conditioner ready? Is your refrigerator ready to keep coldies?

Your electrician can help you find and install LED lights for general use, security, safety, or area flood lighting needs. Fans help reduce cooling and heating costs with circulation. Clean and service them before the dusty summer. It’s also a good time to check smoke or CO2 alarm batteries.

If you want an electric vehicle, you’ll be calling a local electrician to install your EV charging point. More sports toys are going electric as well. We have more TVs, phones, tablets, laptops, etc. that need power. When your home was built, the electrical system may not have been installed with all those items in mind.

Upgrading to newer, more efficient home electrical fittings isn’t cheap. Have you signed up for your energy rebates? Energ.gov is offering $500, New South Wales $250, or $600 from Queensland as rebates for home electrical efficiency upgrades.

When we become more efficient, fewer power plants are needed, less fuel is burned, less emissions contend with, and our bills become smaller. My father instilled a strict code of turning things off or unplugging them when not in use.

If you are concerned about the environment, we all share, your actions will show. If you’re not concerned about the environment but want billions to be spent on quality-of-life issues not more electrical grid infrastructure, your actions will also show.