Category Archives: Miscellaneous

What Causes Power Outages?

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Power Outages

 

As we become more dependent on a wide variety of electrical services and devices, power outages may seem more important than they were years ago. Today a power outage may interfere with lighting and entertainment, but also with safety and our ability to work. These are a few of the common causes of power outages.

  • Equipment

Our modern electrical system is composed of many different components. Electrical equipment is susceptible to failure as it ages or is damaged, just like the various parts in your car may fail over time. An equipment failure in the electrical system may result in a power outage to one home or to an entire area, depending on the equipment that failed.

  • Weather

As recent hurricanes in Texas and Florida have demonstrated, severe weather events may disrupt electric service to entire communities. A more typical example or weather-related power outages might involve lighting strikes, wind, or ice accumulation during winter.

  • Trees

Trees are often responsible for power outages. As the trees grow, their branches may come into contact with electrical lines or components. Trees may also indirectly trigger a power outage if a limb or the entire tree comes down during a storm. Falling limbs and trees may cause faults or damage to electrical lines.

  • Human Damage

Sometimes a power outage is caused by human damage. Common examples of human-caused outages are car crashes or construction equipment that cause damage to electrical components or lines.

  • Wildlife

Wildlife like snakes, rodents, and birds are just going about their daily life and doing what animals do each day. Unfortunately, they also sometimes come into contact with power lines or electrical components. The result is sometimes a power outage. While utility companies make efforts to limit the impact of wildlife on electrical service, these animals still sometimes find a way to a dangerous spot.

There are many causes of power outages. While you cannot control the electrical system outside of your home or business, you can be sure that all of the wiring and components within the building are safe and reliable. Always On Electric, Inc. has earned a reputation for quality work in the western Colorado region. Contact us today at 970-309-2616 to learn more about our services.

Tips for Saving Money on Electricity This Summer

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Cleaning Air Conditioning Unit Sadly, the COVID-19 pandemic has affected nearly all walks of life, forcing people to find creative ways to save money as we wait for things to return back to normal. As the calendar inches closer and closer to summer, home and business owners may be thinking of ways they can save on their electric bills. Here are some tips to help you achieve that goal this summer.

Be Efficient With Your Air Conditioning Use

If you have an AC unit in your residence or business, make sure it’s only turned on when you’re at home or employees are in the building and are actually able to use it. Moreover, savings can add up if you turn it off when you’re go to bed for the night or if you set the temperature a bit higher than usual when you leave for the day.

On days and nights where it’s naturally cool outside, consider turning off the unit all together and simply open up your windows and let in a cool breeze. Also, utilizing the ceiling fans in your home or business can help reduce your dependence on your unit, also helping you save at the margins.

Keep Your Air Conditioning Units in Great Shape

Make sure the vents in your AC unit are clean and free of debris, and that the unit’s filters are periodically cleaned and/or replaced. Failing to perform maintenance on it will cause your air conditioning unit to not work as efficiently, which consequently, will cause the unit to consume more energy. And more energy consumption means a higher bill.

Choose a Great Thermostat

Learning how to properly program your thermostat is another way to save money this summer (year-round, actually). Whether it’s doing it the old school way and reading the instructional manual that comes with it, or it’s googling and watching a YouTube tutorial, accurately programming your thermostat will help you save bundles of money.

If you need a licensed electrician in Rifle, CO this summer, call us at 970.309.2616 or email us at alwaysonelectric@hotmail.com.

Electrical Troubleshooting Tips for Industrial Businesses

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Industrial ElectricianWhen you own an industrial business, you’re going to need to get used to dealing with electrical issues from time to time. Many of these issues will be minor in nature. However, if you get into the habit of ignoring them and don’t determine what’s causing them, they can eventually lead to much larger problems down the line. Let’s take a look at some electrical troubleshooting tips that you can use to keep your industrial business’ electrical system up and running the way it’s supposed to at all times.

Work to gather information on an electrical issue as quickly as you can.

The second you notice an electrical issue in your industrial facility, you should formulate a plan of attack. Take a look at how the electrical issue is affecting your industrial equipment and talk to your employees to see if this issue is new or something that’s been a lingering problem. The more info you have on an electrical issue, the better your chances of figuring out what’s causing it so that it can be fixed.

Try to pinpoint the source of an electrical issue whenever possible.

Once you’ve taken the time to gather information on your electrical issue, the next step you should take is trying to pinpoint the source of the issue. This is often easier said than done, but you may be able to narrow the potential sources down by visually inspecting electrical wiring and outlets and checking out which part of your facility seems to be impacted the most by the electrical issue.

Aim to have your electrical issue fixed by a licensed industrial electrician right away.

Unless you have extensive experience and training as an industrial electrician, you should not attempt to correct an electrical issue in your facility. You could end up making the issue much worse than it already is by trying to repair it on your own. You could also put yourself and your employees at risk by tinkering around with electrical components. Call on a licensed industrial electrician to visit your facility right away and make the necessary electrical repairs.

Are you experiencing an electrical issue in your industrial facility right now? Always on Electric can come out to your facility and figure out what’s causing the issue. We can also make the right repairs to get your electrical system working seamlessly again. Call us at 970-309-2616 to schedule an appointment with an industrial electrician.

How to Prevent Electric Shocks

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Electric ShocksThere are more than 30,000 non-fatal electric shocks that take place all across the country each year. Many of these shocks occur inside homes, and some even involve children. The good news is they’re often preventable as long as you take the proper precautions. Here are a few ways that you can stop an electric shock from happening in your home.

Put plug covers over all your electrical outlets.

If you have a small child living in your home, you should place plug covers over each and every electrical outlet in your house. No matter how many times you tell a young child not to touch an electrical outlet, there is always a chance that they could get curious and try to do it anyway when you’re not looking. If they’re able to stick something into an outlet, it could result in them experiencing an electric shock.

Keep anything that’s plugged into an outlet away from water.

Positioning electronics anywhere in the general vicinity of water is a big no-no. You should keep your toaster away from your sink, your Bluetooth speaker away from your bathtub, and all of your other gadgets away from the various sources of water throughout your home. If an electronic falls into water while it’s plugged in, it could prove to be catastrophic.

Replace old, worn-down electrical fixtures.

The electrical switches and outlets in your home aren’t designed to last forever. They will wear down on you over time and eventually need to be replaced. If you choose not to replace them, your electrical fixtures could cause small electric shocks. Touch base with an electrician as soon as you can to have old electrical fixtures removed from your home and replaced with new ones.

Always On Electric can reduce the chances of anyone in your home sustaining an electric shock by providing you with electrical services. Call us at 970-309-2616 today to see how our services can keep you safe.

Tips for Creating an Outdoor Landscape Lighting Plan

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Installing Landscape Lighting

By installing landscape lighting on the outside of your home, you can improve the appearance of your residential property at night and make it a whole lot safer and more secure. But before you start putting landscape lighting into place, it’s important to create a landscape lighting plan. Check out some tips that will help you do it below.

Create a list of goals for your landscape lighting design.

What is it that you want your landscape lighting design to do once it’s in place? Do you want it to shine a spotlight on several of the key landscaping touches located in your yard? Do you want it to light up the walkway leading up to your home? Or do you want it to do some combination of both of these things? Prior to installing landscape lighting, you should list your goals so that you can set out to accomplish them.

Decide which kind of lighting fixtures you want to use.

Many homeowners are surprised by how many different types of lighting fixtures are available for landscape lighting designs. Browse through a bunch of your options while you’re creating a landscape lighting plan to see which ones you want to be set up on the outside of your home. They’ll offer you inspiration as you set out to come up with the best landscape lighting design possible.

Work with an electric company that has experience with landscape lighting.

Incorporating landscape lighting into the exterior of a residential property is not a DIY job. You’ll need an experienced electric company by your side to lead the way. They should know how to safely install the wiring that’s needed for landscape lighting so that it stays put for years to come and doesn’t present any big problems.

Would you like to create a landscape lighting plan for your home? Call Always on Electric at 970-309-2616 today to hear about the residential electrical services we can provide for you.

The Benefits of Businesses Upgrading to LED Lighting

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LED Lighting Has your business upgraded to LED lighting yet? If not, you’re missing out on a litany of benefits that could be saving your company both time and money. You should strongly consider installing LED lighting throughout your business today. Here are just a few of the benefits that will come along with doing it.

LED lighting is more energy efficient than other lighting options.

Does it feel like you’re paying entirely too much money to your utility company each and every month? Your old conventional lighting could very well be to blame. LED lighting only uses about 50 percent as much electricity as other lighting options like fluorescent, incandescent, and halogen lighting. As a result, LED lights will trim your energy bills quite a bit every month.

LED lights last significantly longer than incandescent and fluorescent ones.

In addition to using less electricity, LED lights will also last a lot longer than your other lighting options. On average, fluorescent lights are only designed to last for between 8,000 and 10,000 hours, while incandescent lights are only designed to last for about 1,000 hours. But LED lights can last for anywhere from 30,000 to 50,000 hours and will sometimes last even longer than that. You won’t have to worry about replacing your LED lights often once they’re in place.

LED lights are durable and can withstand everything from the cold to vibrations.

Are the lights in your business routinely subjected to cold temperature, vibrations, and more? If you have incandescent or fluorescent lighting in place now, these things can take a toll on them. But LED lights are just about as durable as it gets as far as lighting is concerned. They’ll stand up to almost anything you throw at them and keep on giving off the same light.

Once you install LED lighting in your business, you’ll wonder why you didn’t do it much sooner. Always on Electric can provide you with the commercial electrical services you need to take advantage of LED lights from now on. Call us at 970-309-2616 today to get started.

The Importance of Selecting the Right Commercial Electrician

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Commercial Electricians Do you need to hire a commercial electrician to do electrical work for your business? You’ll likely notice that there are dozens of options in your area. Nevertheless, rather than simply picking the first one you can find, you should bring the best commercial electrician on board to ensure the job gets done right. There are several advantages you’ll get to enjoy when you hire the right commercial electrician. Take a look at them below.

They’ll complete the electrical work you need done in a timely fashion.

As a business owner, you don’t have the luxury of waiting around for an electrical job to be finished over the course of several days or even weeks. You need the job done as quickly as possible so that you can get back to business. A reputable commercial electrician will understand this and strive to get your job finished as soon as they can.

They’ll make sure your electrical system is up to code before leaving your business.

Finishing off a commercial job quickly is of the utmost importance to a good commercial electrician. But they won’t rush through a job and do sloppy work for the sake of getting the job done. They’ll make sure the work they do is up to code and get all the proper permits at the start of the process to prevent problems from popping up later.

They’ll stand behind their work and come back to fix any problems that pop up in the future.

A good commercial electrician should be able to get the job you need completed done right the first time. However, if a problem pops back up again and affects your business, your commercial electrician should be more than willing to come back and fix whatever went wrong. They’ll stand behind the original work they did and see to it that you don’t have to pay for another round of costly electrical repairs.

The next time you need electrical work done in your business, contact Always on Electric for assistance. We’ll send a commercial electrician out right away to take care of your issue. Call us at 970-309-2616 today to make an appointment.

Tips for Selecting the Right Commercial Electrician

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Commercial Electrician What are some tips for selecting the right commercial electrician to work on/at your workplace, business, warehouse or store?

First and foremost, you want to choose an electrician who is fully trained and knowledgeable about commercial electrical work. You want an expert, not a newbie or novice. Don’t be afraid to ask to see their license and make sure it’s current. Moreover, ask around– see what others have said about their work before you hire them. Also, make sure the electrician you choose to work with is bonded and insured.

Next, commercial electrical work requires practical and flexible workers who adapt well to different situations and people. For instance, an electrician in a commercial setting may have to interact with construction workers as well as office employees. How are their communication skills? Do they clam up and not say a word, speaking only when spoken to? Or do they seem to be able to talk with lots of different people about different topics in a friendly manner? Be a judge of character upon first interacting with them on the phone or in person: do they seem “on the ball?” Sometimes the answer to that exact question can tell you right then and there whether or not you want to hire them.

If you have the time and inclination, do an Internet search on nearby electricians to see their online reviews. Of course, you can check with the Better Business Bureau and ask for references, too, but these days it seems like most people form their opinions based on online reviews. That said, if an electrician/company gets “1 star” more often than “4 stars” (or more) then they’re best avoided.

Always On Electric has done a wide range of electrical jobs at places in Aspen, Grand Junction, Vail and other towns. With a constant commitment to customer service as a top priority, Always On Electric believes in putting customers first. Additionally, safety is another priority. Techs are trained on proper procedures for all electrical work they perform, abiding by industry standards. For more info, please call 970-309-2616 or email alwaysonelectric@hotmail.com.