The good news is that heating systems in modern homes are safer than they’ve ever been before. But while many people never experience any major risk to their safety due to a furnace or boiler, it’s still a possibility. Any heating system that uses combustion to work, like a natural gas furnace, could potentially leak a dangerous gas called carbon monoxide (CO, for short) into the home.

The heat exchanger is where combustion produces a flame as natural gas ignites. This heat is contained within a heat exchanger made of aluminum or steel. It is essentially a curved tube, and the smoke and carbon monoxide byproducts vent through the other end and out of the house. Air blows over the heat exchanger to heat up and is sent to the ducts running throughout the home.

Unfortunately, over time, the heat exchanger can become damaged. This is especially true if you have anyone but a professional technician work on your furnace, but it can also happen with time. You should have HVAC technicians inspect your heating system each and every year to check for leaks and cracks.

Carbon monoxide is an odorless, colorless gas. That means you wouldn’t have many ways to notice if it were in your home. It is poisonous, and sometimes people don’t know about it until people in the house start to get sick.

Carbon monoxide detectors save lives. A CO detector near each room where people sleep (and throughout your living spaces) should be tested each month and replaced every 5-10 years. You should also replace the batteries for your CO and smoke alarms every 6 months (even if the test works).

This is the time of year you need to be worrying about an active storm season. Sure, the weather is mild right now, but you never know what Mother Nature has in storm for us. It could be a rough winter with lots of storms that threaten to knock out the power. A power outage is slightly romantic until you have to go without electricity for hours. Trying to figure out how to make dinner or take a hot shower is not fun. You don’t have to deal with all the issues a power outage can cause if you give your electrician in Glendale a call. The crew at The Electric Connection knows you don’t want to go without power for several hours or days. There is a solution—a standby generator.

A standby generator is one of the best options to keep your home powered when the grid goes down. The size of generator you will need depends on what appliances you need to keep running and the overall size of your home. Your Glendale electrician can help you determine the wattage needed to keep essential lights on as well as keep your refrigerator and other appliances powered. If you are planning to run your furnace or AC in the summer, you will need a larger generator. Don’t worry about trying to figure out what you need. Leave it to your electrician. Glendale homeowners won’t have to worry about anything other than the maintenance schedule for the generator.

The electrician will take care of everything, including installing a transfer switch that ill automatically switch the generator on the moment the power goes out. You won’t have to worry about turning it on or running cords to the generator. It is all done for you. This means, your home will stay powered, even if you are not there to flip a switch. Give The Electric Connection a call today and schedule your standby generator consultation.

You might be a fan of their appearance, but aluminum light poles bring more to the table than just their looks. Whether you opt for squared or rounded varieties, these light poles have become more popular than ever. This is thanks to their impressive ratio of strength to weight, as they are sturdy while still being lightweight. Additionally, they feature a high resistance to corrosion. These advantages, coupled with their recyclability, make aluminum light poles a perfect match for sustainable projects and harsher environments.

Aluminum is a great material to use when you’re prioritizing strength and reliability. However, just as important as the variety of light pole is the installation procedure. If your poles don’t have proper installation, you could be losing out on the benefits of the lights. A sloppy installation by the wrong people compromises everything from the reliability of the lights to your safety.

Not all vibration is bad, but the destructive form of it can cause serious damage over time as cracks begin to form and then spread along the pole’s side. If the pole’s movements are not equal in either direction, it is simply usual sway, and therefore no reason for concern.

On the other hand, if it is constantly moving back and forth an equal distance, with the motion based at the center of the pole’s shaft and not on top, you’re seeing potentially destructive vibration. Eventually, this can lead to the pole shaft cracking and falling, breaking just above the part of the base where the weld held it together.

Several factors contribute to pole vibration. These include the pole shape, the surrounding environment and the installation. Whoever performs the installation needs to follow the appropriate guidelines for the size and type of pole, as each pole can handle a certain load. If your installer uses the wrong light fixture, destructive vibrations could be inevitable.

Every installation job will have its requirements, based on the client’s needs as well as the location in question. One aspect that doesn’t change, however, is the importance of safety. Light pole installations fall under the umbrella of electrical work, which is always a dangerous area for anyone who isn’t an expert. Any piece of electrical equipment improperly installed can become a safety hazard, and aluminum light poles are no exception.

Your installer must comply with local codes and requirements as applicable. As such, they need to provide proper electrical groundings. Failure to do so can be a serious violation of important safety regulations. Worse, it can lead to a very dangerous situation for you and anyone exposed to the light poles.