If you’ve spent any amount of time on our services pages, you’ve probably noticed us consistently mention dedicated circuitry. You need it for your outlets, for heavy appliances; gosh, you even need one for your microwave. But what is a circuit, and how many do you really need? Important questions, and luckily for you, our certified electricians have answers.

When it comes to electrical work, Kolb Electric has everything you need to maintain optimal home performance. Our Rockville electricians carry years of top-notch training, and possess all of the know-how and technical knowledge needed to get your circuit wiring done right. Contact Kolb any time you need electrical services!

Put super basically, a circuit is an engineered circular path that electricity takes to do work. Think about the light switches in your home. When you flick them on, electricity flows into the closed circuit that sends power to your fixtures and bulbs, and voila! You’ve got light. All electronics and electrical applications work off of the concept of circuits.

A circuit always starts and stops in the same place, creating a revolving door of sorts for harnessed electricity.

So, What Is a Dedicated Circuit?

Technically speaking, a dedicated circuit is no different from a regular circuit in application. It is simply set aside to power one, specific appliance , tool, or piece of equipment. Dedicated circuits are required by NEC (National Electric Code) for all major appliances (generally those that involve massive, fluctuating voltages). So what about portable tools that eat power? Your electric drills, and hair dryers? This is why outlets are on dedicated circuits, too!

The answer here is a little malleable. It depends on a number of variables including:

Notice that all of these variables can change, or be changed. That means the number of circuits you need equates to basically this: As many as it takes. If it has a switch, uses a motor, or gets plugged in, odds are it needs a circuit (maybe not a dedicated one, but a circuit). But how do you find out exactly how many you need? Well, that’s what electricians are for! One thing you can find out on your own, is if you have too few circuits.

If you experience any of these complications, you probably need more circuits, or an upgrade:

There are more complications than this, but they can get complicated, and often have other causes as well.

Think you might need some electrical work in Rockville? Call on the certified electricians at Kolb Electric! We can have your needs assessed and provided for in no time, and our services are guar

Spring is notorious for some wild thunderstorms that have been known to knock out the power for several hours and in some cases, several days. When the storm is especially large and the outage is widespread, you are going to struggle to get basic necessities like batteries for the flashlights, canned food and stuff for sandwiches. You are also going to be relegated to cold showers until the power is restored. It paints a pretty grim picture. You can prepare for a power outage and avoid all of the issues caused by not having electricity by having a generator installed by an electrician. Glendale homeowners can rely on The Electric Connection to take care of the installation and answer any questions they may have about standby generators.

Standby generators are an ideal option for anybody who is not keen to go even a few hours without electricity. If you have somebody in the home that relies on electric medical equipment, you work from home or you have small children, having a backup electricity plan is an excellent idea. Standby generators are different from the portable kind and are installed as a permanent fixture to the home by a licensed electrician in Glendale.

The generators are extremely easy to use and don’t require you to do anything but add fuel from time to time. A switch will be installed by a Glendale electrician that automatically turns the generator on when the power goes out. You won’t have to run extension cords or deal with difficult to start engines. You will need to determine how much power your home needs to stay functioning so you can purchase the right generator. If you are not sure, you can always give the team at The Electric Connection a call to learn more about standby generators and how they can help you ride out a storm.

At Kolb Electric, we think it’s always interesting to see what types of calls come in each season. So with that in mind, we’ve put together a short list of the most common issues we take care of every winter, spring, summer, and fall. We hope you don’t have any of these problems any time of year, but if you do, call Kolb Electric!

Space heaters tripping circuit breakers – space heaters consume a huge amount of electricity, and if they are plugged into an outlet on an already overloaded circuit (one used to power holiday lights, for instance), they’re likely to cause it to trip. Circuits trip to prevent damage to the wiring of your electrical system, so knowing which outlets are on which circuits can prevent this from happening.

Kolb Electric offers circuit breaker repair »

Wet electrical connections shorting your GFCI – water and electricity don’t mix, and GFCI (ground fault circuit interrupter) outlets are designed to trip if they get wet. If any electrical device in or outside your home gets wet it could cause part of your home to short out. Knowing where your GFCIs are located and which outlets they control, can remedy this problem. If not, an electrician is your best bet for pinpointing and correcting the problem.

Broken down AC – if your air conditioner suddenly stops working during the summer, the first thing you should do is check the breaker. If it’s tripped, shut off the thermostat and reset the breaker. If it trips again after you turn the thermostat back on, call an electrician.

Window AC tripping circuit breakers – like space heaters in the winter, portable window air conditioners use a lot of electricity. Labeling the breaker connected to high energy-consuming appliances will remind people not to plug things into the same circuit.

Trees falling on meter boxes and risers – DC area springs and falls come with pretty unpredictable weather, which in rare cases can end up in downed trees on your property. Even a light touch from a tree limb can rip the electric meter base and riser off of the outer wall of your house.

Replacing ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) outlets –people like to test their GFCIs as part of spring and fall cleaning. So if you find any that need to be replaced, call Kolb Electric!

If you have any electrical problems in Maryland, DC, or Virginia, at any time of year, there’s only one name you need to know: the DC electricians at Kolb Electric!

Doing it yourself can be a fun, satisfying experience, but if you don’t know what you are doing and you are dealing with potentially dangerous things, like electricity, it is best to leave it to the professionals. There are far too many things that can go wrong when you try and fix something that has anything to do with your home’s electrical. It is best to call an experienced electrician like those at The Electric Connection.

Taking care of odd jobs around the house is normal. It is a part of home ownership. However, what many people fail to realize is that some jobs are way more complicated than they believed in the beginning. In fact, those jobs are not only more complicated, they may actually be hazardous to anybody who isn’t trained.

The following reasons are why you should always leave any electrical repair work to a certified electrician.

*You could be putting yourself at risk of electric shock that can be fatal. Fooling around with the wiring in your home is dangerous. One wrong move can have serious consequences. *Property damage in general is another very real possibility. You may not burn your house down, but you could cause damage that has to be repaired by a professional.

The next time you need a little work done around the house, think twice about grabbing your toolbox. If you need any kind of electrical repair work done, give The Electric Connection a call and leave it in their very capable hands.

— Electric Connection (@LAElectricianCA) December 14, 2015