Although most electrical fires start very small, they can quickly spread into almost unmanageable proportions. This is especially true if the fire starts behind your walls. This can lead to a fire becoming very large before you even realize that it is there. Your best protection against an electrical fire is to prevent it from happening in the first place. If you must deal with one, however, you should always be prepared to take the proper course of action. Whenever faced with an electrical fire, your own personal safety is the number one priority. If the fire is too large for you to contain, or is growing too quickly, evacuate everyone out of the home immediately until a fire crew can make the area safe again.

If you are in a position to control the fire, start by shutting off all power to your building. Simply go to the electrical panel and shut off the main breaker until the fire is under control. If you do not already know where this is, find its location and make sure that it is never blocked or obstructed. Once the power has been shut off, you can attempt to smother the fire with a Class C fire extinguisher or baking soda. Do not ever throw water on an electrical fire. Water conducts electricity, which can result in you or someone else becoming electrocuted. Whenever the fire has been controlled, do not turn your electricity on until an electrician in Pasadena has inspected your wiring for safety. The last thing that you want is for a second fire to occur in the same place.

When it comes to using electricity in your home and businesses, your safety is more important than any other factor. Learn how to use your electrical system safely so that you can avoid any electrical fires, shocks or other mishaps. For more tips and information on fire safety and services, visit The Electric Connection website at www.theelectricconnection.com/.

Although any light will help alleviate the strain on your eyes while looking at a screen, there is a right and wrong type and location for the light to have the best effect. As mentioned earlier, bias lighting is placed behind your screen to establish a brighter field of view so that your eyes aren’t constantly trying to find a balance between light and dark. Bias lighting illuminates a room without creating glare or reflections on your screen, shining directly in your eyes, or affecting how you see contrast and colors. Other sources of light, such as ceiling lights or lamps, can do all of the above.

If light is shining onto your screen, there’s going to be a noticeable difference in how the picture appears. Colors won’t be as vivid, and the screen might be hazy. In an attempt to remedy the situation, you could adjust the brightness and contrast. However, these adjustments will decrease the life span of the bulb or LEDs in your screen. The adjustments will also result in increased energy consumption along with a higher electric bill.

Adding light behind your screen instead of in front of it will eliminate any color or contrast issues. Dark scenes or colors will look richer against a white illuminated background. The picture below demonstrates how dark colors are lost against a dark background.

howtogeek.com, “. . .  you want a bulb temperature that is as close as possible (if not identical) to the reference point used in the industry that both manufactures the screens you’re looking at as well as creates content for said screens and that’s 6500K.” He goes on to say that, “The bulbs (be they CFL or LED) inside your HDTV or monitor are calibrated to 6500K, the film and digital video shot is color corrected to have a 6500K white reference point, and the editing suites where content is edited and worked on have 6500K bias light.”

So what exactly does 6500K mean? Correlated color temperature (CRI). CRI refers to how accurately a light source reveals the true colors of objects, people, and surroundings and involves a distinct testing method with comparisons to incandescent light or daylight. A light source with a CRI close to 100 shows colors very similarly to how daylight or incandescent light shows those same colors. To get the best picture, you’ll want bias lighting with a CRI as close as possible to 100.

We carry LED strip lights that are great TV backlighting options and will help you achieve the best picture on your screen.

Our variable color temperature controller and remote. The strip also has a CRI of 91, which will show screen colors accurately. This strip can be purchased in 3.28- or 16.4-foot lengths that can be cut and connected where needed with strip light connectors.

Another great option is our 6500K LED strip with LC2 connector. It has a CRI of 79 and is available in 1.64-, 3.28-, and 16.4-foot lengths. The peel-and-stick strip can be cut and connected where needed with compatible strip light connectors.

A kit in cool white is also available and is a convenient bias lighting solution. It has a 6500K color temperature, 79 CRI, and includes everything needed for installation—power supply, dimmer, remote, connectors, etc.

The strip lights listed above have peel-and-stick adhesive backings and can be cut or ordered in lengths to fit every screen size; strips are marked with designated cut lines. If you don’t order a kit, you will need a power supply and can purchase a controller with remote for dimming.

An easy installation method is to use a continuous length of strip around the back of your screen. For a cleaner look, you can cut the strips at all four corners of your screen. If you plan on cutting your LED strip lights, you will need 4 connectors (already included with the kit). All compatible installation supplies will be listed under the accessories tab on each product page. The following instructions explain how to install LED strip lights by cutting them into sections. Note that installation methods will differ depending on the strip you choose.

1. Cut your LED strip lights into lengths that fit the back of your screen. Because we offer different lengths, you might be able to order separate strips that will fit all four sides of your screen.