When You Should Upgrade Your Breaker Box Or Electrical Panel

The electrical panel of a house, also recognized as the breaker box, controls th  entire electrical supply in your property. It transfers electricity received from your power utility organization to every electronic device and appliance you own via your house’s circuitry. In other words, the breaker box is a central control hub that lets you turn off the power supply to the areas inside and outside your house when you need to. However, it’s worth mentioning here that the electrical panel does much more than simply control your house’s power. It has several other functions to keep your property safe and your power lines running as they should. If your breaker box gets old or outdated, or if it starts malfunctioning, you should contact an electrician in Fayetteville to upgrade it. Just look for these signs and take the following measures.

Old homes

With every passing day, humanity’s dependence on technology keeps on increasing. Today, you won’t find many houses without electricity. If you reside in a period property, you probably redesigned it appropriately to be able to support new-age appliances, such as air conditions, home theaters, computers, etc. However, period properties or old homes may not have electrical panels with enough capacity to support the load exerted on them by these gadgets. Most of the old homes have electrical panels that can deliver 60 amps at most. Modern homes, on the other hand, have panels that can deliver anywhere between 100 and 200 amps. Naturally, you need an electrician to work on your breaker box.

Not enough outlets

If you resort to extension cords frequently, it means your house doesn’t have as many power outlets as you need. The design of extension cords allows users to rely on them for short periods. They can transfer power, but only when you require it. For instance, you’ll be inviting a few guests for a party, and you need to light a lamp in the backyard for the soiree. However, if you rely on extension cords heavily, you’ll end up pushing them beyond their limit. As a result, you may experience a fire outbreak. Besides, the wire of the extension cord is extremely long and can cause a tripping hazard. The same goes for surge protectors. Instead of using risky strategies, you should get your electrical panel upgraded and add as many outlets as you need.

Circuit breakers without fuses

Did you construct your house before 1970? Then there’s a possibility that your breaker box contains only fuses and no circuit breakers. It’s yet another outdated system. It doesn’t have the ability to support modern homes. The design of circuit breakers, on the other hand, allows them to “trip” if they get overloaded. It means that will fail without any issue to stop electricity flow entirely. You must summon an electrician in Fayetteville to get those fuses replaced with circuit breakers because the former can melt or blow up. Overloading a fuse also results in short-circuit, which, in turn, increases the chance of a fire outbreak.

Other reasons

Apart from the ones described above, several other reasons exist for which you should allow an Electrician to upgrade your electrical panel. For example, if you have to operate the breaker box every time you trip a circuit breaker, upgrading it will solve the problem. You should do the same if you’re planning to improve your house or purchase new electrical appliances. Homebuilders design and install electrical panels based on the energy requirements of the owner. If you add one or more rooms or purchase appliances that consume a lot of electricity, you must prioritize upgrading the electrical panel if you don’t want any problems.

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