Electrical contractor business
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Saturday, November 6, 2010
Check out my Website and give me suggestions on how I can make it better.
I would like to share my website with everybody and see if any of you have ideas on how I can improve it. Thanks is advance. You can find my website @ http://pyeelectric.com.
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Ask Questions Before You Hire an Electrician
While the majority of contractors are honest and capable, there are plenty of duds out there, a problem that trade associations acknowledge readily and are always working to correct.
Consumers tend to do a lot of finger-pointing, but they’d be much better off if they instead tried to get a handle on the basics of what a contractor does.
When you seek bids for work, you need to keep in mind that electrical contractors don’t necessarily handle all kinds of jobs. Some only do construction or remodeling work. Some do only minor repairs, such as installing a new light fixture or replacing an outlet or switch. So tell the electrician about the job you have in mind first.
In most municipalities, electricians need to obtain permits for larger projects, especially if a new circuit is being installed or an existing one is to be extended one. A permit isn’t needed for simple repairs, such as replacing an outlet or light or ceiling fan fixture.
Consider a permit your protection. Before the electrician can finish his work, an inspector from the city or town has to check and approve the work. The electrical contractor should always obtain the permit under his name, not yours, and post the permit on the job site. The cost of the permit is always included in the price of the job, and is, in most cases, based on a percentage of the cost of the work.
For insurance reasons, it's always best to hire a licensed electrician, especially when a permit is required. Knowing how skittish homeowners’ insurance companies are about consumer claims, it is important to make sure that the electrician can pay the damage in case he starts a fire.
The last thing you want when you hire an electrical contractor is to be sued if a worker is injured while working in your home. Before you hire a contractor for a large project, ask to see proof that he carries worker’s compensation. For a typical remodeling job, an electrician should carry a minimum of $500,000 in liability insurance and worker's compensation coverage.
Before you hire a contractor for a large project, ask to see proof of current license, whether it is issued by the municipality, the state or both. Electrical contractors don't mind coming out to give you an estimate, but on a small job, they may lose money just driving to your home. Instead, the electrician may give you his minimum charge, or a fixed price for the job you have described.
On larger jobs, ask for an hourly rate. The average rate for a licensed electrician around the country varies from $45 to $65 an hour. Expect to pay more if a helper is needed on the job. You should also call two or three contractors and ask them to come to your home to give you an estimate.
You may think you'll save money by buying the materials yourself, but the Leviton Institute has found that it is better for the electrician to make all the purchases. If the electrician buys the materials, he's responsible for warranty issues, defective products, and broken or missing parts.
For example, if you bought a light fixture and the electrician finds a part missing during installation, it's up to you to go back to the store and get the missing part. Meanwhile, the electrician sits around and charges you by the hour. If the electrician buys the fixture and a part is missing, it's his responsibility -- and his time.
To install a new circuit, an electrician may need to drill or cut holes in the walls. Repairs aren’t generally done by the electrician. The same is true if you're having landscaping lights installed outside and the contractor needs to dig trenches in the lawn and uproot shrubbery.
On small jobs, the contractor expects payment when the job is completed. On larger jobs, the contractor will typically ask for 10 to 30 percent of the total job before work begins, with additional payments upon completion of certain stages. Don’t make the final payment until you've received a waiver stating that all suppliers and other workers on the job have been paid by the electrical contractor. Without this waiver, you may be responsible for these charges if the electrician doesn't pay them.
Consumers tend to do a lot of finger-pointing, but they’d be much better off if they instead tried to get a handle on the basics of what a contractor does.
When you seek bids for work, you need to keep in mind that electrical contractors don’t necessarily handle all kinds of jobs. Some only do construction or remodeling work. Some do only minor repairs, such as installing a new light fixture or replacing an outlet or switch. So tell the electrician about the job you have in mind first.
In most municipalities, electricians need to obtain permits for larger projects, especially if a new circuit is being installed or an existing one is to be extended one. A permit isn’t needed for simple repairs, such as replacing an outlet or light or ceiling fan fixture.
Consider a permit your protection. Before the electrician can finish his work, an inspector from the city or town has to check and approve the work. The electrical contractor should always obtain the permit under his name, not yours, and post the permit on the job site. The cost of the permit is always included in the price of the job, and is, in most cases, based on a percentage of the cost of the work.
For insurance reasons, it's always best to hire a licensed electrician, especially when a permit is required. Knowing how skittish homeowners’ insurance companies are about consumer claims, it is important to make sure that the electrician can pay the damage in case he starts a fire.
The last thing you want when you hire an electrical contractor is to be sued if a worker is injured while working in your home. Before you hire a contractor for a large project, ask to see proof that he carries worker’s compensation. For a typical remodeling job, an electrician should carry a minimum of $500,000 in liability insurance and worker's compensation coverage.
Before you hire a contractor for a large project, ask to see proof of current license, whether it is issued by the municipality, the state or both. Electrical contractors don't mind coming out to give you an estimate, but on a small job, they may lose money just driving to your home. Instead, the electrician may give you his minimum charge, or a fixed price for the job you have described.
On larger jobs, ask for an hourly rate. The average rate for a licensed electrician around the country varies from $45 to $65 an hour. Expect to pay more if a helper is needed on the job. You should also call two or three contractors and ask them to come to your home to give you an estimate.
You may think you'll save money by buying the materials yourself, but the Leviton Institute has found that it is better for the electrician to make all the purchases. If the electrician buys the materials, he's responsible for warranty issues, defective products, and broken or missing parts.
For example, if you bought a light fixture and the electrician finds a part missing during installation, it's up to you to go back to the store and get the missing part. Meanwhile, the electrician sits around and charges you by the hour. If the electrician buys the fixture and a part is missing, it's his responsibility -- and his time.
To install a new circuit, an electrician may need to drill or cut holes in the walls. Repairs aren’t generally done by the electrician. The same is true if you're having landscaping lights installed outside and the contractor needs to dig trenches in the lawn and uproot shrubbery.
On small jobs, the contractor expects payment when the job is completed. On larger jobs, the contractor will typically ask for 10 to 30 percent of the total job before work begins, with additional payments upon completion of certain stages. Don’t make the final payment until you've received a waiver stating that all suppliers and other workers on the job have been paid by the electrical contractor. Without this waiver, you may be responsible for these charges if the electrician doesn't pay them.
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Friday, October 29, 2010
Home Electrical Basics
Of the many kinds of home repairs, electrical ones tend to intimidate homeowners the most. Not only does wiring seem confusing, but the specter of electrical shock is scary. What most people don’t realize, however, is that doing certain jobs on your home’s electrical systems can be easy and safe if you follow basic safety precautions. The key to safety is to always disconnect the power from an electrical system before working on it.
Some electrical systems are safer and easier to work on than others: Most low-voltage, telephone, doorbell, and cable television wires, for example, are relatively harmless and easy to handle compared to standard-voltage lights and receptacles.
Lights, receptacles, and appliances are all connected to the primary standard-voltage system that is delivered through power lines by your electrical utility and then routed throughout your home’s wiring. Before working on any elements of the primary electrical system in your home, you must disconnect the power. Turning off a wall switch does not necessarily turn off the power to a fixture or receptacle; you must shut off the power at the circuit breaker.
Three wires enter most homes from the power pole—two “hot” wires and a third “neutral” wire. Each hot wire provides 120-volt current for conventional lights, receptacles, and appliances when paired with the neutral wire, which is normally kept at zero volts or “ground potential.” When both hot wires are used together with the neutral, they power large 240-volt appliances such as air conditioners and electric ovens.
In addition, most homes have low-voltage electrical systems with transformers that convert standard power to a lower, safer voltage (typically from 6 to 12 volts) for doorbells, intercoms, security systems, low-voltage interior and exterior lighting, and the like. Low-voltage electricity is also delivered through telephone lines for ringing phones. Audio and video or cable television signals travel through cables that, under normal circumstances, have no voltage.
Some electrical systems are safer and easier to work on than others: Most low-voltage, telephone, doorbell, and cable television wires, for example, are relatively harmless and easy to handle compared to standard-voltage lights and receptacles.
Lights, receptacles, and appliances are all connected to the primary standard-voltage system that is delivered through power lines by your electrical utility and then routed throughout your home’s wiring. Before working on any elements of the primary electrical system in your home, you must disconnect the power. Turning off a wall switch does not necessarily turn off the power to a fixture or receptacle; you must shut off the power at the circuit breaker.
Three wires enter most homes from the power pole—two “hot” wires and a third “neutral” wire. Each hot wire provides 120-volt current for conventional lights, receptacles, and appliances when paired with the neutral wire, which is normally kept at zero volts or “ground potential.” When both hot wires are used together with the neutral, they power large 240-volt appliances such as air conditioners and electric ovens.
In addition, most homes have low-voltage electrical systems with transformers that convert standard power to a lower, safer voltage (typically from 6 to 12 volts) for doorbells, intercoms, security systems, low-voltage interior and exterior lighting, and the like. Low-voltage electricity is also delivered through telephone lines for ringing phones. Audio and video or cable television signals travel through cables that, under normal circumstances, have no voltage.
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Safety Tips For Decorating With Halloween Lights
In years gone by, the only time we used decorative lighting was at Christmas. Nowadays, light manufacturers are delighted to discover we decorate our homes and gardens for many other occasions, one of which is Halloween. It goes without saying that when using any kind of Halloween lights as decorations, specific attention has to be paid to safety.
Due to the fact that Halloween celebrations tend to take place in the evening or night time, using Halloween decoration ideas has become all the rage and as far as safety goes, there has been quite a lot of "trial and error" to get things just right.
New ways of safely using Halloween decoration ideas, and in particular the many Halloween lighting options open to you, are coming out every year and to help you keep protected, we have listed a few tips within this article.
To begin with, there so many kinds of lighting available for use. Halloween animatronics, using standard and Halloween LED lighting, strings of lights similar to the ones used at Christmas, hanging lights, solar lights, deck lighting, and Halloween LED light varieties are just a few of the options open to you when choosing your Halloween decorations.
The first thing to remember when it comes to safely using these lights is that they are like any other type of light. You do not want to place them in an area where water and other liquids will get on them, and you do not want to place them near items that may ignite with ease. Items that may catch on fire easily include paper decorations, certain types of plastics, cardboard, and similar items.
You may think the lights you have strung up in your front yard in that giant spider's web looks absolutely fabulous but really, there are far safer ways to display your decorations
You also need to think about the safety of individuals walking close by to the Halloween lights. If you mark Out pathways with lights you must take care to locate the lights in a place where they will not catch onto the clothing of your guests as they pass by, or incur any other kind of hazard.
Simply make areas where people will walk wide enough that there is no concern for this type of accident to occur. In addition to the tips listed here for standard lighting, it is important to avoid using candles as Halloween lights. Electrical and battery powered lights are the safest options.
Due to the fact that Halloween celebrations tend to take place in the evening or night time, using Halloween decoration ideas has become all the rage and as far as safety goes, there has been quite a lot of "trial and error" to get things just right.
New ways of safely using Halloween decoration ideas, and in particular the many Halloween lighting options open to you, are coming out every year and to help you keep protected, we have listed a few tips within this article.
To begin with, there so many kinds of lighting available for use. Halloween animatronics, using standard and Halloween LED lighting, strings of lights similar to the ones used at Christmas, hanging lights, solar lights, deck lighting, and Halloween LED light varieties are just a few of the options open to you when choosing your Halloween decorations.
The first thing to remember when it comes to safely using these lights is that they are like any other type of light. You do not want to place them in an area where water and other liquids will get on them, and you do not want to place them near items that may ignite with ease. Items that may catch on fire easily include paper decorations, certain types of plastics, cardboard, and similar items.
You may think the lights you have strung up in your front yard in that giant spider's web looks absolutely fabulous but really, there are far safer ways to display your decorations
You also need to think about the safety of individuals walking close by to the Halloween lights. If you mark Out pathways with lights you must take care to locate the lights in a place where they will not catch onto the clothing of your guests as they pass by, or incur any other kind of hazard.
Simply make areas where people will walk wide enough that there is no concern for this type of accident to occur. In addition to the tips listed here for standard lighting, it is important to avoid using candles as Halloween lights. Electrical and battery powered lights are the safest options.
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