Accurate Electric, Plumbing, Heating and Air

An AFCI is a special breaker intended to provide fire protection caused by arcing faults (small sparks) by recognizing characteristics unique to arcing and by functioning to de-energize the circuit when an arc fault is detected. An AFCI recognizes the “signature waveform” of an arcing fault and shuts the power off to the circuit to protect against fire. AFCIs have been required in all new homes’ bedrooms effective January 1, 2002. However if you have an old house you can still benefit greatly with AFCI protection.

A GFCI or Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter is a special breaker or receptacle providing extraordinary protection from shock. The receptacles can be identified by the “test” and “reset” buttons. The breakers just have a test button which trips the breaker. The breaker has to be reset to turn the power back on. A GFCI can tell if current as low as 5 milliamps is “leaking” out of a circuit to ground. If the GFCI senses this leakage it will de-energize the circuit. If this current is “leaking” through your body to ground because you have touched an energized piece of equipment you may feel a shock but it will be a very short duration before the circuit is turned off by the GFCI and thereby saving you from a long electrical shock and even death. GFCI is required around high shock areas that could involve water like bathrooms, kitchens, and outdoor outlets.

Hi Julianne, There can be many reasons for light bulbs burning out. Most frequently it's due to overheating. That can be caused by putting a bulb with a higher wattage than the fixture is rated for. All fixtures will have a the maximum size (wattage) bulb that can be used listed on them. Stay within the rated wattage. Another possible reason is vibration. A bulb that burns out very frequently is the one in a garage door opener. It is vibrating with every use and that vibration causes the filament to break and the bulb to "burn" out. A third reason could be the voltage to the bulb. A higher voltage than the bulb is rated for will cause a shortened life span. Hope that info helps! We're here to help with this common problem...just give us a ring. Jeff

I prefer tankless. A little more expensive but worth it.

Yes there is! Hard water... is water that contains dissolved minerals. Those minerals are what you see on your dishes, shower, and fixtures after the water evaporates. Soft water... is treated to remove those minerals except sodium. The treatment gives the water a slightly salty taste, but also makes you skin feel softer and silky after showering and you don't see the mineral film on your dishes, shower and fixtures.

Hi Karly, I don't want you to be overly concerned, but an outlet not working means something is wrong with your electrical system. It could be just a bad outlet, but it could be a bad connection...which may lead to a more significant outage or even something worse. Give us a call and we'll help you out.

Hi Angie! We appreciate you taking the time to leave us a review. We look forward to working with you again. - The Accurate Team

Hi Staci! There are several things that could cause low water pressure, including a partially closed or malfunctioning shut off valve, a crimped water line, or deposits that gather in older galvanized pipes. If your neighbors have strong water pressure, the problem is most likely between the water meter and your home.

Hi Emma, no need to worry! In most occasions the switch does do something, it just isn’t obvious. Many light switches that do not appear to control anything control what is called a “switched outlet”. Switched outlets are sockets in a room in your house that are controlled by a wall switch. These sockets are designed so that a floor lamp can be plugged in and controlled by a wall switch. Most new homes are built with switched outlets as the lighting source because they are less expensive for the builder to install than an actual ceiling fixture. Hope this helps!

Often older homes have an outdated electrical panel that isn’t designed to meet the electricity demands of today with all its appliances and electronics. If your home’s electrical panel is less than 200 amps, it’s time to for an upgrade. Here are some other warning signs that you should be aware of: https://www.accurateelectricplumbingheatingandair.com/warning-signs-of-electrical-dangers-that-need-immediate-attention/

We will make every effort to do so. More often than not we can fix the problem very quickly the same day. Some problems require a county or city permit, an inspection, or the power company to do work and we have to work with these entity’s schedules.

Most of the time we send one technician. In some cases two technicians are necessary or more economical than one. In these cases, of course, we send two.

Troubleshooting a problem can be tricky. Our technicians have years of experience and that shortens the time it takes to get to the root of an issue. The average time is about two hours, but we've run into some strange situations that have taken much, much longer...still, we've yet to give up before figuring it out. In many cases the solution to the problem is even easier than finding the problem.

Troubleshooting is the “detective work” involved in electrical and HVAC system repairs. We need every clue we can get to troubleshoot quickly and accurately. You can help us tremendously by giving us an accurate description of what the problem was, and also how and when the problem occurred. We test and examine your system of course, but first we listen to you, to find out exactly what you have experienced and why you have called us.

Hi Kelly, During normal operation, solid-state dimmers generate heat. A solid-state dimmer is roughly 98% efficient with 2% of the power being dissipated as heat, causing the dimmer to feel warm to the touch. The closer a dimmer is running to full output and therefore a higher load (watts) on the dimmer, the warmer it will feel. This is perfectly normal and safe. Dimmers are designed to the strictest UL safety standard, and can handle their full rated load without overheating.

A surge arrestor protects against surges, spikes, lightning, etc. These surges may come down the utility line or they may come from within your home or nearby. This device will sacrifice itself to protect your electrical system and electronic equipment from surges. Many surge protectors simply plug into the wall and your equipment plugs into it. Using this kind of surge protection is less than optimum protection for the attached equipment. Accurate Electric can install a whole house surge protector to protect everything in your house including phone and cable equipment. This is the best surge protection you can get and it protects everything in the house.

It's not that battery powered smoke detectors aren't good enough, it's that smoke detectors powered by battery alone doesn't meet minimum safety standards.The National Electrical Code which sets the minimum safety standards for the electrical system in your home requires that each smoke detector in your home be hard-wired into your electrical system, battery back-up, in case your power goes out, and interconnected with your other smoke detectors. So if one goes off, they all go off. A smoke detector is required in each bedroom and one is required within six feet of your bedroom door. A C.O. detector is also required to be installed within 15 feet of your bedroom door is you have natural gas, propane or an attached garage. Hope that answers your question.

Answer: There a many reasons that lightbulbs, or as electricians refer to them, lamps burn out. You may be exceeding the maximum lamp wattage of the fixture. There should be a label inside the fixture. If the label is not there consider replacing the fixture. Do not exceed 60 watts for most ceiling fixtures. Many times vibration is the culprit in short bulb life. There are vibration resistant bulbs for ceiling fans and garage door openers and there are rough service bulbs for portable lights. Sometimes a porch light can have a shortened life due to a slamming door. A rough service bulb would do well in such a location. Sometimes there is more than 120 volts being brought into the light socket. You can purchase a 130 volt light bulb to take care of this problem. If you need help figuring out why your lamps are constantly burning out give us a call and we'll come check it out for you.

Hi Alli, thank you for your question. There are 3 main reasons a circuit breaker trips. The first two reasons are because it's doing it job properly. It's protecting your home wiring from damage. The damage can 1.) be a result of plugging in too many appliances, lights, devices, etc...which can overload the wiring, cause the insulation to melt, and possibly start a fire; 2.) a short circuit occurs, again causing the wires to get really hot and possibly start a fire. In both cases the breaker trips to protect the wiring and your home from fire. The third reason is because they become weak over time from too many tripping events and they no longer work properly. Most manufacturers recommend regular checking and testing of circuit breakers. From my experience, the electrical wiring, breakers and panels is the most neglected system in homes. Hope that helps! Jeff