Dec 02, 2020
The 2020 National Electrical Code (NEC) has ushered in a brand-new method for determining the number of receptacle outlets required to serve island countertops; peninsular countertops; and work surfaces located in kitchens, pantries, breakfast rooms, dining rooms, and similar areas of a dwelling unit.
Nov 04, 2020
Thermostats have changed a whole lot in the last 20 years. Gone are the mercury bulbs and long levers. Even first-generation programmable thermostats are second class to the newest variety. Thermostats such as Google Nest, Honeywell T9, and Ecobee lead the way with the latest features for home comfort and energy savings. Smart thermostats make it easy to get comfortable. These devices can be controlled remotely with a phone, tablet, or computer, and even utilize their own intelligence to keep a home’s temperature right where the owner wants it. How about a thermostat that you can talk to? It’s available with some of the smart thermostats. Because these thermostats are WIFI enabled, programming them to work with the different “talking” services can be easy. You can tell the thermostat you are leaving, which would reduce the system run time while you were away. You could tell the thermostat you were going on a vacation. This command indicates the home is unoccupied and will not need the same comfort conditions, thereby saving energy. Or, you could just say “Alexa, set the temperature to 77 degrees.”
Nov 04, 2020
From entry level to consummate professional, how does someone become an alarm technician? As many of us have found, the good alarm technician (both fire and intrusion) is a highly sought after asset that can make the difference for a company and their clients. For the technician entering the field, there are some up-front decisions that need to be made. Alarm Installer or Alarm Technician? First, a question; what is the difference between an alarm installer and an alarm technician? Answer: The alarm installer sees a problem, takes the defective product down, and puts a new product up, without finding out why the defective product became defective. They take that defective product down and replace it with a non-defective item until the problem is solved or they run out of non-defective products. The alarm technician finds the defective product and before installing a new product, problem-solves the defective product. They fix the issue, and then they install the new product. The following steps are a process to becoming an alarm technician for a company in the security or fire alarm industry.
Nov 03, 2020
Operator certification levels are governed by general statutes in each state. These general statutes specify what is required to be eligible for a specific certification. Most certifications follow a similar path, so we will illustrate one example in this article. Biological Water Pollution Control System Operator Certification. There are 4 levels of operator certification, from Grade I through IV. Grade I is the entry level certification that does not require wastewater experience. Grade IV requires years of experience and education to obtain. These grades are based in conjunction with plant level ratings. Plants are rated based on design flow and type of processes involved.
Nov 03, 2020
If you are an electrical contractor that has ever wired a room addition, you will likely be familiar with this process. Before ever attempting to provide an estimate, you must first determine how to get power from the home’s existing breaker panel to the new lighting and receptacle outlets in the addition. Bidding the individual outlets for the new addition is relatively easy, but bidding power to feed them can take some investigation and imagination.
Oct 30, 2020
The electrical service change is a very common electrical service job. Your standard residential service electrician could complete one on any given day, and it would be an easy task for him. For the rest of the electricians out there, a quick refresher may be needed before diving into an electrical service change. Let’s review some typical service change details and procedures using the 2017 National Electrical Code (NEC).
Oct 05, 2020
The 2020 Code Making Panel (CMP) has revised the 2017 NEC rules regarding receptacles serving dwelling unit balconies, decks, and porches - specifically, the requirement that an accessible outdoor receptacle must be installed to serve attached balconies, decks, and porches. The revised Code now requires that a receptacle be installed to serve the balcony, deck, or porch when the balcony, deck, or porch is within 4 inches of the dwelling unit. If the balcony, deck, or porch is within 4 inches of the dwelling, the 2020 NEC considers that close enough so that it now requires a general use 120-volt receptacle.
Oct 05, 2020
Each morning your average electrical foreman and crew begin their day with a meeting. This Job Hazard Analysis (JHA) meeting is the most important meeting of the day and can mean the difference between life and death. Many of the workers are barely awake and just halfway through their energy drink. Some foremen will choose to rush through or even skip this event so they can get a jump start on the day. The owners of the company, the safety manager, and the elite crew members want to have this meeting and want it to be meaningful. OSHA says you should perform this JHA meeting every workday to keep your workers safe. Let’s look at how we can start the day off right.
