Saving Energy and Saving MoneyEvery day we turn on the lights more than we think we do. With that said, we do not often think about the energy we are sometimes wasting and the money! Energy- efficient lighting was created to help conserve energy and save our energy bills. Comparing traditional light bulbs to energy- efficient light bulbs, energy- efficient lighting can save up to 80% less energy and can last up to 20 times longer than the traditional light bulb. An energy saving light bulb can be more costly than a traditional light bulb, but during their lifetime use less energy and lost longer. These money saving light bulbs come in many different colors and different levels to fit to your home needs. Some popular examples of energy- efficient light bulbs include: Halogen Incandescents, Compact fluorescent lamps (CFL’s) and Light Emitting Diodes (LED’s). These light bulbs can be used indoors and outdoors, such as pathway lights and garage lights. With the appropriate light bulbs to save energy, there still comes your part to know when to turn off unnecessary lights to help save your energy bill. Do your part and help save energy and your pockets! Tips on How to Save:
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Garages are commonly another pathway into your home. Therefore, it is important to treat the safety of garages just as seriously as the front entry of your home. There are simple ways and elements to add to your garage to add the safety every home deserves. #1 Garage Lights & Motion Sensors Garage lights not only add extra decor to the outside of your home, but these lights also act as safety passages for cars and people as well. A popular choice of garage lights are motion sensor garage lights for indoor and outdoor the garage. With this feature, the lights will be triggered on at the motion of a car or person to be turned on. As for the inside of the garage, separate lights will be turned on inside to help guide inside motion. There are many models of motion sensor lights that come with cameras, which is an extra safety feature that you will be able to monitor from inside your home or even your cell phone. #2 Update Garage Doors Older garage doors seem to be the most dangerous, mainly because they have springs to make opening the doors manually easier for us. In that case, it is important to use the right tools to keep up the safety of those garages or update to an electric garage door. Modern garage doors often are now electric, by a sensor or a keypad. The keypad comes in handy if you were to be locked out of the house, you would have access to the inside by the correct code. Keep in mind: Many times we store extra storage and different accessories in our garages. With new technology coming out each year to improve garages, it is important to keep any flammable objects away from any of the electrical components! There are many new modern options to update garage doors and lights to increase the safety of your home. With the many options of electric garage doors, it is important to research and ask as many questions as possible. MM Electrics, LLC is able to answer any questions about any wiring issues or electrical repairs and updates. Call 732- 749-3596 to find out more information! The post Garage Safety appeared first on MM ELECTRIC LLC. MM Electric, LLC Thinking More into Pool SafetyPool safety is more than installing a fence of the perimeter or making sure no one is running around the edges; a pools electrical system is a critical component to pool safety. Electricity in a pool system can include pool lighting, a pool heater and pool pumps. For the pool to be running safely and correctly, there is the electrical side that needs to be separated from the people in the pool to avoid any shock hazards. The pool water, metal components and a body are can all be conductors that need to be protected from electricity. So, what is pool bonding? In simpler terms, pool bonding is the process of joining metallic pool elements to create a conductive path, commonly with bare copper wire. This bonding creates a flow to control currents. Without proper pool bonding, simply touching a pool ladder or nearby metallic structures can results in shock. Next time you are opening your pool and checking off safety procedures, make sure “pool bonding” is checked off! You can contact MM Electric, LLC for more information on the standards of pool bonding and how to update your system if needed. The post What is Pool Bonding? appeared first on MM ELECTRIC LLC. MM Electric, LLC Outdoor lighting increases safety, security, and ambiance. It should emphasize function, fun, and safety. Outdoor Safety Lighting Safety should be the first thing you consider when planning your landscape lighting. Look at lighting the steps and paths and pay special attention to where the shadows will fall. Light from the side or from below to make sure shadows don’t obscure vision. On the steps, use eyebrow or niche lights because they enhance safety and look great. Pilaster lights are a good option too, but are often overdone. Outdoor Security Lighting Once safety is addressed, consider security. Look for places where people could hide. Not only does lighting deter crime, it creates a feeling of comfort for guests as well. Dark pockets in a yard can present an undertone of fear, whereas a well-lit landscape provides a more relaxing environment. How you feel about a space can be just as important as how it looks. Landscape lighting can enhance security even after everyone has gone to bed. Many lighting systems offer the option of an inexpensive timer that includes an override system operated by remote control. A small remote can be kept by the bed stand so that if you hear a critter in your yard or someone walking across the lawn, you can turn on your landscape lights right from your bed. Or, a simple motion sensor turns the lights on if someone is near. Instant “on” lighting can send a prowler running for the hills! Landscape lighting improves the appearance of your home at night in addition to making you and guests feel “right at home”. Consider adding exterior landscape lighting to improve the appearance of your outdoor space. Contact MM Electric, LLC today to schedule a free estimate. 732-7749-3596. The post The Benefits of Landscape Lighting appeared first on MM ELECTRIC LLC. MM Electric, LLC Are your smoke and carbon monoxide alarms working? We at MM Electric, LLC urge you to check your alarms twice a year when it is Daylight Savings Time. This is an easy way to remember. Why is this so important? Because about 2,200 people die in home fires on average and there are about 400 CO poisoning deaths each year. Here is what CPSC recommends: There is nothing we can do about losing an hour of sleep this weekend as clocks spring forward, but there is something we can do about keeping our families safe. Make your home safer by making sure you have working alarms! The post Daylight Saving Time change smoke and CO alarm batteries appeared first on MM ELECTRIC LLC. MM Electric, LLC Home design can certainly be enhanced by adding ceiling fans. There are many benefits to incorporating ceiling fans that go beyond making it cooler. Using ceiling fans throughout the home can greatly reduce energy costs, while also being a beautiful addition, improving comfort and providing additional lighting. MM Electric, LLC has listed the top five benefits of ceiling fans which improve both fashion and function. 1. Ceiling fans lower energy costsCeiling fans can help lower your electric bill by up to 30 to 40 percent. While a ceiling fan doesn’t actually decrease the temperature of a room, the draft makes the room feel cooler – allowing you to raise the thermostat and be just as comfortable. Design Tip:: Energy Star-rated fans, such as Progress Lighting’s AirPro P2530-09 fan (shown above, available on line or at Home Depot), are 60 percent more efficient than conventional fan and light sets, offering additional energy savings! 2. Ceiling fans are a style driven accessoryCeiling fans are available in a variety of sizes, styles, and finishes to complement your personal style. Fans can be a statement or focal point for any room. Design Tip:: Interchangeable blade sets – such as the Progress Lighting Palm Blade Set (shown above) – allow you to change the design easily without replacing the entire unit. This provides a quick, easy way that is super-affordable to update your style! 3. Ceiling fans offer versatility from room-to-roomWhether a living area, bedroom, screened-in porch or kitchen, ceiling fans contribute to an enjoyable environment in almost any room of your home. Plus, the more fans used throughout the home, the greater the savings on your energy bill. 4. Ceiling fans provide beautiful light!Ceiling fans with lights allow you to contribute to the layered lighting design of your room. Select a fan with a built-in light, or easily install a fan light kit, for general lighting benefits. Design Tip:: Choose a light kit that coordinates with the fixtures and appliances in other areas of your home. Many of Progress Lighting’s light kits are part of larger lighting families, such as the Trinity collection, (shown above), taking the guesswork out of the selection process. 5. Ceiling fans add year-round valueMany people are unaware that ceiling fans can be used to circulate warm air during cooler months of the year. By running the blades clockwise, ceiling fans push warm air down from the ceiling without creating a draft. Design Tip:: Select a fan equipped with a reversible motor, such as Progress Lighting’s Trevina fan, to easily change the direction of your fan blades to create a comfortable living environment any time of the year. The post 5 Benefits of Ceiling Fans appeared first on MM ELECTRIC LLC. MM Electric, LLC Home security is important, whether you own the home or are renting. Our personal safety is something that cannot be taken for granted! The recent advances in technological advances have made home security stronger and more convenient than ever. One of these technologically advanced home security devices is the video doorbell. These doorbells allow you to see who is at your door before you open. They can also allow you to see who is approaching your door when you are not at home. While many of these devices are easy to install if you are a do-it-yourselfer, you can always hire a licensed electrician to make sure it is done right and have a little peace of mind! A video doorbell is a good idea for your home. If you have young children, you can feel safe at all times. The top three reasons you should consider installing a video doorbell would be: Better Communication You Always Know Who’s Knocking on Your Door Motion Sensor and Night Vision The post Why Get a Video Doorbell? appeared first on MM ELECTRIC LLC. MM Electric, LLC If your home is older(built before 1990), you might have an outdated main electric panels/boxes hiding in your home. Besides making you uncool, like something from your parent’s generation, they can also be extremely unsafe. Electrical panels have safety devices (either fuses or circuit breakers) that trip and shut off the power when too much electricity flows through them. This safety tool helps prevent fires caused by overheating wires. Many homes still have old, outdated panels that might not work as intended, leaving them vulnerable to a house fire. You may wish to consider replacing if your panel is one of these… Federal Pacific Electric (FPE) PanelsFrom the 1950s- the 1980s Federal Pacific Electric was one of the most popular manufacturers of electrical panels in the United States. And they were installed in millions of homes. But these panels are extremely unsafe. Why??: FPE electric panels’ circuit breakers fail to trip when they should (when there’s a short circuit or circuit overload). This problem has lead to thousands of fires across the United States. There are also many reports that FPE circuits in the off position still send power to the circuit. This can cause electrocution when working on a circuit you believe to be off. How to tell if you have one: FPE panels are most common in homes built between 1950 and 1980. Federal Pacific Electric will likely be written on the cover of your breaker box. Inside, look for the name Stab-Loc (the brand name of the circuit breakers). Zinsco PanelsZinsco or GTE-Sylvania panels were popular electrical panels installed in homes throughout the 1970s. Zinsco is now defunct, but many homes still have these panels. Why they’re unsafe: The circuit breakers inside many Zinsco panels melt to the main ‘bus bar’. This means the breaker can’t ever trip, even when there’s a short or overloaded circuit. So if there ever is a short or other problems, the surge of power melts wires and starts fires in your home. How to tell if you have one: The name Zinsco anywhere on the panel is a sure sign it should be replaced. Also, many GTE-Sylvania or Sylvania panels are simply re-branded Zinsco panels or contain the problematic design. These should also be replaced. However, not all Sylvania and GTE-Slyvania branded panels are dangerous. So if you have one, have an electrician inspect it to see if it has the problematic design. Split-bus electrical panelsA typical modern circuit breaker has a single metal bus. Electricity comes into the panel, passes through a main breaker and to the bus. The bus then connects to each individual circuit breaker, providing power to your entire home. You can then shut off power to the bus (and therefore your entire home) simply by turning off the main breaker. Split-bus electrical panels are different – They have 2 buses and no single main disconnect. They have up to 6 breakers labeled “main”. One of these main breakers controls power to half (the bottom) of the breakers in the panel. The other main breakers connect directly to the first bus. Above is a photo of a split bus panel with front cover removed. You can see how the top 3 breakers are connected directly to the incoming power. Then the 3rd breaker supplies power to the lower breakers Why they’re unsafe: By themselves, split-bus panels aren’t unsafe. However, these types of panels haven’t been used for over 40 years. That puts them past their expected lifespan, meaning the circuit breakers may not trip as they are designed to. Plus, electrical code no longer allows for multiple disconnects. How to tell if you have one: Open the front cover of your electrical box. Are your breakers divided into 2 groups? Is there no single disconnect breaker? These are good indications that you have a split-bus panel. Fuse boxFuse boxes are old electrical panels that use fuses instead of circuit breakers to protect your wires from becoming overloaded. When a circuit draws too much electricity, the fuse burns out and must be replaced. Why they’re unsafe: Fuses aren’t inherently unsafe. They work just like circuit breakers (except they can’t be reset and must be replaced.) However, most fuse boxes in homes today are unsafe because they’ve been modified to try to serve today’s energy demands. Homeowners (and sometimes contractors) create problems in many fuse boxes that make them unsafe. Here are a few:
How to tell if you have one: Chances are if you have a fuse box, you already know it. But if you’re not sure, find your main electrical panel and open it up. Instead of a bunch of switches (circuit breakers) you should see fuses. What to do if you have one of these panels If you have one of these unsafe and outdated electrical panels, we highly recommend replacing them. At the very least, you should have an electrician inspect the panel to see if there are any signs of problems. Call MM Electric, LLC today to provide an estimate to replace your panel or even just to inspect it to ensure there are no signs of issues. You will sleep better! The post Are There Unsafe Electrical Panels Hiding in Your Home? appeared first on MM ELECTRIC LLC. MM Electric, LLC The Importance of a Working Smoke DetectorPrevention is better than cure is often said and may have lost its meaning due to constant repetition. It bears repeating when speaking of the importance of fire safety. Fire is a destructive force that can spread quickly and cause unimaginable damage to property, personal well-being and even take lives. Basic fire safety is the first rule in prevention. Even with the most careful households and families, despite our best efforts, fires do occur. The best way to alert the right people of fire is with smoke detectors. Hard wired smoke detectors or CO2/Smoke combination units that alert you to smoke and fire as well as hazardous carbon monoxide gas that cannot be seen are reasonably priced but often need to be replaced after approximately 7 years. You should regularly test your detectors to ensure proper use. Studies have shown that having a smoke alarm installed in every room of a house reduces the risk to life from fire hazards by a whopping 50%. This staggering statistic means that for almost as little as $75 per room, one can double their home fire security. When such safety measures are available at such affordable rates, they should be taken advantage of. Installing more than one smoke detector will ensure that any dangerous fire is detected as soon as it starts and immediately alerts the nearest fire department about its occurrence and can help save lives. Proper maintenance of the smoke detectors is a must. A smoke detector that does not work poses more of a hazard than not having one at all since it gives a sense of false security. Fires are most commonly caused by smoking cigarettes or cigars or burning candles and leaving them unattended or improperly extinguished. Smoldering material or furniture can be a major accelerant to flames. Some electrical fires can occur during power surges and must be dealt with immediately since they can be very dangerous. Whatever the reason, when a fire occurs there is always a large amount of smoke generated, thus detecting the smoke is the best method to find and help in containing the danger to home security. You should make sure your hard wired detectors are operational at least once per month. If they are over 7 years old, consider replacing them or getting on a plan for replacement. At MM Electric, we replace smoke or CO2/smoke detectors all the time. It is something that you should consider if your detectors have been around for a while. If you are interested in scheduling a free estimate, please call our office at 732-749-3596. The post The Importance of a Working Smoke Detector appeared first on MM ELECTRIC LLC. MM Electric, LLC
In a heat wave, it seems like the air conditioning isn’t even working!The power companies dial back the power a bit. They have to! The flow of electricity through wires is similar to the flow of water through pipes. Voltage is like water pressure, amps are like rate of flow and wattage is like the amount of water coming out of the pipe. The better the pressure (weather it is in the pipes or in the electric sheathing), the more work is being done. By lowering the voltage, if the amps are the same, the amount of electricity you use is less.A common voltage reduction is about 5-percent. You may not even notice but by the power company forcing you to lower your usage, it could prevent a failure or outage. The electricity being carried gets converted to heat. When the wires are overheated, this can cause failures and lower the efficiency. By lowering voltage, the utility is cooling the wires and can spread out the electricity more efficiently. The systems in our country date back to the 1960s if not before.If an electrical feeder (all the cables and transformers and protectors running to a neighborhood) have a heat related fault, other feeders can take over. Overloading the feeders could cause a blackout. By lowering the voltage, the power company is minimizing the chance that the feeders will fail and shut down the system. So, instead of being unhappy when the extreme heat makes us all super CRANKY, be happy that you won’t be losing power! The post IS IT HOT And GROSS ENOUGH FOR YOU? appeared first on MM ELECTRIC LLC. MM Electric, LLC |
MM Electric LLC
1612 Maple St, Wall Township, NJ 07719 (732) 749-3596 |