The winter months can cause you to have all sorts of electrical problems in your home. These issues may end up being more than just minor inconveniences. These are some of the most common electrical problems that affect homes during the cold winter months.
Breakers Tripping
It can be pretty annoying to be in the middle of using an appliance or electronic device only to have it stop working because the breaker tripped. Unfortunately, this does tend to happen a lot during the winter. Because people spend more time at home, your electrical system often has to work harder. This is especially true if you plug in space heaters, put up bright or elaborate holiday decorations, or if you host large gatherings.
In most instances, you will just need to turn the breaker back on in order to restore power to your outlets once again. If it keeps happening, it may be time to replace and upgrade the entire circuit breaker panel.
Blown Outlets
You may have to plug in all sorts of things in the winter that you normally don’t during other times of the year. This can include items like space heaters or Christmas lights. Unfortunately, these use a lot of power, which can cause the circuits to get overheated. In order to fix these outlets, you will need to have an electrician replace them.
Power Outages
It’s not uncommon for many people to experience power outages in the winter. This is often caused by winter storms knocking out power lines. In order to be prepared for a power outage, you might want to consider investing in a generator. Power outages can last anywhere from a few minutes to even weeks at a time.
Furnace Issues
Your furnace will probably get used a lot when it’s cold outside. Because of this, you may experience some furnace issues. The fan may continuously blow, or your furnace might not produce enough hot air to keep your house warm. These issues may be caused by electrical or component issues.
Fires
Faulty and overworked electrical systems often cause fires during the winter months. To prevent this, have your electrical system inspected every few years by an electrician. They’ll be able to tell you if there are any areas in your home that could cause problems or could be a fire hazard, and they’ll give you options for fixing the issue. By having an electrician find these problems early, you can avoid a tragedy later on.
No one wants to deal with electrical problems, but they do tend to be a common occurrence even in the winter months. Fortunately, many of the needed repairs probably are just minor, and an electrician may be able to fix the issue quickly so that you won’t have to be inconvenienced for very long.
