Not everyday we get a blog post about the correct way to handle electrical appliances in your home. Â Well take a look at this handy little blog post.
The Electrics in your home:
The Consumer Unit
This is still known to most people as the fuse box, however if your property is still controlled by an old style fuse box you should consider updating it.
All of the cables that supply the power points and lighting around your home come from this unit and the external supply enters your home into this unit.
The Consumer Unit contains a large switch with which to ‘turn off’ all the power in the property and a number of fuses to protect each of the lengths of cable that carry the electricity to the point of use.
As a house holder you need to know three things about the consumer unit:
Where it is.
- How to re-set after it has tripped
- How to turn the whole thing off in an emergency.
- Most usually the Consumer Unit is in a cupboard in the hallway or under the stairs. However it can also be located in exterior sheds, in the kitchen or even in the bathroom! Note where yours is situated.
When power is lost to the property because a fault has caused a trip, open the front of the consumer unit. The row of switches should all be put in the up position. Once this is done put up the main switch and power should be restored. If it again trips repeat the process leaving one different small switch down each time until the main switch stays up. You will then have eliminated the circuit with the fault and it’s time to check all the appliances used on that circuit (iron, kettle etc). If one of these is not the cause of the fault call Richard Barnes electrician 01803 391533.
The Main Switch is larger than the other switches and is located to the left or the right of all the switches. It should be marked ‘ON’ and ‘OFF’. Flicking this switch to OFF should cut the power to everything in your property.
Looking for an electrician why not have a word with the author of this post right here:Â http://www.richard-barnes-electrician.co.uk/Â
