The holiday period can be a busy time for electricians. People spend more time in their homes, so more electrical faults raise their heads. Burning smells, failed power points, switchboard issues, equipment failures – we see it all.
What you need to remember is it’s not the holidays creating these problems. They’ve likely been sitting there for a while. Then suddenly everybody is home, your electrical system is under pressure and the Brisbane summer is in full swing.
Components that have been touch and go for a while are pushed into failure. Before you know it, you’re on the phone with a qualified electrician like Voltora Industries.
Causes of Holiday Electrical Faults
Let’s take a look at some of the faults our team gets called out to during the holiday season, and what causes them. Understanding these will help you stay safe.
Older Switchboards Can’t Meet Demand
Many Australian homes are still running switchboards installed decades ago when electrical demand was far lower. Air conditioning was rare and properties had fewer appliances.
Modern households place far greater stress on switchboards, particularly older units with ceramic fuses or no residual current device protection. These boards will go on and on if demand is low, but as soon as it increases they struggle.
Weaknesses start to appear, including connections overheating, fuses going and breakers tripping more frequently. These look like sudden faults, but in reality they’re the final stages of a degradation process in the switchboard.
Too Many Electrical Appliances
More people at home means more devices plugged in and more demand placed on fridges, freezers, TVs, lights and so on. Multiple appliances are on the go at the same time.
Your circuits can cope with average demand, but they’re suddenly being pushed harder, which increases the heat in the wiring, connections and circuit breakers. Faults occur as a result.
Summer Heat
The Brisbane summer isn’t for the faint-hearted. We get some seriously hot days, and these play a part in the uptick of electrical faults. For a start, higher temperatures mean increased electrical resistance and also make metal expand and then contract when it cools down. Insulation ages faster under heat stress too.
Roof spaces can reach extreme temperatures, particularly in older homes with limited ventilation and insulation. The thermal cycling up there is a lot to take for the wiring and junctions. It causes wear and tear over time, leading to loose connections and localised heating.
As electrical load increases, heat increases further. This creates a feedback loop. More heat leads to higher resistance, which leads to even more heat. Eventually, protective devices trip or components fail, and you get on the phone to Voltora Industries!
Extra Power Boards and Extension Leads Added
When you’ve got a house full of people and everyone needs to charge their device or you’ve borrowed an extra fridge, you can soon run out of plug points. Power boards get added and extension cords are run to the outdoor entertaining areas. Short-term lighting is plugged in.
Problems can arise from these temporary power situations – you can overload the power boards, or extension cables might not be rated for outdoor use. Stacked plugs or double adapters can short out and overheat.
DIY electrical in this way might seem harmless, but it can introduce serious risks. You can end up creating non-compliant installations that fail under heavy load or in outdoor conditions. Electrical shocks, fires and damage to people and property are all outcomes you can experience.
Warning Signs of Electrical Faults
Let’s take a look at the warning signs that indicate your system is under stress. If any of the following are present, get in touch with us before a major electrical fault occurs:
- Frequent tripping of safety switches (RCD’s or residual current devices). These detect leakages in your circuitry, such as from a faulty appliance or dodgy wiring, and shut off the power instantly.
- Warm power points or switches. Heat buildup indicates something is wrong with your electrical system. Call a professional electrician ASAP.
- Buzzing sounds from electrical outlets, switches or switchboards.
- Flickering lights or unexplained outages.
Don’t ignore signs like these, as they can snowball into really dangerous situations. Let’s make sure your property and family are as safe as possible during holiday periods.
Keep Your Switchboard Updated
This applies to every month of the year, not just the holiday season: Poorly wired or incorrectly installed switchboards are a serious safety risk. They can cause electric shocks, devastating house fires or even fatalities. Those are life-altering consequences we’d much rather you avoid.
If you’ve got concerns about your switchboard, get it checked out as soon as you can. If you’re in an older property with an older switchboard, chances are it’s not equipped to deal with the heavy electrical loads modern appliances will draw. A licensed electrician can assess it, while also checking out the load capacity, connection integrity, and overall compliance with current standards of the circuitry in your home.
An upgraded switchboard will bring your property up to code, forming the core of a safe and reliable electrical system that won’t let you down in the holidays or any other time of year. Your appliances is protected, and so is the home and the people living in it.
Contact Voltora Industries for Safe Electrical Work
If your electrical system is already operating near its limit, the extra load of the holiday season will expose the weak points. If you understand this, you can make an informed decision about electrical work on your property. Instead of reacting to emergency electrical faults, get your switchboard and circuitry assessed by a licensed electrician to ensure it’s operating within its capacity.
Contact Voltora Industries and we’ll help ensure your system is safe and compliant. That gives you peace of mind for the holidays – and the rest of the year too.
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