Category Archives: Residential

Many older homes in the Greater Phoenix area have aluminum wiring. However, this type of wiring may not be the best for your home and can actually cause significant problems over the years. If your home is equipped with this outdated wiring style, it may be time for aluminum rewiring to ensure your safety and the proper operation of your electrical system. Here\’s why you should consider aluminum rewiring.

Prevent Fires

As aluminum wire connections deteriorate over time, they lose their ability to effectively carry current. This can cause them to overheat, possibly starting dangerous electrical fires in your home. With aluminum rewiring, you\’ll get new copper wiring, which is much more resistant to fire, helping to keep you and your loved ones as safe as possible. When your safety is on the line, you can\’t afford not to make an appointment for aluminum rewiring right away.

Protect Electrical Faceplates

When your aluminum wires get hot, a lot of that heat transfers into the faceplates of your electrical outlets, as well as their mounting hardware. In some cases, the metal screws on the faceplates can reach temperatures of up to 300 degrees. This can cause severe burns to your skin if you unknowingly touch a hot faceplate. The faceplates can also emit sparks, increasing your risk of fire. Aluminum rewiring will eliminate this problem and make your faceplates safe once again.

Aluminum Rewiring to Stop Flickering Lights

Because aluminum wires lose their ability to carry a charge over time, they can cause your lights to flicker. When the current is uneven, your lights won\’t get the power they need to stay steadily lit. This results in flickering or lights that don\’t work altogether. While not particularly dangerous, this can still be quite an inconvenience. After aluminum rewiring with new copper wires, this problem will be eliminated.

Power Modern Appliances

Today\’s appliances, while more energy-efficient than their predecessors, still require a steady supply of power to operate effectively. Old aluminum wiring, even if it doesn\’t have any major issues, may not have the ability to carry enough of a charge to power newer devices, especially those that use a lot of electricity, like refrigerators and other appliances. After aluminum rewiring, your appliances and other electronic devices should have all the power they need.

Save Money on Energy Costs

When your electronic devices aren\’t getting the steady power they need, they won\’t be able to operate at their most efficient level. This can result in your home drawing even more power from the main power grid, even though it isn\’t effectively delivered to where it needs to go. Over time, this can drastically increase your electricity bills. Once you have completed an aluminum rewiring service, your home will be able to make much better use of the power it receives, minimizing the amount of electricity you\’ll have to pull from the power grid. You\’ll likely begin to see savings on your monthly energy bills right away.

Get Started with Aluminum Rewiring

Because of all these potential problems, it is crucial that you schedule an aluminum rewiring appointment as soon as possible. The experts here at Turn It On Electric will be more than happy to assist you. We have helped countless homeowners in the Phoenix area with their aluminum rewiring needs, and we can help you too. Reach out to our team today to learn more about this important service and schedule an appointment for an estimate to evaluate your home\’s needs.

If you have an older home, you may need house rewiring. Perhaps you’ve experienced some indicators there’s an electrical problem and your local electrical contractor has advised house rewiring. What do you need to know?

House Rewiring 101

To avoid violating any electrical codes, creating any unnecessary fire damage risks, or potentially injuring yourself or others, please do not attempt to rewire your home yourself. –EasySafetyCert

When an HVAC (heating, ventilation, air conditioning) professional says you need an expert to change a basic AC filter; be wary. When a professional electrical contractor says house rewiring is not a DIY (do-it-yourself) project, believe it.

Rewiring is a complex renovation that can have safety issues and hazards not worth risking by doing it yourself. Clues you may need house rewiring include:

• Appliance source lights flicker
• Breaker flips off often
• Can’t run certain appliances at the same time
• Electrician says there’s wiring without “grounding” or “earthing”
• Flickering lights
• The fuse box has no circuit label, a wooden back, cast-iron switches, and/or confusing panel of switches
• House has old-fashioned, black rubber-covered wires
• Socket outlets are old-fashioned round, pin-type
• Socket(s) warm to the touch

Factors Influencing House Rewiring Costs

Sometimes rewiring is isolated to one room or the garage. Whole-house rewiring depends on many variables, especially square footage. Your cost may be somewhere between $1,500 to $20,000.

Some of the factors that affect rewiring cost are:

• Commercial wiring (ex: home walk-in business) vs. residential)
• Community, city, state codes
• Inspections
• Knob, tube wiring removal
• Labor
• Materials needed – type and quantity
• Permits
• Preparation
• Rough-ins (installation of boxes, breaker panel, fixture mounts, sub-panels, wiring)
• Running electric to separate building

What Your Electrician Will Do

House rewiring requires a lot of planning. You and your electrician may need to decide where new outlets should go. After a preliminary inspection, your electrician will begin making chalk notations to position new outlets.

There are 2 methods of house rewiring installation:

1. Concealed wiring over wires and ceilings
2. Wiring passing through or behind walls and ceilings

Important considerations for outlets and wiring methodology are:

• Accessibility
• Energy use
• Safety

The entire house rewiring turnaround time – and again, there are many variables – can be anywhere from 3-10 days. The job is also inconvenient.

You can’t use some electrical appliances for a while and may have unlit rooms. You’ll have to move furniture around for the electrician(s), and even though they will clean up after themselves, you’ll still have a mess to manage and additional cleaning after they leave. If it’s not a risk to wait, some families schedule a vacation during their house rewiring.

You Can Trust TIO

Are you considering electrical rewiring for your commercial or residential property? The electrical professionals at Turn It On Electric work in a culture of integrity and take pride in their work. Our primary motivation is to ensure safety for homes like yours. Contact TIO Electric to learn more about house rewiring options.

If your house uses aluminum wiring, you may have safety hazards lurking. Fires, shorts, and other problems can come at any time, and leave you scrambling. The older, less efficient wiring used in older homes creates problems over time. Meanwhile, you are likely paying higher electric bills.

Before you see a problem emerge, you should have your wiring checked by an expert. Even if you aren\’t seeing electrical issues, you should act to protect your family and your wallet. Here are five good reasons to look to replace your aluminum wiring today.

1. Avoid Potential Fire Hazards From Aluminum Wiring

According to the National Fire Protection Association, 19% of deaths in home structure fires come from faulty wiring. Because older homes primarily used aluminum rather than copper wiring, they come with particular dangers. The wiring tends to fray or pulls apart over time. This can create overheating, sparks or fires.

2. Get Better Insurance Coverage

Today, many insurance companies will either refuse to insure or charge sky-high premiums for your structural coverage. They recognize the likelihood of problems in a house that is not up to code. You need coverage against hazards that might arise. Replacing your aluminum wiring comes with an up-front cost, but can save you a fortune down the road.

3. Avoid Common Electrical Problems

Often, you will see signs of wiring problems. In addition, you may experience the following:

• flickering lights
• warm switch plates
• burning smells
• frequent blown fuses
• tripped circuit breakers

If you see any of these signs, it is a good idea to get an inspection. A light shorting out when you are on the stairs or a refrigerator shutting down in the summer can hit hard. It is both better and cheaper to catch a potential problem than to deal with a current one!

4. Save On Utility Bills

There are reasons copper wiring is the new standard. Copper conducts heat better and lasts longer. It allows you to use less electricity in your home every day. The more up to date your wiring, the safer and less expensive it will be for you to live there every day.

5. Do Your Part For The World

When you replace your aluminum wiring, you also use less energy over time. This decreases waste and conserves resources. Your old wiring forces you to use more and get less for doing so. The waste adds up over time with every house using aluminum in its wiring system.

You Need To Consult The Experts

For many reasons, you need to look at the wiring in your home. Older homes are particularly vulnerable to problems, but any house with improper wiring becomes a ticking time bomb. You can wait for something to go wrong, but the longer you wait, the harder the fix becomes. With time, the hit on your wallet will only grow.

Of course, the only thing worse than waiting is attempting to fix the wiring yourself. You need experienced, professional help. In the Phoenix area, your best electrician partner is Turn It On Electric. We will inspect your home and take care of all of your electrical needs. Contact us today to protect your house, your family, and your wallet from the dangers of aluminum wiring.