Approximately 51,000 house fires occur annually in the United States, accounting for 500 deaths, 1,500 serious injuries, and over $1.3 billion in residential property damage. Faulty electrical systems are the third leading cause of these residential building fires.
Certified Home Inspections cares about the safety and well-being of northwest Indiana’s residents. Therefore, we feel obligated and have a moral duty to provide our clients with an exceptional electrical inspection that greatly surpasses our competition, ensures safety, and limits the probability of serious injury and death caused by electrical fires within the home.
Evaluating the exterior electrical wiring is the first phase of our electrical system inspection.. The inspector will examine the age, condition and installation quality of the main wires entering the home. Residential buildings are supplied with electricity via overhead or underground wiring. Overhead style wires are inspected from the roof and the service drop wires must hang no less than 10 foot above ground level and 12 foot above driveways. The wiring from the overhead mast to the interior main panel should be fully protected by conduit piping and properly secured to the house. The inspector will locate the ground spike and cable to ensure proper grounding of the system. In addition, our inspectors frequently discover safety hazards such as extension cord or improper wiring installed by homeowners on the exterior of a home. Many homeowners take it upon themselves to install electrical wiring to sheds, exterior lighting and outlets, pools, and other miscellaneous areas causing possible fire hazards. Certified recommends all electrical work be completed by licensed electrical contractors only.
Phase two involves inspecting the main electric panel. This system inspection includes evaluation of the main wires entering the panel, all circuit breakers and legend labeling, bonding/grounding lugs, wire and panel size, and overall general condition. Frequently, we discover rusting/corrosion, damaged wires or breakers, double-tapping, and extension cord wiring present within the panel. Loose wire connections and overloaded circuits are the most common causes of arcing faults and overheated wires, which can lead to fire and damage to the system. Last year 28,000 house fires were caused by arcing faults and 5,300 by faulty outlet issues, reports the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commision. Therefore, Certified uses thermal imaging equipment to locate hot spots hidden in the panel.
As we proceed to the final phase, the inspector carefully examines the branch wiring throughout the home. Branch wiring includes all electrical wiring to bedrooms, bathrooms, hallways, foyers, kitchens, garages, basements, and laundry rooms, etc. Our inspectors are sure to test each outlet, smoke detector, appliance, overhead light and ceiling fan for functionality. 65 percent of home fire fatalities occur in homes with inadequate smoke detector systems. Every bedroom should be equipped with a smoke detector. In addition, bathrooms, kitchens, garages, laundry rooms, and the exterior of the home, require GFCI outlets installed as a safety feature.
Certified Home Inspections utilizes a 50 point in-depth electrical checklist which will assure our inspector provides a professional and thorough inspection of the complete electrical system on each home. Enabling us to help residents of northwest Indiana avoid tragedy, such as fire damage or loss of life, caused by electrical issues in their home.