Training Workers on Safe Electrical Home Inspections

Sparks flying out of an electrical outlet led to a whole house electrical inspection in our home. After calling our local service provider, which offers electrical, plumbing and HVAC services, an electrician showed up bright and early and didn’t leave until late in the day.

Here’s a few of the things that he did that could serve as tips for others performing an electrical inspection.

Be flexible. Unlike before the pandemic, residential electricians must contend with parents working from home, older children on Zoom calls, and younger children racing around the house. Because the electrician happened to perform an inspection on a day that all five of my kids happened to be at home and not in in-person school, he had to work around each of their school schedules. He patiently waited until each one of them had a break before asking if he could test the electrical outlets and look for operational smoke detectors.
Explain the findings clearly. The electrician documented the condition of the electrical system in our home on a checklist, and he even took a photo of the electrical panel to show us what needed to be upgraded. It turned out that our panel was not only overloaded, but also showing signs of rust and corrosion. Also, we were missing many GFCIs, and we were woefully short on our smoke detectors.
Suggest upgrades. After living in a 1980s-era home for the last 14 years, our family knew we may need some electrical upgrades. The electrician advised us to consider investing in bubble covers for the outside electrical outlets, install smoke/carbon dioxide detectors throughout our home, and replace our electrical panel. In addition, we swapped out the traditional electrical receptacles in our four-year-old twins’ bedroom with tamper-resistant receptacles for added safety.

While the electrical inspection and upgrades were not inexpensive, they have given our family peace of mind and reduced the risk of an electrical fire, which is invaluable.

Fischbach is a freelance writer based in Overland Park, Kan. She can be reached at [email protected].