You’ve worked your whole life to create a home for yourself and your family, and it’s frightening to imagine replacing everything after a house fire! And what about the things that you can’t replace, like your family and pets?

Fortunately, most house fires are preventable if you take proper precautions. At Gary Houston Electric, we employ the most talented and experienced electricians in Little Rock, and we’re always available for a free in-home safety consultation. We also recommend a few basic strategies to keep your family safe, and lower your risk for a catastrophic house fire:

Replace outdated wiring and outlets-If you have an older home, be sure that the insulation on your wiring is intact. If your wiring is frayed, or its insulation is brittle or cracked (or made of cloth), it should be replaced right away. Also be sure that you don’t have any outlets or switches that are hot to the touch, or that make buzzing or popping noises. It’s easy and inexpensive to replace two-prong outlets with grounded outlets, and your kitchen and bathroom outlets should have ground fault circuit interrupters (GFCIs) that will trip if overloaded or exposed to water.

Keep flammable clutter away from outlets and heat sources-It’s common sense to keep paper and cloth away from space heaters and cooking appliances, but there’s also a slight risk associated with exposed electrical outlets. If you have unused outlets behind furniture and drapery, we recommend inexpensive outlet covers or plugs.

Avoid overloading circuits-Most of us use many electronic devices in our homes, and depend on power strips, extension cords, and wire splitters to keep everything running. The important thing is to make sure that you only buy power strips that come with electronic surge protection and a circuit breaker. If you buy the cheapest power strip on the shelf, you may simply be getting 6 plugs connected to an on/off switch.

There are many quality electrical companies to choose from in central Arkansas, which is why our team at GHEC is committed to professionalism and 100% customer satisfaction. We’ve been in continuous operation since 1978, and we owe our success to repeat and referral business. To schedule a service appointment, click here, or give us a call at (501) 375-8330, and let us make you our next satisfied customer!