The Dangers Of Halogen Downlights

by | Jan 16, 2016 | Uncategorized

Incorrectly Installed Downlights Are A Fire Hazard
Across Australia, hundreds of homes have been damaged or even completely destroyed by fire caused by old style halogen downlights.

There are millions of the lights still in use across the country and many of them are just a disaster waiting to happen.

The problem with these lights is the heat they generate during normal operation.  The lamps can burn at over 300 degrees C which is plenty hot enough to start a fire in your ceiling.

Due to the potential problems there are strict regulations for installing these lights.  But as so often happens in our industry these regulations are ignored to cut costs or just because the installer doesn’t know what they are doing.

The old style downlights must be installed at the correct distance from flammable building materials such as timber joists, and they must be protected to prevent them being covered by insulation.

We have seen plenty of cases where a wooden beam or ceiling truss has been partly cut away to allow the installation of a downlight fitting, and the timber black and charred as a result of the lamp being so close.

 

Downlights that are covered by insulation are particularly dangerous as the lamp heat is trapped and concentrated in the one area.  Insulation installers generally don’t have a good reputation for dealing correctly with halogen downlights, and once again cost cutting is probably a major factor.

The insulation installer is on a fixed price and many of the workers have no training in the correct safety procedures.

Even where metal insulation rings are installed as required, we have seem pump-in insulation and batts totally covering lights and creating a dangerous fire hazard.

Even if the lights are installed correctly they can still be the cause of a fire.  Birds, mice or rats nesting in your roof space can carry in grass and paper and other flammable materials and build their nest over your lights.  Rats especially like nesting near downlights due to the warmth they generate.

It is possible to purchase fire guarded downlight fittings or guards that you can retrofit to an existing light, but these days they are not the best solution.

Replacing your old halogen downlights with new LED downlights is definitely the way to go.

LED downlights are now very reasonably priced, they use up to 80% less energy, run very cool in comparison and can be installed close to flammable materials and even covered by insulation in some cases.

Click Here to see our post on the advantages of LED downlights

If you have old halogen downlights in your home, you should consider replacing these potentially dangerous fittings, or at least get them checked to make sure you’re not about to have a serious problem to have a problem.

Christmas Lights Survival Guide

by | Dec 3, 2015 | Fun Ideas For Your Home, Keep Your Family Safe

The Unexpected Dangers Of Christmas Lights
It seems that every year the bar is raised higher and higher in the neighbourhood Christmas lights competition.

Displays are bigger and brighter, with more and more lights added each successive year. Home owners go to a lot of trouble and some of the displays look quite impressive, but did you know there is a dark side to those festive lights?

There are a number of injuries and even deaths each year directly attributed to Christmas lights.  Electrocution, fire and falling off roofs can make the quest for festive lighting a hazardous endeavour.

The major source of problems are old and poorly maintained light strings.

That old set of Christmas tree lights you’ve been dragging out every December for a couple of decades should probably be replaced.  Any lights that operate with 240 volts at the lamp have the potential to cause electric shock or start a fire.

Old Christmas lights can also cause overloaded circuits, a problem that has been solved by new LED lights.

LEDs are ideal for Christmas lights due to their low power consumption, low voltage power supplies and the range of colours that can be produced.  Even with new LED lights there are safety issues you need to to be aware of.

You should only buy your Christmas lights from a reputable local retailer to ensure they are safe and approved for use in Australia.

If you buy online make sure your lights are sent from an Australian based distributor and not sent direct to you from overseas.  It doesn’t guarantee the safety of the lights but it does give you an opportunity to seek redress in the event of a problem.

If you import any electrical product direct from overseas you assume all the responsibilities of an importer and will be personally liable for any problems the lights cause.

If some one is injured by non-compliant lights you will be responsible.  If you home is damaged by fire due to faulty Christmas lights your insurance company may not pay if the lights that caused the damage were not approved for use in Australia.

The usual commonsense safety measures still apply to low voltage or LED lights.

Don’t use lights that have damaged cords, broken lamps or damaged power supplies.

Don’t mix old and new light strings, they are probably not compatible.

Do keep power packs and extension cord connections out of the weather.

Do use a proper ladder for accessing your roof and make sure it is footed correctly and secured at the top if possible.

Do ensure that any lights you buy are approved for use in Australia.

While a good display of Christmas lights can look amazing, some people go just a little too far.

Last year a Townsville man disconnected the street light outside his home in order to make his lighting display stand out more effectively. He removed the cover from the base of the pole and pulled apart the live wiring connections, which disabled the  street light but created a very dangerous situation.

Enjoy your festive lighting display but make sure you keep your family safe as well.

Loose Electrical Connections Are A Fire Hazard

by | Jul 27, 2015 | Common Repairs, Dodgy Installations, Keep Your Family Safe

Loose Electrical Connections Get Hot, And This Could Be The Result.

Electrical connections can become loose for a variety of reasons.   A tightly made connection can become loose over time due to the tiny expansion and contraction that occurs as the cable warms up during use and cools down when not energised.  Perhaps the last tradesman to work on the installation didn’t do them up tight enough, or maybe the connecting parts have worn out and don’t make good contact anymore.

Occasionally we find connections that have never been tightened up at all.  The wire has been pushed into the terminal and the screw never tightened.   This can happen even in new homes and installations.  It’s a sign that the tradesman didn’t do a final check by pulling on each wire to make sure it’s solidly connected.

Sometime the connectors or terminals are faulty so even though the screw is done up tight it’s not actually clamping the cable enough.  Once again, a simple check by tugging on the wire will alert the tradesman to that type of fault.

Every electrical connection has the potential to get hot.  With increased heat comes increased electrical resistance, which in turns causes things to get even hotter.   Depending on the location of the connection this heat could potentially start a fire.

Common Locations

Common locations for loose electrical connections include switchboard connections of fuses and circuit breakers, connections to stove elements and hotplates and connections to power points.

The more load being drawn through the loose connection the more likely it is to fail.  For example a loose connection to a power point is more likely to be a problem if a heater is plugged in to the heater as compared to a phone charger or some other low wattage device.

Signs To Watch For

Signs that could indicate a loose electrical connection include flickering lights, intermittent power fluctuations, buzzing noises and burning smells.  If you do find any of these problems you should have an electrician check it out as soon as possible.

Lost Power? Check Your Power Boards First

by | Nov 16, 2014 | Common Repairs, Dodgy Installations, Keep Your Family Safe

Plug in power boards are a common source of electrical faults.

If you find that some of your power points or electronic equipment has stopped working, you should check any power boards that are in use.

They are commonly used behind TVs and computers, when there aren’t enough fixed power points available.

Power boards can cause a number of problems and in the worst cases can be a fire or electric shock hazard.

Simple problems like a plug top that is not plugged in correctly are easy to find and fix, however if the plug has fallen out because it is loose in the power board socket it’s time to replace the power board.

A loose connection can get hot enough to melt the plug top and maybe start a fire.

Some power boards have a safety cut out that will trip if the board is overloaded so check to see if your power board has some kind of reset button that can be pushed to restore power.

If the safety cut out has tripped you probably have too many appliances plugged into the power board and will need to find somewhere else to plug in one or two of those appliances.

If the cut out button won’t reset, even after you have unplugged all the appliances, then you will need to replace the power board.

The best solution to a lack of power points is to install more hard wired power points, or replace an existing double power point with a new 4-gang power point.  For more info on this topic see our blog post “The Cheapest Way To Install More Power Points.”

If you do have to use a power board here are a few things to keep in mind:

Make sure all plugs fit firmly into the sockets.
Keep the cords tidy, not in a tangled mess.
Locate the power board in a place where it cannot be disturbed.
Check the power board regularly for signs of damage, especially heat damage.
Never use double adapters in a power board and don’t plug one power board into another.

So, any time you experience a power problem, remember to check all power boards you are using and you might just save yourself the cost of having an electrician attend just to push a rest button or tell you to buy you a new power board.

Defective Switch Could Cause A Fire

by | Sep 23, 2014 | Dodgy Installations, Keep Your Family Safe, Solar Power

This is what’s left of a defective DC isolation switch on the roof of a solar installation we attended recently.

The picture below shows what it used to look like.

DC Isolator 1

This particular brand of isolation switch was subject to an Australia wide total recall, due to the possibility of it catching fire.

So far, four brands of imported DC isolators have been recalled after causing similar problems.

The experience of solar clients has varied, with some having the faulty parts replaced quickly at no charge, and some finding that no-one wants to take responsibility for rectifying the faults.

Two of the companies that imported the isolators have folded, leaving wholesalers and installers holding the bag.

This unfortunate situation highlights the importance of using a reputable, local installer for your solar job so you have someone you can talk to face to face if something goes wrong.

If you did experience a problem, would you rather be phoning a long established, local business, or a mainland call centre?

Fortunately, Mance Electrical has never used any of the recalled isolators, which were more commonly used by those solar sales companies that advertise heavily on TV.

Our solar panels, inverters and isolators are supplied by Energy Aware and they only use quality products from Trina, Simax, SMA, Canadian Solar, Suntech and other quality manufacturers.

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