In this post we look at the 5 signs that there are electrical faults within your working environment, some are less obvious and so we explain how you may identify them before you have the chance to consult professional electrician.

1. Sparking

This an immediate red flag, if there is ever any visible sparks coming from any electrical appliance or equipment in your workplace, you need to speak to a professional electrician immediately without any hesitation. If possible, the device, system or appliance that is causing sparks should safely be turned off or the power source cut, without anyone using it until a professional has deemed it safe to use again.

2. Odours

Sometimes new appliances will produce a strange new smell that you perhaps are not used to for the first few times it is used, however, if the weird smell from an outlet continues, this could be an indication that there is something up. You should unplug or turnoff anything that is plugged into the outlet. Making sure that you consult an electrician and refrain from using the outlet until it has been treated and deemed safe by the professional electrician.

3. Buzzing sound

You may be familiar with the type of humming or buzzing sound that we associate with electricity, however, this can in most cases, be an indication that something is at fault. In reality the best sound electricity can make is no sound at all. With no sound present this is a good sign that electricity is travelling smoothly and fluidly between different connections. When electricity is making a buzzing or humming sound, this could be happening due to loose connections, or wiring being frayed, causing the electrical current to awkwardly jump, therefore causing a buzzing or humming sound to be heard.

4. Frequent tripped breakers or blown fuses

We previously did a post on the issue of circuit breakers and why they trip, when circuit breakers along with fuses trip, they are doing so to prevent overload. If an appliance continues to cause your breaker to trip regardless of where you have plugged it in, in your office, this is a sign that the appliance is the problem. However, if using a single outlet causes the same fuse to blow repeatedly, the entire circuit is likely overloaded, in both instances you should be consulting a professional electrician as soon as possible.

5. Flickering or dimming lights

Due to light fixtures only drawing on small amounts of power, any flickering or dimming will very rarely be caused by problems with the fixture itself, it is more likely to be issues with something being powered by the same circuit, hogging the majority of the power. A good move to combat this would be by consulting a professional electrician with a plan to potentially move lighting to a different circuit, or major appliances that require great amounts of power, onto their own dedicated lines.

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