B — December 20, 2013 - January 16, 2014 — Owners, Developers & Managers — Mid Atlantic Real Estate Journal
www.marejournal.com
B uilding S ervices & S uppliers By Shane Weaver, CableOrganizer.com Top 10 reasons to update your electrical outlets & wall plates
I
know when my house’s decor is feeling a little too bland and familiar, the
your boring old beige outlet plates with hot pink ones. Those exist, right? Neverthe- less, boring as your wall plates may be, by not taking a second look at them to see if they need replacing, you could be setting yourself up for disaster. And I don’t mean the hilarious kind of disaster that happens to other people. I’m talking about the possibility of a very real disaster that could affect you, specifically. And that’s never funny. Below, I’ll clue you in on when the time is right to change up your wall plates. 1. Crack Kills! (and gaps too)
2. Installation Frustration 3 . I t ’s Ge t t i ng ’ Ho t i n Herrrre 4. Building a Better Mouse- trap...I mean, Wall Outlet 5. Flip This House (& Wall Plates!) 6. Watch As I Make This Outlet...Disappear! Cracked outlet plates will likely become a dust trap and, ultimately, a fire hazard. This is also the case for gaps created by undersized wall plates (gaps above 4.5mm also increase the chances of a short-circuit. Lint, dust and hair act as kindling Here’s the 411: 1. Crack Kills
when they accumulate, and electrical outlets are primo accumulation spots. In addi- tion to fires, under the right conditions dust can actually straight up cause explosions. Dust can also clog up the out- let. You know how when too much hair gets in the shower drain, it leaves you standing in ankle deep scummy water? Imagine that, but with more your-house-burning-down. It’s hard to overstate the danger that dust and other household detritus can cause when too much accumulates in one place, especially when that place is next to a bunch of
electrical wires. So what can you do to save yourself from a future crisis? Easy! Buy our products! Just kidding, but seriously it’s good practice to replace cracked or undersized wall plates or even to splurge and get your hands on some GFCI Outlets. So where should you start when replacing these? Well, hotter appliances are (duh) more likely to cause a fire. Are you a gamer? Sure you are, all the cool kids are gamers. Well, video gaming equipment ranks pretty high here, as they are often stored together, next to other electronic equipment that is rarely if ever switched off. If you have a home theater set up, make sure you have a shelving unit that allows each device to be placed on its own shelf with adequate cooling to avoid overheating. Otherwise, those fires you’re setting in Grand Theft Auto V might end up being a little too real. You set things on fire in GTA5 right? I wouldn’t know, I’ve never played it, because I’m not a nerd. Just kidding, I’m a huge nerd. Just not the cool kind that plays the latest video games. Moving on. 2. Installation Frustration We all know that contractors are all fine, upstanding ladies and gentlemen and would nev- er do anything less than the best possible job. Still, what can you do if you’re that one in five billion case who ends up being the victim of a badly done remodel? Not to worry: there are simple solutions that can help you make the best of someone else’s cut corners. Here are some things to look for that might mean a wall plate needs to be replaced: Painted over light switches or outlet plates. Sometimes when you’re painting a room, you take your time, tape off the edges and make sure you do it right. And sometimes, you just paint everything. Hinges, doorknobs, outlet plates, car- pets, household pets, whatever. If your contractor was in the latter type of mood during your last remodel, you may want to check and see if your wall plates have been painted over. Burned or clearly charred outlet. Sometimes your out- let cover looks all burnt and brown and gross. You should totally replace that wall cover. But wait, why does it look like Continued on page 22B
first thing I do to spice the place up i s r e p l a c e the wall out- l e t p l a t es . I’m sure you feel the same way. What’s t h a t ? Yo u
Shane Weaver
don’t? You’ve never even taken a second look at your wall out- let plates, have you? Oh you poor thing. You’re missing out on that added touch that you can only really get by replacing
1905
2013
Phone: 215-698-4400 / Fax: 215-698-4400 Website: www.elliottlewis.com
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