Rental Property Management

If you are considering becoming a landlord and renting out your property, there are many things to consider. Safety of your tenants must be a priority and therefore electrical safety should be near the top of your list.

Many landlords do not take their electrical safety obligations seriously and are therefore putting their tenants at risk of harm or even death caused by fire. In addition to that, they could also find that their insurance is invalid or they receive fines leading to serious financial implications.

There are a number of legal requirements for landlords when it comes to electrical safety:

• When a […]

What to be aware of with substandard electrical goods

There has been lots of press activity in the last year or so about dangerous electrical goods. Electrical Safety First have been campaigning against dangerous electrical items and they are delighted that the Government has acknowledged their campaign which has gained extra media exposure recently with stories such as tumble-dryers catching fire and hoverboards exploding.

There are two main issues – firstly, manufacturers try to keep their costs as low as possible which can lead to substandard goods being sold. Secondly, there is a massive market now for counterfeit goods. The ease of online shopping as well as social media have led to […]

How Does Electricity Get To Your Home?

The first public supply of electricity in the UK was in 1881 when electric street lights first appeared. It started to creep into homes in the early 1900s and in 1920 only 6% of UK homes were connected to public electric supplies. The National Grid was born following the Electricity (Supply) Act in 1926.

Fast forward almost 100 years and the majority of the things we do in our homes use electricity in some way. Do you remember a day when you didn’t use electricity as part of your normal daily life? The majority of us have never known a life without electricity in our […]

What is Fracking?

Fracking is a term that has been all over the media for some time now but what exactly is it and why is it generating so much discussion?

It has been well documented that there are finite resources of fossil fuels in the world and one day it will run out completely. In the meantime, drilling companies have investigated other ways to source their oil and gas. They believe that fracking is the answer.

What is it?

Fracking, otherwise known as hydraulic fracturing, is a well stimulation technique designed to recover gas and oil from shale rock. The process firstly involves drilling down into the earth, usually horizontally to the […]

Top causes of electrical fires in the home

Electricity is a major cause of accidental fires in UK homes. Some of these fires are caused by faulty wiring, faulty equipment or electrical faults but many are caused by human error.

With this in mind, we all need to take care around electricity and treat it with respect. Here are some of the top causes of electrical fires in the home and how they can be avoided:

Washing Machine

These are the biggest culprit of fires in the home caused by electrical faults. It is advisable to never leave your washing machine on when you go out or go to bed and if you smell smoke or […]

Fuse boxes – when should they be replaced?

The fuse box is the heart of electrical protection in your home so it is essential that it works correctly. It basically controls and distributes all of the electricity in your home. Make sure that you know where it is in case you ever need to turn off the electricity in an emergency. Newer style fuse boxes are also known as consumer units.

What is a fuse box?

It is made up of three things. Firstly there is a main switch which is the one to use if you need to turn off the electricity supply. Secondly, there should be residual current devices (RCD). This is an […]