Christmas is a time of year for fun and celebration; it is the time when we light up our streets almost in competition with each other. Year after year we add to our lighting displays, and not content with just lighting we also have motorised displays, all of this is great and adds to the Christmas atmosphere, and we at M.T.R Electrics would like to help you continue with this excellent tradition in a safe and considered way.

Getting your home prepared for winter is no different than making sure your car is safe on an icy road.

We depend on a safe and reliable electricity supply more than ever in the Winter - many people leave appliances working when they leave for work in the morning - things like tumble dryers, slow cookers, heating and lights - this puts big demand on your electricity supply - how do you know whether your electrical circuits in your home are capable of the increasing loads we place on them each year?

HOW OLD IS YOUR HOME?

30, 40, 50 years old?

Could you name the one thing in your home which would have been used almost every day since it was built?

… it's one of the least likely things to ever get checked.

Yes, that's right - your electrics.

Your home couldn't operate without them.

Yet when was the last time you actually had then checked by a Qualified Electrician?

Most of the Bexley, Sidcup, and Bromley areas were built in the 1960s. Some houses on the borders of Eltham and Blackfen were built around 1947. This means that there are 1000s of homes with electrics that is over 50 years old.

It was a common practice back then to install lights with no earthing.

Installations were completed using rubber VIR cabling that is now past its life expectancy.

This cable is toxic and degraded so much so, that the insulation breaks when touched, exposing the live cables underneath.

Hi my name is mark, I am your local electrician, welcome to my blog.

Today I am going to talk about the electrics in your homes.

It still amazes me how many local homes have poor electrics and in some cases extremely dangerous electrics.

I recently went to a house that looked very nice and had lovely flooring, furniture and when you walk in it felt like a lovely home, well lived in for many years by various families probably.

Sounds strange doesn't it?

So what does it mean exactly?

Although some gardens in Bexley Bromley Sevenoaks Greenwich and Dartford rarely get used in winter what I mean is not to literally close your garden but the electrics and the appliances within the garden.

Allow me to explain…

Lawnmowers, strimmers, hedge trimmers, pressure washers, extension leads are all items that very often get left for the winter in sheds, under tarpaulins etc.

Standing at a recent seminar I noticed that although all qualified electricians are very different, from the works they complete, methods used and ways of achieving results, there is in fact 1 common theme.

We are all experts, all studied a long apprenticeship and have subsequently been living and breathing electrics for a long time. Yet most of our neighbours remain unaware of the dangers posed from electricity.

Why is that?

Wow what an unbelievably Hot September we are having!

If like us, you are uncomfortable with the hot sun all day whilst at work or at home most people tend to turn on the air-conditioning or plug in lots of fans in an attempt to keep cool.

This can create an issue that is very difficult to spot but potentially extremely dangerous… It's called overload.

By cranking up the air-con, plugging in fans you may unintentionally be heating up the supply cable also thus making it hotter and prone to melting, or worse still, catch fire.

Hi I am a Local Electrician in Bexley, Bromley, Sevenoaks and Dartford.

Welcome to The tales of an electrician...

A blog that takes a look on the day to day goings on of your local electrician but not, thankfully written every day.

Starting out like any other day saw the completion of several small local electrical jobs, things like changing switches and sockets, around 1 oclock I received a frantic phone call.

Hi and welcome to my blog, part 2 focusing this week on electrical inspections or electrical testing for domestic homes in Bexley, Sevenoaks, Bromley and Dartford

The inspection is based on the electrical system of each individual household and includes the following:

The adequacy of earthing and bonding.

The suitability of the switchgear and controlgear. For example an old fusebox with a wooden back, cast iron switches, or a haphazard mixture of both will need replacing.