Electric Panel Replacement for 2022? You May Need It!

January 17th, 2022
panel-replacement

Do you have plans on making important upgrades to your house for 2022? We’d like to suggest looking into the possibility of getting a new electrical panel (circuit breaker box) this year. You may not need it, but if you do, you’ll be glad to have this important job completed. Far too many homes have old and outdated panels in place, and the consequences can be large.

We are experts in all things electrical, and if you need to know if your electric panel in Buffalo, NY is ready for a replacement, you can trust us for honest answers and great service.

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The Importance of Properly Grounding Your Home

January 3rd, 2022
GFCI outlet

When we as electricians say a home is grounded, we mean that there’s a connection between the electrical components of the structure and the ground. Electricity naturally seeks the shortest path to the earth that it can, and when a house is grounded it provides electricity with the best path down into the ground and not into parts of the house where it can cause damage.

If you have three-prong outlets in your house, it means the house is grounded. The third circular hole in the outlet is to ground the outlet. 

Unfortunately, not all homes in this area are grounded. If you live in a house that doesn’t have three-prong outlets, we recommend calling our electricians for home grounding services in Buffalo, NY. And no, using three-prong adapters isn’t “grounding” the house. But even grounded homes can run into problems if they are improperly grounded. 

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Ways to Tell You Need Work on Your Business’ Wiring

December 20th, 2021
conference-table-under-lights

We don’t live in the coal or steam age—all businesses depend on electricity to run. Unfortunately, many businesses aren’t aware that they may have deficient or deteriorating wiring for their facilities until something serious occurs, such as a partial or total power outage or even an electrical fire. 

We know that you want your commercial electrical wiring to be up to code and reliable. Sometimes, this will require calling for service for commercial electrical wiring in Buffalo, NY from our expert electricians. We have more than 25 years of history helping handle the electrical needs of companies in Western New York, and we’re here to deliver the help your company needs. But first, you’ll have to know there’s a problem. In this post, we’ll look at how you can tell you may need professional wiring service for your business. Many of these are situations are emergencies or semi-emergencies, so don’t wait to make the call. We have 24/7 service available. 

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How Long Can a Whole-House Generator Last?

December 6th, 2021
generator-residential

A whole-house generator is a great investment for a home in Western New York. Extended power outages have become a more common problem in the last two decades, and a whole-house generator is your best defense against future ones. The right generator can help your family stay comfortable and safe in a well-lit house until the power comes back on. 

Whole-house generators aren’t magical devices, of course, so they can’t run forever. There are two ways of looking at the question in the title of this blog: “How long will a generator run when there’s a power outage?” and “How long will a generator installation last before it needs to be replaced?” We’ll look at both versions of the question so you know what to expect from a whole-house generator—whether you already own one or are considering getting one.

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Tips for Better Indoor Lighting

November 22nd, 2021
recessed-LED-lights

It’s easy to take for granted the indoor lighting in your home and imagine that it’s “fine” the way it is and there’s not much room for improvement. But lighting styles and technology are constantly changing, and if your house is more than a decade old, there are probably several ways you can enjoy superior indoor lighting in Buffalo, NY. 

The best way to improve your home’s indoor lighting is with the assistance of our professional electricians. Below is a list of suggestions for indoor lighting to help you get started thinking about making upgrades and changes. 

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Why You May Have Failed Light Fixtures

November 8th, 2021
lightbulb-on-its-side

We’ve all experienced this annoyance before: we flip on a light switch as we step into the house, or into a dark room, and nothing happens. Sometimes, the light comes on for a second, then goes dark with a buzz sound—usually an indicator the bulb burned out.

But bulb burnout isn’t the only reason for a light failing to come on. When lights fail in your house, you can do some standard investigation to see what’s wrong. Check that the fixture is plugged in, put in a new bulb, see if a circuit breaker tripped. These are basic troubleshooting steps that don’t require calling an electrician.

But there may be a deeper electrical issue behind the failed light—you may have a failed light fixture, bad wiring, a broken switch. Don’t try to take out tools and see if you can make repairs for these problems! Yes, you can shut off the power to the fixture at the breaker to prevent a high voltage shock, but your amateur tampering with a fixture or a switch could create a fire hazard. Please leave any work on your indoor lighting in Orchard Park, NY to our licensed professionals.

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It’s Not Too Late to Schedule Generator Maintenance!

October 25th, 2021
emergency-home-generator

A backup generator has a way of minding its own business on your property. It’s there for when an emergency strikes, but otherwise isn’t operating. This makes it easy to forget about the importance of maintaining the generator. Maintenance is critical for a backup generator because you need to trust that the generator can do its job when the time comes. A generator you can’t trust isn’t much good!

You might think that it’s too late in the year for you to schedule generator maintenance. Here’s the important thing to know: generator maintenance doesn’t have an expiration date, and you can have it done at any time of the year. Fall is a great time to do it, so it’s definitely not too late to call our team for the job.

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Electrical Safety Tips for the Halloween Season

October 11th, 2021
fall-decor

Halloween is more than a single night for trick-or-treating. It consumes the entire month of October, and no other holiday aside from Christmas is more focused on decorating with lights—and often candles. If you like to celebrate the October Country with lighting inside and outside your home, we want to ensure you enjoy the safest Halloween possible. It may be a spooky time of the year, but it should always be fun spooky, not actually dangerous!

Below we’ve put together several electrical safety tips from our licensed electricians. 

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Whole-House Generator vs. Portable Generator

September 27th, 2021

New York State got a bit … wet … this month. And whenever a major storm strikes the East Coast, it’s an important reminder of how easily whole neighborhoods can lose electrical power for long stretches of time. Western New York is at high risk for extended power losses, and this is something we at Scherer Electric want to protect our customers from. We install whole-house generators to help homeowners make it through a power outage of any kind in safety and comfort.

But when it comes to generators, we often hear people say something like this: “What about just using a portable generator in Buffalo, NY? Do I really need to go with a full whole-house generator installation?” 

Portable generators have their uses—such as on camping trips, or to keep in the car in case of emergencies. But if you want peace of mind about getting through an extended blackout in your house, a portable unit can’t hold up to a permanent standby generator. We’ll explain why.

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Maintenance Is Essential for Your Backup Generator

September 13th, 2021
emergency-home-generator

The recent storm that hit New York State and much of the Northeast is a big reminder of how important residential generators are for modern living. A backup generator in Buffalo, NY is looking more and more like a necessity with each year. If you already have a backup generator for your home, you’ll know the sort of peace of mind it can bring during calamities like storms or heat waves.

But a generator cannot bring this peace of mind and relaxation if you cannot trust that it will work. An unreliable generator isn’t worth much—it undermines the purpose of having one in the first place. Fortunately, it’s not difficult to keep a backup generator reliable. All it takes is to schedule regular maintenance for it with our expert electricians.

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