5 May Don’t Let Your Building’s Wiring “Shock” You May 5, 2021 By sma Property Maintenance, Property Management building renovation, commercial electrical, safety, save money 0 DON’T LET YOUR BUILDING’S WIRING “SHOCK” YOU May 5, 2021 | Property Maintenance, Property Management | safety, save money, commercial electrical, building renovation Commercial buildings are notorious for being energy “sinkholes,” especially when it comes to electrical usage. According to the Department of Energy, the average commercial property uses nearly 23 kilowatt hours per square foot. This number can fluctuate depending on the type of building you own. Warehouses tend to use the least (9 kWh/sq. foot), and food service properties use a whopping 56 kWh/sq. foot. But no matter the size or style, you need to check that your building’s electrical is in top working condition to handle the load. Common CRE Electrical Problems Buildings of any age can have issues with their wiring, but it tends to be more obvious the older the property is. If you or your tenants have noticed any of the following, it’s time to take a closer look. Loose outlet connections Cut or frayed wires Frequently tripping breakers Flickering, dimming, or burned out lights Dead outlets Sparks when plugging something in Frequent outages General poor installation techniques You shouldn’t let any one of these issues continue over time if you spot them. They can damage yours or your tenants’ electronic devices and put you at a high risk for a fire hazard. Taking the right steps now will protect your renters and your building. Assess Your Electricity Needs Whether you’re renovating an existing building or starting a new construction, you need to figure out what your building will need to operate. Too little or too much, and your building, residents, and even your bottom line can all be impacted. Planning ahead can help you avoid some of these issues. Think about building occupancy and what equipment will need hooked up to get an accurate bearing. Asking a professional planner for help can get you even closer to your electrical sweet spot, and help you save money later on. Fix Those Flickering Lights If the lights in your building have a hard time staying a consistent brightness, don’t jump to the conclusion that it’s a bad bulb or old fixture. It’s best to have the right wattage bulb and to replace outdated fixtures, but bad wiring beneath the surface can drastically shorten their lifespan. Before you go for a large overhaul of your building’s lighting, have a professional check how it’s all hooked up. Then you should take their recommendations to repair the bad wiring as soon as possible. Once done, you’ll find your flickering lights aren’t as prevalent and your building will brighten up. Constantly Tripping Breakers Power surges aren’t just a headache to deal with, they also can give way to a bigger problem. An overloaded circuit is one of the top causes for electrical fires in commercial buildings. It’s fairly easy to know if your system is maxed out by how often your lights go out. The more frequent the blackouts are, the higher the stress that’s put on your breaker. It’s not the greatest, but when a problem like this happens, shut everything off. This way you can easily fix things and avoid someone inadvertently worsening the issue. Hiring a professional will get your lights back on in no time and solve your troubles. Have NPI Inspect It for You Your building’s electrical is one of its largest components, meaning it needs to operate almost perfectly. To see how well yours is doing, contact your local NPI professional inspector today! Comments are closed.