“Some of the worst things and illegal things I have seen homeowners and unlicensed contractors attempt to do is replace their main electrical panel,” said Christopher Haas, the owner of Haas & Sons Electric in Pasadena, Maryland. “This poses many dangers from injuring themselves, the home, and the occupants. … I have seen people unknowingly hook up the ground and power wire backward — reverse of what they should have done — which can cause injury or death to any unsuspecting person or animal that touches the now electrified ground.”
To learn more about the safety considerations of generators, we spoke to Christopher Haas, a licensed master electrician and owner of Haas & Sons Electric.
"Never run the generator in enclosed spaces, as they produce exhaust no different than your car or power tools and, that's not good for anyone due to CO poisoning," Haas said. "Even so, we recommend a portable CO detector to be certain exhaust doesn't find its way to your living quarters. These can be purchased easily online for infrequent use, but I recommend installing CO detectors in your home anyways, so place a wall unit near your garage year-round."
Read a Portable Generator Installation Cost & Guide from Haas & Sons.
If you ever flip a light switch, plug in a toaster or charge a smartphone, you are handling electricity. And while these tasks are simple and not risky, the reality is, your home’s electrical system is complex and potentially dangerous, says Christopher Haas, owner of Haas & Sons Electric in Maryland.
Electrocution, Haas says, occurs more frequently with 120 volts of electricity — the standard in a home — than any other level of voltage.
“And, unfortunately (home electrocution) claims lives every single year,” Haas says. “So, don’t think of it as ‘just’ 120 volts — think of it as something that could permanently injure you.”
From MentalFloss.com“Those who have problematic heating issues with an isolated room in their house [can benefit from space heaters],” Christopher Haas, a licensed master electrician at Haas & Sons Electric in Pasadena, Maryland, explains to Mental Floss in an email.
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“Space heaters typically use less energy than powering your central heating system, but they are not as efficient with that energy use. So, determining what is best for your unique situation will have to be taken into consideration,” Haas says.
From: Homes & Garden
Christopher Haas, owner and Master Electrician at Haas & Sons Electric(opens in new tab) in Pasadena, MD, often does electrical-themed home renovations. He is pointing to electrical vehicle charging points as the must-have feature buyers are increasingly asking for as more and more private vehicles are going electric. Chris said: 'One of our most requested home improvement projects is for homeowners wanting to install an electric vehicle (EV) home charging station. While EV options are popular already thanks to Tesla and most of the majors releasing new models annually, they are only going to get much more popular in the coming decade and beyond. California, as an example, already has a goal of only having EV models sold in the state by 2035 and they tend to be a precursor to national policy changes. Due to the rising adoption from consumers and the writing on the wall via these policy changes across the nation, installing these EVSE units is a safe bet for return on investment.'
From AmericanExpress.com
As its name suggests, the simplified method is fairly easy to calculate, says Christopher Haas, founder of Haas & Sons Electric. He works from a home office.
"For me, the simplified version works best. It's much easier to figure out and requires less paperwork to sort through and store," says Haas. "The write offs have helped me balance my earnings and expense report, therefore paying fewer taxes at the end of the year."
"Let's say you have a 1,000-square-foot home and your office is 100 square feet, or 10 percent of the total area," says Haas. "You could write off 10 percent of your electricity, waste, heat, gas, water, etc."
