Electrical Association

Bringing Safety Home

Written by Paul "Krmp" Krmpotich

May is National Safety Month and it is appropriate that MEA is ramping up the NFPA 70E Training. The intent of 70E is to protect the electrician on the job, but we also have to remember to continue safety to the home.

We all have made efforts to make our jobs much safer, but have we taken the time to bring those efforts home? Let us look at a couple of examples.

• Do you check your GFCI devices in your home monthly as required by the manufacture? We do this on the job but really when was the last time you checked the GFCIs in your home?
• When using extension cords on the job site, you make sure that they are GFCI protected, so do you also make sure that the extension cords at home are GFCI protected?
• Have you checked your extension cords at home for damage? How did you repair the damage, duct tape or a wrap of electrical tape?
• Is the ground prong missing from any of your home extension cords?
• Do you take the bad cords that can no longer be used on the job and bring them home to use?
• How many of us have worked on live circuits at home wearing tennis shoes and shorts since it's only 120 volts?
• Do we want to ask how many times you have used the top couple of steps of a ladder to stand on, or maybe used something else besides a ladder to get to a higher elevation?

According to the Home Safety Council, more than 20,000 people die and 21 million hospital visits every year are attributed to accidents around the home.

Safety does not end on the job. Our family members watch and mimic what we do since we are the knowledgeable ones in the trade, so we want to provide examples about how to do things safely. Work safely on the job and at home.