Captain Electric is at the National Home Show this week at the Direct Energy Centre, Exhibition Place in Toronto, along with representatives from the  EATON corporation. EATON manufactures electrical products for home and business worldwide.

Dave Wilson from Captain Electric  is there  demonstrating products, answering technical questions and providing all sorts of great information. Products being featured are, Whole Home Surge Protection, Portable generators,  Electric Vehicle Charging Stations and Solar Installation products. Captain Electric is an Eaton Certified Contractor.

We encourage everyone to visit Captain Electric at the EATON booth to see the latest innovations of these products. 

Surge Protection Installation

Just ask for Dave and he will give you a $100 Off Surge Protection Coupon.

Captain Electric is an Authorized Contractor for the installation of Surge Protection Devices manufactured by EATON, a worldwide leader in power distribution, power protection, and power equipment maintenance.

Today, we all rely more heavily than ever on sensitive electrical equipment. Modern day electronic equipment is getting faster, smaller, more efficient and very complex. The tradeoff in faster speed is that equipment is becoming increasingly more susceptible to surges.

That’s why surge protection is so critical, and why Eaton engineers build so much quality into their full line of Eaton surge protection products.

The utilization of surge protection devices provides protection against the damaging effects of lightning, utility switching, switching electric motors, and more.

Electric Vehicle Recharging Station Installation

Captain Electric is also a authorized Electric Vehicle Service Equipment (EVSE) installer. There is an Electric Vehicle Recharging station demo at the booth and Dave will be happy to answer any questions about this exciting new technology.

Eaton offers a full family of reliable, responsible electric vehicle (EV) chargers for residential applications. Their established excellence in the automotive and electrical distribution and control industries allows them to provide a wide range of innovative EV charging solutions to suit your individual needs.

Visit our website for these and many other electrical services provided by Captain Electric.

That can cause poisonous gas to build up in a home easily. If you’re asleep, it’s an extremely dangerous situation. That’s why smoke alarms are the most important thing all people can have in their homes.

According to the National Fire Protection agency, 62% of home-related fire deaths resulted because the home didn’t have smoke alarms, or the alarms were not functional. In Canada – the Smoke Detector Law states that Smoke Alarms older than 10 years MUST be replaced. In the USA, if your smoke alarms are over 10 years of age, you’re encouraged to have them replaced, or at least inspected).

Here are some smoke-alarm-safety tips everyone should know:

• Smoke alarms should be installed on every level of the home as well as outside sleeping areas.
• For additional protection, install a smoke alarm in each bedroom.
• Alarms should be tested every month and the batteries replaced at least once a year.
• Install alarms near the highest pitch of the ceiling, at least four inches away from the wall.
• Avoid placing alarms too close to the kitchen and bathrooms where fumes and steam can result in false alarms.
• Purchase smoke alarms that are Underwriters Laboratories of Canada ULC or CSA approved, or listed by Underwriters Laboratories (UL) for USA
• Install special alarms for anyone in your home who is deaf or hearing impaired. (Visual Alarms can be added).
• Test smoke alarms after returning home after you’ve been away for a few days.

The best smoke detectors people can have today are interconnected smoke alarms. If one signals, all of them throughout the home will simultaneously chirp. This provides families maximum safety—they don’t have to wait until the smoke or fire is perilously close to alert them.

For best protection, Captain Electric recommends that your Smoke Alarms should be wired (120 Volt) with Battery Back-up, and wired “interconnected.” In some cases, wireless “interconnected” Smoke Alarms may be a more practical and cost effective solution.

If you are concerned at all about the integrity of the Smoke Alarms in your home, please call Captain Electric to discuss the options you have to protect your home and family from Fire and Smoke hazards.

*National Fire Protection Association(USA)

We have also recently had devastating Tornadoes in a number of US States, and flooding in Manitoba, Quebec and the Midwest USA.

Not to mention the thin ozone layer over North America this year and higher than normal levels of UV Radiation affecting our health.

And now another threat to our health, from a source that might surprise you … your Smart Meter. Most people we talk to don’t like their Smart Meter anyway.

Many feel that it is merely a way to extract more money from their pockets (or force them use their Dryer or Stove at 3 am … yeah that’s convenient).

If you want to look into some serious health risks associated with these “Smart Meters,” take a look at these videos.

But be warned, you will not like what you see.

http://youtu.be/gR8tILAxhjI

http://stopsmartmeters.org/

An article in the Toronto Star on March 14, 2011 reported on an electrical fire that destroyed a family home in Sunderland, Ontario, northeast of Toronto.

We were so happy to read that the Toth family survived the fire that unfortunately destroyed their home of 23 years. The Toth family was able to escape only due to the quick action of their son. Sixteen year old Mitchell woke the family up when he could not breathe due to the heavy smoke in his room.

The cause of the fire was traced to an electrical problem in a wall.

There are two issues we can identify that should be looked at:

1. Why the Smoke Alarm outside the bedrooms did not sound off.
2. How did a fire start on an electrical circuit inside the wall? How could this have been prevented? [we will write an article on this issue at another time]

The Toronto Star article addresses the Smoke Alarm issue, the fact that the smoke alarm outside the bedrooms did not sound off, because the fire that started was too far away.

There is no question that working smoke alarms save lives. Statistics from the Ontario Fire Marshall’s Office indicate that in about 50% of fatal home fires, the victims had no smoke alarm warning. 64% of fatalities occur in areas where the response time is less than five minutes. These are sobering statistics.

On April 1, 2006 the smoke detector law came into effect in Ontario.

Minimum code is that every home must have a working smoke alarm on each level of the home, and outside of sleeping areas. Additionally, smoke alarms must be replaced every ten years (or sooner if required by the manufacturer). This is minimum code. Maybe it is time to consider that this is not enough.

Studies from the 1970’s show that it took 17 minutes from the time that a smoke alarm first sounded, until flashover, when the entire room bursts into flame. Today it takes only 3 minutes. This is because our “modern” homes are filled with plastics that burn twice as fast as wood, and release deadly toxic gases. Upholstered furniture and mattresses that contain quick burning materials are major culprits, as are electronics, toys and a range of household goods that are made of plastic. Most people die from smoke inhalation, not fire.

According to Bev Gilbert, manager of public education and media with the Ontario Fire Marshalls Office, “Those critical minutes are up to you. That’s why it’s so important to have smoke alarms,” he says. “Not just on every floor and outside of sleeping areas, as required by law five years ago, but in every bedroom as well.”

Don’t ever take your smoke alarms for granted. We recommend the following:

1. If you don’t know how old your smoke alarms are, have them replaced.
2. Make sure there is at least one working smoke alarm on each level of the home.
3. Consider additional smoke alarms in each bedroom.
4. Have them interconnected, so that no matter which smoke alarm first detects the smoke, each and every alarm in the home will sound.

(This protects your family, because even a fire that is originating in the basement will alert your family that is asleep on the second floor).

Captain Electric was registered in Canada in 2005.

The company which was formerly known as Nova Electrical Contractors Inc. (incorporated in Ontario in 1992), legally changed it’s name to Captain Electric, in order to focus on Electrical Service Work. We have always worked hard to provide superior customer service, now our name was a match for this mindset.

WHY CHANGE OUR NAME?

The sole purpose of the name change was to build a solid brand that stands for superior customer service and integrity, and to provide the best in residential and commercial service to our clients. It was our belief that in order to properly brand the company, that a strong name that would be memorable, even unforgettable, would be needed. We believe that the name “Captain Electric” has achieved this goal.

The name “Captain Electric” is Trademarked in Canada, which gives us the exclusive legal right to the name in Canada. The phrase “To Serve and Connect” is also a trademark and copyright owned by Captain Electric Inc. in Canada. Our Logo Design was designed by Logo Design Works in the USA, in the spring of 2005 and we have ownership of the intellectual property and the exclusive legal rights to the use of the logo.

Captain Electric is NOT a Franchise. It is privately owned and operated from our present location in Ajax, Ontario. It is not affiliated with any other Captain Electric (please continue reading).

ILLEGAL USE OF OUR COMPANY LOGO – COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT

Although we do not object to the use of the name Captain Electric outside of Canada (in fact – we do not have any legal rights in this matter anyways), our LOGO is another matter.

An Electrical Company in the state of South Carolina has taken our Logo without our permission, modified the shield and added a lightning bolt to the logo, and has wrapped their vehicles in a similar fashion. The Marketing Company that designed their website shows our logo as if it is their own creation. This is an  infringement on our copyright. This same “Captain Electric” is also not legally entitled to use the name Captain Electric in the USA, as the Trademark and right to the name “Captain Electric” in the United States is owned by Captain Electric in Utah, whom we happen to know personally.

Pursuing legal action would prove far too costly at this time. Our Trademark and Patent Lawyer in Toronto estimates that we would need to spend between $500,000 and $750,000 US to fight such a battle through the United States Court System. If we were Nike, IBM or Microsoft it might be a different story.

It is always best to focus on positive things, and with this attitude in mind, we will continue to build our brand, continue to focus on improving customer service, and achieving our goal of becoming the only company that you think of when you need Electrical Service in East Toronto, Markham and Durham Region.

Brian Wilson

President

Captain Electric Inc.

If you refer us to someone and we actually get the business you will be rewarded with a $25.00 gift card that may be used at any of the participating restaurants in this list: Swiss Chalet, Harvey’s, Montana’s Cookhouse, Kelseys or Milestones. The person that you referred to us will have their choice of a $25.00 discount from the work performed or the same $25.00 gift card.

That’s why we call it the “Captain Electric’s Everybody Wins Referral Program”.

You win by referring us. Your friend wins by getting a reward. Captain Electric wins by having a new client.

To submit your copy of our referral program form Click Here.

Everyone who has seen the result is very impressed. It is very satisfying to work with such a professional design team, through many rounds of revisions, and to achieve such outstanding results. Great job! Excellent customer service! We will highly recommend your services to anyone looking for professional results.

Brian Wilson, Captain Electric Inc

MISSISSAUGA, ON, Sept. 24 /CNW/ – Almost half of Ontario homeowners allow an unqualified person or contractor to perform dangerous electrical work in their homes despite a law making it illegal to do so.

Unqualified Contractors

According to a recent Leger Marketing survey, 45 per cent of Ontario homeowners do not find it necessary to check the credentials of contractors before hiring them to perform electrical work, such as rewiring a fuse or breaker panel or adding new electrical receptacles or switches. In addition, more than 70 per cent of homeowners would allow a neighbour, friend or handyman to install a new light fixture for them, while 47 per cent would permit them to repair an electrical outlet and 43 per cent would let them wire an outdoor light timer – all of which are considered dangerous if not performed properly.

The data comes more than two years after the Ontario government passed a law requiring all contracted electrical work to be performed by a Licensed Electrical Contractor (LEC). The law came into force in January 2007 in response to the increasing number of electrical incidents involving property damage, injury and death.

“We are concerned that Ontario homeowners continue to put the safety and lives of their loved ones at risk by not ensuring that the contractor they hire to do electrical work is qualified to do so,” says Lucy Impera, Registrar-Licensing & Certification of the Electrical Safety Authority (ESA), the governing body that administers and enforces these licensing laws.

Homeowners’ impulse for hiring unlicensed contractors has cost them a significant amount of time and money. More than one-third of homeowners have had negative renovation experiences while an equal number have had to pay to fix improper electrical work.

“We understand today’s homeowners are looking to save money, but hiring an unlicensed person will inevitably lead to more costs down the road,” says Impera. “It’s better to hire someone who is licensed and insured to protect the safety of your family and property, right from the start.”

In the last ten years, 106 Ontarians have died as a result of electrocution. In addition, there have been 33,739 electrical fires reported by the Office of the Fire Marshal.

Homeowners looking for additional information on electrical safety requirements or for a list of LECs in their area can visit www.pluginsafely.ca.

For further information: Sonia Prashar, APEX Public Relations, T: (416) 924-4442 ext. 223, E: sprashar@apexpr.com