The GR8 Electrical Acronym Guide for Home Owners

While we hope you’re doing a lot of LOL’ing (laughing out loud) in your home, we also hope your GFI’s (Ground Fault interrupters) are installed in the right places to make sure your home is really safe. Not sure what a GFI is for? NP (no problem.) This GR8 (Great) Electrical Acronym Guide is just for you.

BM&U (Between me and you), if you’re a nOOb (newbie) to this, don’t worry. If we go 2F4U (too fast for you) just let us know, we FACK (fully acknowledge) it might be difficult to follow.

DGMW (Don’t get me wrong), but IMHO (in my humble opinion) this is elementary, and IRL (in real life) getting schooled in electrical matters is very important.

AAMOF (As a matter of Fact) these are acronyms that you’ll often see on your electrical outlets and on the backs of electrical equipment quite frequently.

We’ll try not to give you TMI (too much information), we don’t want to leave you SITD (still in the dark) from information overload. These are some FAQ’s (frequently asked questions) we get from our clients.

Essential Home Owner Electrical Acronyms

kWh

kilowatt hours
Your electrical meter tallies the amount of electricity used in your home in units of kilowatt hours (kWh). According to Hydro Quebec consumption calculation tools, one kWh is equal to the consumption of one 1,000-watt electronic device in one hour. To calculate the consumption of a device, multiply its power by the number of hours of use. Then, divide the result by 1,000 to obtain the consumption in kWh.

Amp

Amperage
A new home might have 200 amp service, while we inspectors see older homes with only 100 amp service. A very large home could be equipped with 400 amp of service, particularly if there are 2 kitchens and a second heating/cooling system. To know how many amps your home has, open your electrical panel look for the largest breaker switch in the panel – the number on the switch will tell you the total amps your home provides.

GFCI

Ground Fault Circuit Interrupt (GFCI)
A GFCI outlet senses when a human being is getting a shock, and shuts off the electricity at the outlet or breaker within milliseconds. GFCI’s should always be installed bathrooms and kitchens, where water might be present. Ideally, we like to see them everywhere.

AFCI

Arc Fault Circuit Interrupter
An Arc Fault Circuit Interrupter (AFCI) is a type of receptacle or circuit breaker that breaks a circuit when it detects a dangerous electrical arc, which can cause wires to overheat and cause an electrical fires.
AFCI protection is required in all dwelling units (apartments, homes, manufactured homes, RVs and mobile homes).

If you need F2F (face to face) help with your electrical system, let us know. We’ll get back to you B4YKI (before you know it.)

HTH (Hope this helps)

EOD (End of discussion.)

MTFBWY (May the force be with you.)