Safety Tips
Tree Planting Guide
Rideau St. Lawrence welcomes the opportunity to help you choose proper locations for planting trees on your property in relation to overhead and underground hydro equipment. Click here to read more.
Inspection
If you plan to change or add to your electrical wiring system, you must have an electrical inspection done to meet the compliance of the Electrical Safety Code.
Have Proper Fuses Installed
All general use circuits should be protected by either fuses or circuit breakers rated for 15 amperes. Never replace fuses (primarily found in older homes) with metal objects such as dimes or pennies. Doing so could cause a fire.
Time-delay or dual element fuses, identified by a metal band and the letter D, should only be used for large motorized appliances such as clothes dryers, furnaces, refrigerators/freezers, and window air conditioners. The D fuses can handle the power surge of a starting motor, but should not be used on general lighting circuits.
Only “P” fuses should be used on all general circuits, including lighting circuits.
CSA Seal
The CSA seal or label ensures that an appliance has been tested and should be safe to use as recommended by the manufacturer. Before buying an appliance, check to see that it has been CSA approved.
Three Prong Plugs
Rather than breaking off the third prong from a cord, have a two prong outlet replaced with a three prong outlet. This will ensure that the third prong will be properly grounded. It provides a ground path that helps prevent or minimize shocks.
Avoid Water
Radios, hairdryers and other electrical appliances are dangerous to use near water. If your hands are wet, or you are standing on a wet area, you could get an electrical shock.
Extension Cords
Protect your children from injury by unplugging unused extension cords. If a cord is hot to touch, chances are you are using it for more current than it is designed to handle. Don’t overload extension cords. Avoid running a cord under a carpet or near anything that will increase its temperature. Keep extension cords out of the water. Cords designed for outdoor use will be marked for “outdoor use”.