D'Spain Sales and Service Blog : Archive for October, 2014

Some of Your Water Filtration Options

Thursday, October 30th, 2014

A clean, potable water supply is important to every homeowner. Your family’s health is your top priority, which is why so many homeowners utilize water filtration systems to keep their drinking water free of contamination. Some homeowners choose to only filter their drinking water with a localized filter in the kitchen. But if your water supply contains contaminants, every portion of your plumbing is affected, and the safest choice is installing a whole-home water filtration system.

So how do you know which type of system to purchase? An expert will always test your water first to discover what specific contaminants affect your home. Then, the technician may recommend one of the following water filtration systems. For more information about water filtration systems in Boerne, contact the knowledgeable professionals at D’Spain Sales & Service, Inc.

  • Chemical Feed Pump: A chemical feed pump is a system used exclusively to treat well water. Groundwater may be affected by pesticides, fuel leaks in the soil, or other environmental issues. A chemical feed pump can target the contaminants that are specific to your area to keep your water safe.
  • Whole-House Water Filters: A whole-house water filtration system can filter out common contaminants and some sediment, allowing few stray particles to pass through.
  • Iron Filter: You may choose to install an iron filter to specifically filter out iron, a mineral that can cause problems with your plumbing system, stain your dishes and laundry, and leave a poor taste in your mouth.
  • UV Water Treatment: A UV water treatment system uses an ultraviolet light to kill microorganisms such as viruses and bacteria.
  • Water Softener: A water softener is a safeguard against “hard water,” filtering out minerals like magnesium and calcium. These minerals can build up in the pipes over time, leading to reduced water pressure and eventually ruining your plumbing system.

Have you noticed that your water smells or tastes strange or spears an unusual color? Are you worried about the effects of hard water on your plumbing system? Do you want water testing to find out what types of contaminants may plague your pipes? Call the water treatment specialists at D’Spain Sales & Service, Inc. and ask about installing water filtration systems in Boerne.

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What Is a GFCI Outlet and Why Are They a Good Idea?

Wednesday, October 29th, 2014

We all know that water and electricity don’t mix, and the risk of electrical shock is not worth taking a chance with your electrical appliances. However, water can come into contact with your electrical appliances even when you don’t expect it, and other electrical accidents may also occur. That’s why many bathrooms and kitchens contain GFCI outlets, which you may recognize from the “test” and “reset” buttons on the fixture.

GFCI outlets help protect you and your family members from the very real risk of electrical shock. In fact, some municipalities mandate the installation of GFCI outlets in certain areas of home, while most experts strongly recommend them. And some homeowners choose to install these outlets throughout the house for increased safety or to increase the property value.

When you need GFCI outlet installation, D’Spain Sales & Services, Inc. is an exceptional choice for a professional electrician in Bandera.

How It Works

There are three slots in any modern outlet. The larger left slot is known as “neutral” while the right slot is called “hot.” The hole at the bottom, which is non-existent in older outlets designed to accommodate two-pronged plugs, is called “ground.” The ground is meant to protect you from electrical shock from metal-encased appliances. But a ground-fault circuit interrupter provides even greater protection.

Normally, an electrical current flows from hot to neutral. Electricity flows from hot through the electrical appliance and back to the neutral slot. If something interrupts the circuit, such as water, the risk is that the current will flow to you instead, leading to electrical shock. A GFCI outlet senses any change in the current quickly, shutting off the power immediately.

Why Choose Professionals for Installation

Installing a GFCI outlet is only a job for a trained professional. This is mostly for safety reasons as a technician has the right tools for the job. A trained electrician can also let you know if additional areas of the home need protection as well, such as a laundry room or an outside outlet.

D’Spain Sales & Service, Inc. is an outstanding choice when you need an electrician in Bandera. Call us today!

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Is It Time to Upgrade Your Service Panel?

Wednesday, October 22nd, 2014

The service panel, also known as the breaker box or electrical panel, is the steel box inside or outside of your house that controls how electricity is routed throughout your home. You need a breaker box to break up the power that reaches your home in order to distribute it to different areas and specific fixtures as needed. This panel contains various circuit breakers that allow you to quickly shut off power to the entire structure or to individual areas only. The breaker panel also trips as a safety measure when it senses an overcurrent or an electrical short in order to protect your home. For this reason, it’s important to make sure your service panel is only installed and serviced by skilled and certified technicians.

For quality electrical services in Helotes, trust the experts at D’Spain Sales & Services, Inc. whenever you need an electrician.

Reasons to Consider Upgrading Your Service Panel

Eventually, you may decide to upgrade the service panel for any of the following reasons.

  • You want to upgrade from fuses to circuit breakers. Breaker boxes are sometimes called “fuse boxes” because they once contained fuses instead of breakers. When the electrical current coming into the home was unsafe, the fuses would blow in order to protect your home from fire. Today’s service panels instead use circuit breakers that switch on and off, so you won’t need to replace a fuse every time. Many homeowners choose to upgrade to this modern feature.
  • You want to add new circuits but your panel has maxed out. Many service panels max out when the panel is installed and construction of the home is completed. If you want to add circuits for any reason, generally due to home renovations, you will need to upgrade your panel or add a sub panel along with your older one.
  • Your older service panel is of inferior quality. Finally, you may simply decide to upgrade because your older system is out of date or simply does not work as it should.

No matter what the reason for your upgrade, call D’Spain Sales & Service, Inc. for a reliable electrician in Helotes today!

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Advantages of a Solar Pump for Your Water Well

Wednesday, October 15th, 2014

Choosing the right pump for your water well depends on a variety of factors. First, you’ll need to make sure that the type of pump you choose works best for your home, whether it is a submersible pump or a jet pump. Then, you need a qualified professional to decide which size pump works best for your needs. And one further consideration could have a major impact on your satisfaction with your pump: deciding to go solar.

Using solar energy with your water well simply involves the use of PV (photovoltaic) panels in conjunction with your well pump. Solar energy has become more and more prevalent today, so it is not too difficult to add solar energy to more of the home conveniences you rely on every day.

Learn more about the advantages of solar pumps here, and be sure to schedule water well services in Boerne with D’Spain Sales & Service, Inc., serving the Texas Hill Country for over 40 years.

Cuts Energy Spending

Water wells offer advantages over public water supplies, as you won’t have to worry about paying for water usage with your utility bills. However, your pump consumes electricity, which could add up over the years. Using solar energy for one of the tasks around your property, such as the water well pump, may significantly reduce your spending every month.

Works with Any Type of Pump

Your well uses one of two types of pumps: a submersible pump or a jet pump. Jet pumps are the most common type used in homes, pulling water from above the well using a vacuum. A submersible pump, on the other hand, is submerged in the water, pushing water up into the pipe. In either case, a PV panel can provide an alternative power source for any size pump.

Professional Service for Every Step of the Process

If you hire an experienced professional for solar pump installation, you may get better pressure and need fewer repairs over time. A technician can install the pump and the PV panels and give you professional advice about maintaining your unit for years to come.

For professional water well services in Boerne, call the experts at D’Spain Sales & Service, Inc. today!

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Benefits of LED Lights for Your Outdoor Lighting

Wednesday, October 8th, 2014

Increasing the outdoor lighting for your home is an excellent way to make your home safer and more attractive, as well as to increase the hours you can enjoy outdoor recreational areas, such as pools and patios.

However, those outdoor lights will add up to an immense amount of wattage, making them potentially expensive to run. That’s why we recommend you have LED lights installed for your outdoor lighting in Boerne, TX. Our professionals at D’Spain Sales & Service, Inc. can help create a new energy-friendly lighting scheme for the outside of your home using LED light bulbs. You will notice the difference when you hire skilled electricians like those on our team.

The Advantages of Using LED Lights

Light emitting diodes (LED) provide light as powerful as that from incandescent and florescent lights, but they require significantly less energy to run. Here are some of the benefits that LED light bulbs provide:

  • Energy saving: Imagine using 80% less energy to power the lights outside your house. That’s a huge difference, and that is what LED lights do. They only lose 20% of the energy they use to heat, where standard bulbs lose 80%.
  • Longevity: The savings grow even larger when you consider the average lifespan of an LED light bulb is 10 times greater than a traditional bulb. The average LED bulb will burn for 100,000 hours, which means it could burn steadily for 11 straight years. You’ll receive 4 times the savings over 10 times the lifespan.
  • Less heat: Because of their high energy-efficiency, LED lights emit a small amount of heat. You won’t have to worry about the lights making summer nights too uncomfortable.
  • Good for the environment: LED lights do not contain harmful elements like mercury that could end up in landfills. And you will send far fewer bulbs to the landfills because of their long lifespans: you can expect to throw away 25 incandescent light bulbs for every one LED light bulb.

LED lights do cost more to purchase upfront than standard bulbs; however, this is a small price to pay when you consider their energy savings and immense lifespan. LED lights start to pay for themselves the moment they first come on. The LED lights now available for outdoor use have expanded from the older narrow-beam models, and they can now fill a variety of functions. Ask your electrical installer about ways to make the most out of your new outdoor lighting set-up with LED light bulbs.

At D’Spain Sales & Service, Inc. we offer many different options for outdoor lighting in Boerne, TX and the rest of Texas Hill Country. Contact us today to learn more about our different lighting and electrical services, and the ways that we can help you conserve energy.

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Why You Need a Whole House Surge Protector

Wednesday, October 1st, 2014

When people think of power surges (also known as voltage spikes), they usually imagine a lightning bolt striking an electrical cable, causing all the lights in a home to suddenly glow bright white and then go to black. This is a realistic scenario…but it is also not one of the more common causes for power surges in a home.

The voltage spikes that are more likely to affect your house on a routine basis are the smaller ones that happen because of power fluctuations along the electrical lines that occur when a large appliance (a refrigerator, air conditioner, heating system, etc.) make an increased demand on the power supply. The voltage imbalance causes a sudden increase in power flow to one or more of the outlets. This may not cause a light to burn out or a circuit breaker to trip, but it can damage precision appliances over time.

The best way to defend against both small and catastrophic power surges is with a whole-house surge protector installed into the electrical panel. You can contact D’Spain Sales & Service, Inc. in Bandera, TX for electrical services that will hook up your home for comprehensive surge protection.

What Whole-House Surge Protection Does

You might wonder why you need a whole-house surge protector at all when you already have power strips on the outlets. Power strip are an effective level of defense against surges: they serve as a fuse that cuts off the power from an outlet when it rises above 120 volts, and this helps protect high-end devices like computer hard drives and entertainment systems that contain microprocessors susceptible to high voltage.

However, point-of-use power strips are rarely enough. To protect all of the appliances in your home, you would need power strips for every single outlet, and it would still not be enough since many appliances are hard-wired directly into the electrical system. Power strips are also insufficient defense against massive surges that can come from lightning strikes or utility company errors; these simply overwhelm the power strip and reach the appliance anyway. A whole-house surge protector can defend against these massive voltage spikes because it redirects the energy from the surge down into the grounding of the home.

Having a whole-house surge protector installed doesn’t mean you should throw away the power strips you use for computers and other equipment with microprocessors. It’s always wise to have added layers of protection for valuable appliances…just don’t depend on the power strips alone.

Only professional electricians should install a whole-house surge protector. The device must be wired into the electrical panel, and it must be the proper size for the electrical system. Call D’Spain Sales & Service, Inc. when you need surge protection that goes beyond power strips: we are a leading provider in Bandera, TX of electrical services, and we offer quality surge protection throughout the Texas Hill Country area.

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