Most people who hang up picture frames or affix other items to their walls in their home don’t give a second thought as to what’s behind the wall. If the item isn’t heavy and you don’t need to worry about locating a stud, then it’s understandable to just start hammering or drilling away.
However, studs aren’t the only things behind your walls. There’s also a whole lot of electrical wiring spread throughout your home, as well as pipes and ductwork. This means that even though drilling into the stud might not be necessary for the sake of holding up the item’s weight, it might still be advisable simply to avoid accidentally knocking out your power.
Here’s some information to consider the next time you use drills or other tool rentals in Monroe, LA in your home.
Finding your studs
Studs are an extremely important part of your building structure. They hold up your drywall inside, as well as the wood sheathing of the exterior.
Of course, you can’t just look at your wall and determine where the studs are, unless the construction crew did a horrible job of putting up your drywall. While you can knock on the walls to determine which spots are hollow and which are non-hollow (with the non-hollow spots indicating the presence of a stud), the most accurate way to find studs is using a stud finder.
Not only will a stud finder show you exactly where a stud is located, but it will also tell you where wires and copper are located behind your walls, meaning you won’t need to worry about plunging right into them once you drill into an area.
This is important, because accidentally drilling or hammering into your electrical wiring could result in you starting a fire behind your wall. If you hit your electrical wire, you’ll need to have a licensed electrician come and inspect the circuit as soon as possible to make sure there isn’t a safety hazard.
How do you know if you’ve punctured a wire behind your wall? You might notice symptoms such as flickering lights, outlets that aren’t working properly, loss of power to part or all of your home, a burning smell that seems to emanate from your walls, power that cuts in and out or a frequently tripping breaker. These are all warning signs you cannot and should not ignore, as it could result in your home burning down in the worst-case scenario.
The problem is especially likely to happen if you’re doing home renovations. This is where most wiring issues happen, especially if you have several different contractors working in the area all at once. You should always have an electrician come in toward the end of the project and make sure all the wiring and electrical fixtures are good to go.
For more information about hanging items on your wall and avoiding hitting any wiring or electrical fixtures, contact Ram Rent-All, Inc. today. We provide the tool rentals in Monroe, LA that you need to get your project done right.