Everyone is aware of the dangers associated with lightning. However, very few people know that lightning bolts are five times hotter than the sun’s surface and travel 300 million km per hour! From the research, it is evident that lightning is much more dangerous than you think.

If you want to prevent yourself from the dangers associated with lightning, you have to remain well prepared.

When your home gets struck by lightning, you should take the help of an emergency electrician. If you live in Queensland, there are greater chances that your home can get struck by lightning. However, it would be best if you do not worry about it, as emergency electricians in Brisbane are always here to help you.

First of all, it is essential to understand what can happen if this strong force of nature gets in touch with your home.

What happens when your home gets hit by lightning?

Remember that natural lightning has very high voltages that can power 56 houses for a full day.

It is unimaginable, and you can easily understand how much energy flow occurs whenever lightning touches your home.

The biggest problem that you may face if the home is struck by lightning, is the electrical outage.

The voltage of the lightning directly gets in touch with the circuits, wires and outlets, and the electrical system of the home wiring and bounces between conductive materials.

Sometimes lightning also hits roofs of the homes before contacting the electrical lines.

Lightning can bounce between:

• Wires and data cabling
• Pipes
• Gutters and downspouts
• Metal window frames
• Appliances that are plugged in
• Circuitry and phone lines

Now let’s look at the physical damage that can be caused by lightning.

1.    Fire damage

As we have already discussed, lightning is dangerous to roofs. If your roof has any wooden structure or material, it can increase the problem for you.

It is due to this reason; we highly recommend you avoid wooden and other flammable building materials for your homes, especially if you are living in a lightning-prone area.

So the first danger associated with our lightning is fire damage.

There are other ways in which fire damage can destroy electrical wiring. Sometimes it starts passing to your electrical wires, burning them up and causing potential fire ignition hazards.

If you face any lightning strike that tends to land on your home, you should not touch any electrical appliances until everything comes to normal.

2.    Shockwave damage

Even if you have prepared your home for shockwave damage, there are strong chances that lightning can still harm it.

The power of lightning can not be underestimated because it can create a very powerful shockwave that can even smash stones and most potent materials such as concrete. So, it is pretty evident that roofs and walls are highly susceptible to holes whenever lightning strikes them directly.

If you are facing a lightning strike in your home, we recommend keeping yourself away from windows, walls and doors.

3.    Power Surge Damage

Lightning strikes preferably go down near electrical circuits and immediately start conducting electricity. In other words, we can say that lightning is also a powerful form of natural electricity, so it is no wonder it is drawn to the circuitry.

Realistically no such appliances, circuits or wirings are available on the earth that can handle or ensure the smooth flow of lightning through them.

So, whenever lightning gets in touch with your electrical wiring, there are strong chances that your appliances, devices and wires will burn, melt and become even worse than that.

Whenever lightning strikes your home, you should get ready to say goodbye to your many appliances.

It is worth mentioning that modern electronics are comparatively more robust than in the past, and few can survive a tiny bit of lightning strike.

Suppose you also want to check the capability of your electrical system and appliances against lightning. In that case, it is better to call an electrician for a detailed electrical inspection of your home.

The first thing to do when your home gets hit by lightning!

Safety always comes first. Whenever lightning strikes your home, it is better to check out whether everyone is safe or not. For this purpose, you have to count for every family member and call 000 if you are facing survival issues.

If lightning has caused the electrical fire, you should call the fire brigade team to assess the area for damage. It also has heat sensors and other devices that will check whether the damages are caused to the walls or not.

The last and the most crucial step is to proceed with a detailed electrical inspection of your electrical system by a licensed and certified emergency electrician.

Is it possible to tell if your home was hit by lightning while you are out?

Various indicators will clearly show the visible physical damage. However, you cannot find the electrical damage that lightning may have caused.

A few telltale signs will guide you on whether or not the lightning has caused damage to your electrical system. Let’s have a look at them.

• Loss of power
• A strong buzzing sound
• Sparks or fire
• Structural damage to your property
• Smokey smell
• Melted plastic or wires.

Protect your home from lightning!

Here are a few tips that you can implement to protect your home from potential damage caused by lightning.

• If you feel that lightning will strike your home, immediately unplug all the electrical appliances and turn off the main switch.
• Immediately proceed with the backup of all of your files and data in the cloud storage.
• Do not use water or go near the water.
• Stay away from wearing Windows, doors, walls, and common pathways like pipes.

Are you looking for an emergency electrician? LiVE Services Group can help!

We understand that lightning, storms, rain and thunder are all dangerous for the electrical appliances and the electrical system of homes and commercial buildings.

However, you can control many things if you are well prepared and take the services of an emergency electrician at the time of bad weather. 

At LiVE Services Group, we have electricians that are providing their emergency services throughout South East Queensland. You can quickly call them anytime you need an electrician in under an hour.

Are you also facing an emergency issue due to bad weather?

We offer all types of commercial, domestic, and emergency electrical services, any time of the day or night! Call us at 1800 548 332 today. Our local emergency electricians are available 24/7, feel free to book an appointment online at Live Services Group anytime.