Rural Missouri - May 2011 - (Page 4)

C O M M E N T S “Devoted to the rural way of life” May 2011 Volume 63 / Number 5 Jim McCarty, editor jmccarty@ruralmissouri.coop Jason Jenkins, managing editor jjenkins@ruralmissouri.coop Heather Berry, associate editor hberry@ruralmissouri.coop Kyle Spradley, field editor kspradley@ruralmissouri.coop Megan Schibi, editorial assistant mschibi@ruralmissouri.coop Mary Davis, production manager mdavis@ruralmissouri.coop Angie Jones-Gerber Dusty Weter Co-op page designers Hidden hazards of an old house • Do you need extension here’s a lot to cords to connect applianclove about an es to wall outlets? Today’s older home. standards call for enough Whether it’s a electrical outlets so that Victorian mansion or the extension cords should old family farmhouse not be necessary. that’s seen generations • Do you have groundcome and go, older fault circuit interrupters homes possess a charm (GFCIs) in areas where that just can’t be duplielectric devices could cated in a home that’s come into contact with built today. water? GFCI outlets and But owners of older breakers have cut the homes should be aware number of accidental electhat behind that walnut trocutions in half since wainscotting and under they were introduced. that hardwood floor, an Beneath their walls, old houses could be harboring wiring hazards. • Do you have fuses? This electrical safety hazard is a sure sign your wiring could be lurking. is woefully out of date. Older homes may have been wired According to the Electrical Safety Foundation Interwith four-circuit, 60-amp service panels that use fuses. By national (ESFI), home electrical problems account for an contrast, a modern home should have at least a 200-amp estimated 53,600 fires, leading to 500 deaths, 1,400 injuries panel with circuit breakers instead of fuses. and $1.4 billion in property damage each year. Many of The National Electrical Safety Code requires arc-fault these problems occur in older homes. circuit interrupters on every circuit in new homes. These Half of the homes in use in the United States were built safety devices replace standard circuit breakers. They detect before 1973. These homes were built before many of the arc faults — the accidental release of electricity from wiring, appliances and other devices we take for granted today were appliances or cords — and can shut down power to a circuit even invented. in milliseconds. • One-half of U.S. homes were built before drip-type cofBy removing the hazardous arcing condition before it fee makers and garage door openers. becomes a fire hazard, these devices offer a much higher • One-third of these homes were built before hairdryers level of protection and have saved countless lives. or electric can openers were invented. • Another sure sign wiring is out of date is the absence • Builders of older homes probably never dreamed of of three-pronged outlets. If you must use adapters in order home computers, cell phones and rechargeable toothbrushto plug three-pronged cords into your outlets, you should es or maybe even electric heat. have your wiring updated by a qualified electrician. The increased demand for electricity caused by these Having your house rewired is an expensive proposition, new devices — microwaves, high-definition television sets, but so is recovering from a fire caused by inadequate wirair conditioning — can overwhelm an older home’s electriing. Certainly any remodeling job in an older house should cal system. This can lead to a fire, electrocution or, at the begin with the wiring. least, the inconvenience of blown breakers. Make this the year you invest in a safety update for your Here are some easy-to-recognize signs that your older older home. home is in need of new wiring: T Strong on charm, older homes can be weak on safety USPS 473-000 ISSN 0164-8578 Copyright 2011, Association of Missouri Electric Cooperatives. Call for reprint rights. Rural Missouri is published monthly by the Association of Missouri Electric Cooperatives. Barry Hart, executive vice president. Individual subscription rate: $9 per year or $21 for three years, taxes and postage included. Group rate for members of participating RECs $3.99, taxes and postage included. Delivery as specified by subscriber. If not specified, delivery will be by periodical class mail at subscriber’s expense. Periodical Class postage paid at Jefferson City, MO, and additional mailing offices. www.ruralmissouri.coop Find us on www.facebook.com/ruralmissouri P.O. Box 1645 Jefferson City, MO 65102 573-659-3423 info@ruralmissouri.coop Rural Missouri Drake is new manager at Macon Electric similar position at the Missouri association. oug Drake, who previously overIn his 23 years with the industry, he has saw the safety training program become a Certified Loss Control Professional for line workers across Missouri, is and has completed the Management Internthe new manager of Macon Elecship Program sponsored by the National tric Cooperative in Macon. He replaces elecRural Electric Cooperative Association. tric cooperative veteran Wayne Hackman, When major storms caused power outwho retired at the end of 2010. ages, he was involved with efforts to assist In accepting the new position, Drake electric cooperatives in restoring power returned home. He is a former resident of through AMEC’s Emergency Assistance ProClarence and a graduate of South Shelby gram, which sends workers, material and High School. equipment from undamaged systems to Before moving to Macon Electric Cooperhelp those in harm’s way. ative, Drake held the position of field trainThrough this effort, he often worked in ing manager at the Association of Missouri the field assisting with the recovery efforts Electric Cooperatives (AMEC). He is a 1985 in the wake of ice storms, tornadoes and graduate of the University of Central Miseven the hurricanes that affected electric cosouri and has worked in the electric utility Doug Drake ops in Mississippi and Louisiana. industry since 1988. He and his wife, Lisa, have a daughter, Danielle, who is a He began as an apprentice lineman for Western Illinois student at the University of Missouri. Power Cooperative in Jacksonville, Ill. He moved to the Missouri’s electric cooperatives welcome Drake to his Association of Illinois Electric Cooperatives in 1997 where new role and wish Hackman all the best in his retirement. he worked as a safety instructor. In 2000, he accepted a D Postmasters: Send address changes to Rural Missouri, P.O. Box 1645, Jefferson City, MO 65102. Subscribers: Report change of address to your local cooperative. Do not send change of address to Rural Missouri. Advertising standards: Advertising published in Rural Missouri is accepted on the premise that the merchandise and services offered are accurately described and sold to customers at the advertised price. Rural Missouri and Missouri’s electric cooperatives do not endorse any products or services advertised herein. Advertising that does not conform to these standards or that is deceptive or misleading is never knowingly accepted by this publication. Advertising information: mdavis@ruralmissouri.coop 573-659-3400 National Advertising Representative: National Country Market; 611 S. Congress St., Suite 504; Austin, TX 78704 573-659-3400 Member, Missouri Association of Publications and Missouri Press Association 4 WWW.RURALMISSOURI.COOP http://www.ruralmissouri.coop http://www.facebook.com/ruralmissouri http://www.facebook.com/ruralmissouri http://WWW.RURALMISSOURI.COOP

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Rural Missouri - May 2011

Rural Missouri - May 2011
Table of Contents
Comments
Columns
Jim Peters’ Passion
Help & Hope
Twist of Fate
Mail Bag
Shoot Like a Pro
Out of the Way Eats
Aircraft From Another Era
Hearth and Home
News Briefs
The Pared-Down House
Marketplace
Around Missouri
Neighbors
Just4Kids

Rural Missouri - May 2011