When the power goes out, you lose more than just light. When your neighbourhood loses power, you lose heat, water, and of course, all of the appliances that run on electricity. In this article, we'll look at ten possible reasons for why you might experience a blackout.

Planned outages

Planned outages are one of the most common causes of power outages. These types of outages are typically scheduled by utility companies to perform maintenance on equipment or to make repairs. Planned outages usually take place during normal business hours, which means they don't affect residential customers as much as other types of power outages.

Poor weather

More than half of all power outages are caused by severe weather. Hurricanes and thunderstorms are the most common cause of major power outages, followed by ice storms and windstorms. Lightning is another common cause of power outages because it can damage power lines and transformers. A direct lightning strike can also cause damage to your home's electrical system or appliances if they are not properly grounded.

Fallen trees

Trees can fall on power lines and cause extensive damage, or they can block roads and prevent power crews from reaching areas that need repair. If your power goes out because of a tree branch or limb falling onto your house or car, report it to your utility company immediately.

Animal interference

Animals can cause power outages by damaging or interfering with electrical lines and equipment. Insects, birds and squirrels can cause short circuits by chewing on power lines, poles and transformers. Birds can also nest in equipment like transformers disrupting the power supply.

Vehicle crashes

When a driver is distracted by texting or talking on their phone, they often fail to see pedestrians or other vehicles in front of them until it's too late. This can lead to rear-end collisions, which can knock down power lines and cause blackouts for many people living nearby.

Construction or maintenance work

Construction and maintenance work on power lines can cause power outages. In most cases, the utility will notify customers of planned outages in advance and provide alternate arrangements for customers who rely on electricity for critical needs like medical equipment or refrigeration.

High energy demand

High energy demand can cause a power outage. High energy demand is a term used to describe how much electricity is being used at the time of an outage. If the amount of electricity being used at one time is too high, it can cause a power outage for everyone. The reason why this happens is because the grid has to be able to handle all the electricity being used at once.

Equipment failure

When a power outage occurs, it's often because of equipment failure, not a long-term problem with the power grid. This is especially true for major outages that last for days or weeks at a time. Transformers and power lines can be damaged quite easily, causing blackouts and brownouts in the area.

Bushfires and natural disasters

The most common cause of bushfire-related power outages is when the power lines that carry electricity to your house are damaged by the fire. These wires are usually protected by insulators, but sometimes they can get damaged when they're exposed to extreme heat or flames.

Vandalism

Vandalism can also cause power outages by destroying equipment that generates electricity. If someone wants to get revenge on an electric company or just feels like it, they may destroy equipment such as transformers or substations so that they don't work anymore.

Conclusion

There are a variety of different factors that could cause a blackout. However, regardless of what caused it, if you lose power in your home, you should call a licensed electrician right away for help.