You flip the switch, expecting a deluge of light to brighten your way, but nothing happens. You flip it a couple more times for good measure (although that never changes anything) and resign yourself to the power being out.

But, the question is, why?

Check out a few of the most common causes of power outages here.

Internal Causes of Power Outage

The first thing to do is check to see if your neighbours have power. If they do, you can expect the cause of your trouble lies somewhere within the walls of your home. Here are a few common examples of potential trouble spots.

• Overloaded power boards: Yes, it has a lot of plugs, but that doesn’t mean you have to use all of them at once

• Tripped fuse: Fuses will trip if there is a power surge or other problem that could damage your electrical equipment. It’s a built-in way to protect your appliance and devices.

• Malfunctioning circuit breaker: Circuit breakers are another safety feature designed to shut off if there is a major electrical problem. A malfunctioning circuit breaker could be the source of your power troubles.

If you suspect an internal problem with your electrical system, your best bet is to call an electrician in Sydney to take care of it. You don’t want to find out what happens when you try to replace it on your own and you don’t know what you’re doing.

External Causes Power Outage

If your neighbours don’t have power, it’s more likely there is an external factor causing your power outage. Here are the most common factors:

• Storms: Bad weather ranging from lightning storms to cyclones can knock out power lines or send trees crashing down onto important electrical equipment. The problem is so pervasive that 40% of power outages in 2018 were caused by the weather and falling trees.

• Earthquakes: Big earthquakes have been known to damage electrical equipment, causing significant power outages.

• Falling trees: Trees can fall during storms, but even if there hasn’t been a recent storm, this could be the culprit. Tree trimmers or maintenance crews may have inadvertently dropped a branch on the line or damaged a piece of electrical equipment.

• Excess power demand: If too many people are using the power at the same time, it can overburden electrical equipment and cause a failure. This often happens during heatwaves when people crank up the AC.

Problems Caused by Power Outages

When everything goes dark in your neighbourhood, who you gonna call? You can’t be fumbling around in the dark looking for an electrician’s telephone number. Your food is going bad in the freezer and your devices are slowly losing their charge.

Keep the number of a reliable electrician in a safe place for just such occasions. After all, you want to get the lights on as quickly as possible and go on about life.