Victor, NY (PRWEB) February 17, 2014

At the Generac Power Systems dealer conference held in January in Orlando, Fla., Home Power Systems LLC received prestigious Premier Dealer status for the fifth year in a row. A leading Generac Power Systems standby generator dealer for over 10 years, Home Power Systems sells and services Generac home standby generators throughout central and western New York state.

Earning Premier Dealer status five years in a row is quite an honor, said Jim Swetman, president of Home Power Systems. We pride ourselves on providing superior service to our customers, and this recognition goes a long way toward reinforcing that philosophy with our clients and prospects.

To qualify for Generac Premier Dealer status, a dealership must have at least four technicians who are factory-certified to service Generacs home standby generators up to 20 kilowatts, maintain an extensive parts inventory, and have a bricks-and-mortar storefront. Home Power Systems exceeds those requirements by having seven service technicians, including two factory-certified to work on Generacs larger commercial generators.

Practically speaking, our dealers are the Generac brand in the eyes of customers, said Ryan Jeske, vice president of sales, residential products, Generac. Thats why the Premier Dealer program rewards dealers like Home Power Systems for living the Generac brand promise of giving our customers peace of mind. They consistently provide outstanding customer service. Maintain an inventory of product and parts. Provide 24/7 product support. We congratulate Home Power Systems for their significant commitment to their customers and for being among the best of the best.

With over 3800 customers throughout New York state, Home Power Systems has consistently been a leading standby generator dealer nationally for Generac Power Systems. Founded in 2003, Home Power Systems has grown its business by providing superior customer service. Hiring and training the very best service and support staff has allowed Home Power Systems to achieve their customer service goals and continue to be one of the top Generac Dealers in the United States.

Generac customers interested in learning more about Home Power Systems sales and service of Generac Power Systems product line can visit http://www.homepowersystems.net, or call 1-877-421-0203.

About Home Power Systems

Home Power Systems is headquartered in Victor, NY with an office in Syracuse NY, and sells and installs Generac home standby generator systems. Renowned for their generator expertise, they are sought out across the U.S. for sales as well as training technicians in the proper installation of Generac equipment. Home Power Systems takes care of every phase of the installation including town permitting, electrical wiring and inspections and gas piping. All generators are commissioned and started per Guardian's recommendations including load testing at your home.

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Home Power Systems Named Generac Premier Dealer Five Years Running

The story behind the Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas garage-home-office controversy is one familiar to millions---a beef over home remodeling.

For those who have not been following the Los Angeles Times investigation into the garage caper, heres a summary: Last month, reporters Jack Leonard and Paul Pringle reported that the county installed a home security system for the garage, which was being turned into an office. The reporters portrayed the project as a boondoggle, with a wall torn down for the installation of the wiring, which also required a trench dug adjacent to the garage. This work, they implied, might not have been needed. They also maintain the county has only grudgingly and slowly given them information and Ridley-Thomas has refused to talk to them.

Friday, Nancy Sullivan, Times vice president for communications called to say that four garage walls, not one, were involved in the job.

Overcoming these obstacles, the reporters found out that a contractor charged the county $6,239 for the project. Then Ridley-Thomas reimbursed the county $3,759 for an air conditioner, refrigerator and a flat screen television installed at the same time.

Beyond that, the story of the wall, or walls I should say, becomes muddy, like neighbors telling of remodeling their kitchen.

Ridley-Thomas told me that when he notified county officials he intended to move his home office, including his county computer, into the garage, they said they would have to revamp his county-supplied home security system. In addition, they said they, themselves, would have to move his county computer, with its high-speed Internet connection, into the new office. They had to do this, they said, to protect the county computer system from hackers.

Besides linking up with the Internet, the high-speed connection reaches the sheriffs office and other security agencies, Ridley-Thomas said. Each task requires wiring. In addition, the alarm system needs a wire to draw power from the home supply. So there must be wiring for a few purposeshigh-speed Internet connection, law enforcement notification for emergencies and power for the computer and the security alarm system, Ridley-Thomas explained.

County employees and the contractors looked at the garage and said they wouldnt be able to install so much wiring behind the walls without ripping them out. Since the garage was 30 years old, they said they couldnt find replacements for the old wooden walls. Lets hang dry wall over the wiring and paint it, they said. They preferred that solution to hanging the wires on outside of the old wall and covering them with molding. Fine, replied Ridley-Thomas.

Reporters Leonard and Pringle quoted a number of home security experts who said there was no need to rip out the wall to install wiring for the security system. Ripping the walls out? Thats absolutely ridiculous, said Nigel Smithers, Southern California general for Absolute Security Alarms. Ridley-Thomas is angry about the coverage and called me at home, hoping I would look into it. He said it was always clear that he would pay for the air conditioner, television and refrigerator. This was above board, there was no attempt to hide anything, it was completely appropriate and legitimate, he said.

The real dispute is over the amount of wiring needed and whether the wall should have been replaced. Was so much wiring required that the contractors had to rip down the wall? Would a cord from Home Depot sufficed? Was taxpayer money wasted? In that situation, if a contractor told me this about my home office, I might call in a contractor for a second opinion. But Ridley-Thomas, required to use the county for the job, didnt have that option.

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The story behind the Ridley-Thomas garage caper

Published: Saturday, February 15, 2014 at 6:12 p.m. Last Modified: Saturday, February 15, 2014 at 6:12 p.m.

OCALA -- A construction team renovating an Ocala residence discovered extensive vandalism to the home when workers arrived to work on Thursday, according to an Ocala Police Department report.

The owner of A-Team Restorations told an officer the team had been working on the home, located in the 2800 block of Northeast 19th Avenue, since Dec. 1 and that the residence is owned by a bank.

He said the workers left the home around 4 p.m. Wednesday and discovered the damage upon returning the next day.

Police said some of the damage included vulgarities written on the walls, wood paint/stain spilled on the floor, white paint thrown and spilled in a bathroom, a broken toilet, electrical wiring ripped from walls and tiles ripped from the floor.

The cost to repair the wreckage is estimated at around $20,000, the business owner said.

Anyone with any information about this incident can call the OPD at 369-7000, Crime Line at 369-7061 or Crime Stoppers at 368-STOP, or visit http://www.ocalacrimestoppers.com. Tips can also be sent via MyPD App for the agency or by texting 274637 using keyword 368STOP.

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Empty home suffers extensive vandalism

You didn't say why you feel the need to do this. As much trouble as it seems to be, re-feeding the receptacles from below it is what I would do. Indeed have done. It requires some thought when drilling up from below to insure you are in the wall and not the floor. Probably necessitates removing the existing boxes and installing new "cut-in" types. But they are cheap and a lot quicker than trying to fish the wire up through a small hole in an existing box. Some wall switches can be reached from the attic crawl space, others from below. And yes, I would run 12/2 romex to everything. The existing cables (you don't have pipe do you?) will be strapped 2 or 3 times above the box and you won't be able to use them to pull new wire in. I'm going to suggest looking for some help here. Perhaps a neighbor, friend or co-worker can suggest someone you can hire to help. Unless you do drywall work for a living you will find that you can't match the wall texture perfectly. Having tell tale signs of patch work all over the place is not what you want in the long run.

Good luck with it.

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Replacing house wiring low roof?

Two weeks after hooking up my home with SmartThings, I've learned things about my kitties I cant unlearn.

ReadWriteHome is an ongoing series exploring the implications of living in connected homes.

When I'm at work, my catsGamera and Gojiralove to defy me. I know this because my smart home tells me so.

People have all sorts of reasons for connecting their homes. Some people want to monitor the nanny, or keep an eye on things for security or safety reasons. Others just want to see what their pets do when they're not around. I happen to fall into the latter camp.

So when SmartThings asked if I wanted to check out one of its DIY smart home kits, I jumped at the chance. Two weeks into the experiment, it's turned up some disturbing evidence.

In 2012, SmartThings tore through its $250,000 Kickstarter goal by raising $1.2 million. Then it attracted another $15 million from other investors. In other words, the company managed to put out a smart home system that people really seemed to want.

I can see why. Its devicesa hub and a collection of sensors and other gadgetsare sleek and attractive, and pretty simple to set up. Connecting each device to the network requires nothing more than pulling out a paper tab (similar to those battery pull tabs you sometimes find in watches and other gadgets) and firing up the SmartThings mobile app. I had everything hooked up in less than 15 minutes.

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Smart Home Shocker: My Cats Are Out To Get Me

Stouffville Sun-Tribune

A fire that caused up to $200,000 damage to a home in northeast Stouffville Sunday was caused by an electrical issue.

Jennifer Cooper, fire prevention/public education officer for the Whitchurch-Stouffville fire department, could not say whether the Pendutch Circle blaze was related to an ongoing renovation, an appliance or perhaps wiring in the home.

A forensic engineer, hired by the homeowners insurance company, is investigating.

The amount of damage sustained to the second floor is more than originally thought and is closer to $150,000 or $200,000, she said.

Ms Cooper said the home looks repairable, but the homeowners will be displaced for quite some time.

Friends and relatives are rallying behind the family of four left temporarily homeless, according to neighbours speaking on social media. Plans were in the works to set up a bank account to assist the family.

The fire started on the second floor of the home, just west of the Stouffville Country Market in the Tenth Line and Hemlock Drive area, around 3:45 p.m Sunday.

Residents of the house were not home when the fire started. However, when they returned, they found smoke coming from the brick homes second storey, according to Town of Whitchurch-Stouffville Fire Chief Rob McKenzie.

There were no injuries.

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Electrical problem caused $200,000 Stouffville house fire

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FRANKLIN PARK (KDKA) No day is a good day to fight a fire, but on Thursday, it was 19 degrees felt like 12 and up on that aerial ladder, water is spraying back at you.

The call came in just before 11 a.m., bringing nearly half a dozen fire companies to the scene. But the house on Holmes Drive in the Settlers Walk neighborhood went up fast.

Murali Otti, his wife Saritha, and their two sons were not at home when it started.

Pavan Otti arrived from a doctors appointment to find firefighters mopping up.

I think its part of the electrical wiring of the house, said Pavan.

His parents were at a neighbors on the phone about insurance.

The damage to the house was far worse than neighbor Eric Palmer expected.

Theyre wonderful people; theyre great neighbors. Its just a shame, he said. Im glad nobody was home. Im glad nobody got hurt.

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Fire Destroys Home In Franklin Park

TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) -- A daybreak blaze at a southwest Topeka home is being blamed structural wiring in the attic, according to the Topeka Fire Dept. Firefighters could see heavy flames coming from the front of the third floor of the home, 1301 SW 11th Street, shortly after 6:30 a.m.

Two people were safely outside the house by the time firefighters arrived and they said no one was else was still inside the home.

Firefighters say they were able to quickly contain the blaze, although the house reportedly received extensive fire and smoke damage. They said the fire caused $30,000 in structural damage and another $15,000 in damages to stuff in the home.

The American Red Cross has responded as well to help the people who lived there.

The Topeka Fire Dept. also noted they responded to another fire the day before. They determined that fire was accidental, and also associated with faulty structural wiring. The Topeka Fire Dept. believes the incidents are not connected.

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Topeka Home Catches Fire Almost Year To The Day Since Last One

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) - A Louisville couple is accused of stealing thousands of dollars worth of merchandise from Home Depot.

According to arrest slips, police received a tip on Feb. 3 that James Briles and Mary Cunningham were planning to steal items from the Home Depot on Breckenridge Lane in St. Matthews. An officer who knew Cunningham and Briles (both known fugitives) waited outside the store and stopped them as they were leaving.

Officers searched Briles and Cunningham and found several pairs of pruning shears that had been shoved down the front of Briles' pants. Police say they also found stolen merchandise in Cunningham's purse.

The combined value of the merchandise found on the couple was estimated at more than $500.

Cunningham and Briles consented to a search of their vehicle, where police discovered more stolen property. The value of the items found in the couple's car was estimated at approximately $600.

According to arrest records, Cunningham and Briles were indicted on Jan. 23 for engaging in organized crime for their alleged involvement in shoplifting items from local Home Depot stores, then returning it for gift cards, which were later sold to area pawn shops.

An arrest warrant states the first known thefts date back to June of 2012, and continued until they were arrested.

The total value of the stolen merchandise was estimated at $45,000.

After stealing the merchandise from Home Depot, police say Cunningham and Briles exchanged it forgift cards. The gift cards were then sold for a fraction of their value to several business, including the ATM Gift Exchange in Clarksville and the Easy Cash Cards/Pawn store and Action Loan in Louisville.

Cunningham already had an active warrant for heroin possession and had violated the conditions of her release by allegedly being involved in drugs and thefts. Cunningham has been banned from all Home Depot stores but continued to returnand steal, police say.

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POLICE: Couple stole $45K in merchandise from Home Depot

A short circuit is suspected to have caused a fire that damaged a home on Bergen Drive on Sunday, officials report.

According to West Milford Fire Commissioner Ed Steines, at approximately 5:23 p.m. on Jan. 26, a structure fire was reported at 34 Bergen Drive, which is located off Union Valley Road.

When they arrived, firefighters "found heavy fire coming from the rear of the garage area and rear exterior of the house," said Steines.

Firefighters from township fire companies 4 and 6, under the direction of Co. 6 Chief Wayne Morrissey, attacked the fire and were able to knock it down before the fire could reach the home's interior, but not before the inside of the home sustained heavy smoke damage, said Steines.

Power also had to be shut off to the home, he said, because the fire caused some wiring to become exposed.

There were no reported injuries resulting from the fire, and assistance was rendered at the scene by firefighters from companies 1, 3 and 5, as well as the West Milford First Aid Squad personnel, said Steines.

Steines said both he and Fire Marshal Vinny Corsaro of Jefferson investigated the fire, and believe it was caused by a short circuit in an outside lighting fixture.

Bryan La Placa

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Bergen Drive home in West Milford damaged by fire