Storm Season Electrical Prep for Northwest Louisiana Homes

Spring and summer in northwest Louisiana mean three things: heat, humidity, and the kind of storms that knock out power and fry electronics. We see a clear pattern every year — the homes that prep before May lose almost nothing during storm season. The homes that don't lose TVs, HVAC control boards, and sometimes the entire panel.

Here's the short list we give every customer before storm season starts.

1. Install whole-home surge protection

A whole-home surge protective device (SPD) mounts at the panel and clamps incoming voltage spikes before they reach your wiring. The 2020 NEC made these mandatory on new and replacement services (NEC 230.67), and for good reason: a single nearby lightning strike can push tens of thousands of volts down your service. A $200 SPD pays for itself the first time it catches a hit.

Plug-in strip surge protectors are still useful at sensitive equipment (TVs, computers, AV gear), but they're the last line of defense, not the first.

2. Test your generator transfer switch — now, not during the outage

If you have a standby generator, run the monthly self-test and verify the automatic transfer switch (ATS) actually transfers. We get calls every storm season from homeowners whose generator started, ran beautifully, and never transferred load because the ATS controller was dead. If you have a manual transfer switch for a portable generator, exercise the interlock and make sure your generator inlet box and cord are accessible without rummaging through a hot garage.

3. Understand the lost-neutral problem

During storms, tree limbs and falling debris can break or stretch the service-drop conductors at your weatherhead. If the neutral conductor opens but the two hot legs stay connected, your 240V service becomes unbalanced — and voltage on the two halves of your panel can swing from 0V all the way to 240V depending on load.

The symptom is unmistakable: lights on one side of the house are too bright while lights on the other side are dim, electronics are dying in real time, and the smell of burning insulation is in the air within a minute or two. Cut the main breaker immediately and call. Don't try to fix it by flipping breakers — the longer the imbalance runs, the more damage compounds.

4. Trim trees away from the service drop

The wire from the utility pole to your weatherhead is your service drop. Anywhere a branch could fall on it or rub against it during a storm, get the branch out. SWEPCO maintains their clearance to the pole; the run from the pole to the house is on you. This single step prevents more storm damage than any other.

5. GFCI/AFCI test on every protected receptacle

Press the TEST button on every GFCI and AFCI receptacle and breaker. If it doesn't trip, it's not protecting you anymore. These devices fail in the open position (still passing power, no longer protecting) — they fail silently. Test them every spring.

6. Know where your main breaker is

The grown-ups in the house should all know where the panel is and which breaker is the main — including how to operate it in the dark. In a real emergency you may not have light. We see panels regularly that are blocked by storage, behind a deep freeze, or in a closet that's been remodeled around. Clear the panel.

Storm hit anyway? Here's what we do.

We answer 24/7 and most emergency calls in Bossier City, Haughton, Benton, Keithville, and Greenwood, and we dispatch an electrician as quickly as possible. We don't charge overtime, weekend, or holiday fees. We restore safe power, then provide written documentation of the damage for your insurance carrier.

See: Whole-Home Surge Protection · Generator Installation · 24/7 Emergency Service