The National Electrical Manufacturers Association's (NEMA's) AFCI Task Force offers the “Support AFCI Safety” Facebook page to provide educational resources to homeowners, electrical contractors and inspectors and state building code officials on the proven fire prevention and potentially life-saving benefits of arc fault circuit interrupters (AFCIs). The page can be found at www.facebook.com/SupportAFCIsafety.
According to Gerard Winstanley, NEMA program manager and spokesperson for the AFCI Task Force, the Facebook page offers a variety of educational resources on AFCI technology, including comprehensive product information, fact sheets, downloadable brochures and white papers, links to AFCI supporters and manufacturers and other educational resources related to electrical fire safety.
“We designed ‘Support AFCI Safety’ as a universal resource for homeowners, builders and electrical contractors to make them aware of the safety benefits that AFCIs provide,” said Winstanley. “AFCIs are a technological leap forward in home safety, and they have significant potential to save lives and loss of property caused by electrical fires in the home. Our goal is to spread that message to as many people as possible, and we believe the ‘Support AFCI Safety’ page will help do just that.
He added that as the page continues to evolve it will provide resources and updates to help visitors contact state code adoption panels and create a healthy dialogue as electrical safety officials continue to review the 2011 National Electrical Code (NEC) requirement for AFCIs.
AFCIs have been a NEC requirement since 1999 when they were first required to protect bedroom power and lighting circuits in new homes. That requirement was expanded in the 2008 NEC to also protect areas throughout the home, including living rooms, dining rooms and other family gathering areas. The 2011 NEC continues to require AFCIs as outlined in the 2008 code. To learn more visit www.AFCIsafety.org.