Residential Electricity for Fire Investigators

Lab becomes “electricity central” during Residential Electricity for Fire Investigators

There are currently no dates scheduled for this seminar. Please check back soon.

Register early! This class is limited to the first 45 students.

Held on site at the Fire Findings laboratory testing facility - 2026 Plaza Drive, Benton Harbor, Michigan.

40 minutes from South Bend (Ind.) or Kalamazoo (Mich.) airports and 2 hours from Chicago airports.

St. Joseph/Benton Harbor is located along the southern shores of Lake Michigan - a gorgeous area to visit.

Get hands-on practical experience with wiring residential systems and gain a better understanding of how electricity can cause fires. We’re turning our laboratory classroom into a “mini-electrical system” and creating a lot of new practical displays with the goal of enhancing your knowledge of electrical systems. Come join us – be among the first to attend this exciting new session.

Course Background

Residential Electricity for Fire Investigators is a hands-on learning experience conducted in the Fire Findings laboratory. You'll learn how electricity gets to homes, how it’s transformed and distributed through a structure and how electrical fires occur. We’ll also discuss circuit protection in a structure, how to use the electrical system to determine the origin of a fire and what to look for to help rule out (or rule in) electrical fire causations.

Optional CFI test credits and CEU credits available.

What would a seminar about electricity be without utility poles? The Fire Findings’ laboratory setting allows for full-scale and elaborate displays of a wide variety of electrical components you encounter every day.

Components of the electric distribution system are displayed and controlled like you’ve never seen before to provide a better understanding of the route that electricity takes in its journey into our homes.

A demonstration of a “floating” neutral gives students a close-up view of the effects of the often-misunderstood event.

Instructor and Fire Findings’ Editor, Jack Sanderson, discusses an answer to one of many test questions derived from actual fire-damaged displays.

Gain useful information about these topics at the Residential Electricity for Fire Investigators seminar.

How electricity gets to homes, how it’s transformed and distributed through a structure and how electrical fires occur.
How to use the electrical system to determine the area of origin of a fire and what to look for to help rule in (or rule out) electrical fire causes.
How homes are wired and why they’re wired in certain ways.
The many ways receptacles can be wired and the implications of that wiring to fire investigation.
What information to obtain from property owners and occupants.
Electrical theory in an easy-to-understand format.
Causes of electrical fires.
- Learn why arcing occurs frequently in fires but seldom causes them and why excessive current could easily cause fires, but seldom does.
- Gain more knowledge about floating neutrals. Perhaps you’ve seen floating neutral demonstrations but never really understood the concept. We’ll clarify it all with some new, easy-to-understand graphics and demonstrations.
- Learn about high voltage and how it might be present inside a house. Learn the clues about fires that involve high voltage.
- Achieve a better understanding of high resistance (or glowing) connections. Where and why do they occur? What are the clues after a fire to help you determine if a high resistance connection was involved?
- Review case studies that illustrate all of these electrical failures and others. Learn from seeing the results of actual failures.

In addition, you'll:

Handle burned and unburned electrical components labeled and displayed to help you better understand what you’re seeing.
Practice with hands-on demonstrations built just for this seminar. Trace circuits, analyze wiring and determine what could happen electrically.
Learn to reconstruct electrical distribution systems.
Study many new displays aimed at helping you understand how components of an electrical distribution system work and how to instantly spot electrical work that was done wrong.
Get answers to your questions about electrical wiring and potential failures.

About Your Instuctors

Jack L. Sanderson is a nationally known speaker on a wide variety of fire investigation topics. As editor of Fire Findings, he authored dozens of articles on electrical fire causation. He’s also an instructor for our long-running, “Investigation of Gas and Electric Appliance Fires” course and "Investigating Solid Fuel-Burning Appliance Fires".

Sanderson, a certified fire investigator (CFI), has more than 30 years of in-the-field experience and brings his working knowledge as a former building inspector to this session. He has also done the electrical wiring of several residential structures. He will discuss wiring receptacles, switches and other parts of a residential electrical system along with the fire-causing implications of that wiring.

Fire Findings’ electrical expert, Nathan P. Dwyer, CFI, has conducted hundreds of electrical examinations at fire scenes and is intimately familiar with residential wiring and electrical fire causation. Dwyer will address how electrical fires occur and how to interpret evidence of electrical involvement.

More Information

While you're visiting along the Lake Michigan shoreline...
The Southwestern Michigan Tourist Council has a visitor information packet just for Fire Findings’ seminar participants. To get yours,
call (269) 925-6301.

We recommend the Benton Harbor Holiday Inn Express for your hotel accommodations.
Holiday Inn Express is about 5 minutes from the lab and your stay includes a free “Fresh Start” breakfast, 2-line telephones and data ports in every room, an indoor pool and spa.

For $74 per night, choose from a room with 1 king or 2 double beds. King leisure suites, which also include a pullout sofa, microwave and refrigerator, are $94 per night. Add 8 percent tax.

To make your reservations, call the Benton Harbor Holiday Inn Express directly at (269) 927-4599.

(Please note: Reservations at our corporate rate may not be made on-line. Call (269) 927-4599 to obtain the special seminar rates. Mention you're with Fire Findings.)

The Holiday Inn Express is located at 2276 Pipestone Road, Benton Harbor, Michigan 49022.

Hotel reservation deadline: 30 days in advance of the date of the seminar. First-come, first serve at this special rate. Don't wait too long to make your reservation after you've been confirmed for the seminar session of your choice.

IMPORTANT: Check conference availability before making your hotel, automobile or flight reservations. Please call us at (269) 925-2200 during regular business hours to confirm seminar openings.

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