Pro's Picks: A Whole-Home Electricity Monitor Preventing Fires

Frank Wickstead
Partner, Alair Buckhead
Professor of Practice, Georgia Tech
Atlanta, Ga.
 

I discovered Ting from a client whose house was destroyed by a fire. The client’s insurer suggested the device after the fire. I then asked a couple of third-party adjusters about it, and both spoke highly of the technology. I then installed one in my home and lived with it for a few months before suggesting it to our clientele. 

Ting identifies micro arcs, also known as scintillations, behind the walls. These micro arcs can eventually wear the wire’s insulated coating. At that point, micro-arcs become arcs, and an arc is a spark. When sparks occur behind drywall, ignition can be inevitable. I'd stress that Ting does not prevent the need for smoke or carbon monoxide detectors. Ting helps prevent one cause of home fires. Users should not change anything else they may be doing to protect their home.

It can be plugged into any receptacle and functions with an app and Wi-Fi. I suggest it to all our clients. 

Ting is by no means a remodeler or builder-specific device in that it does not require professional installation. It can be plugged into any receptacle and functions with an app and Wi-Fi. I suggest it to all our clients. 

In addition to identifying micro arcs, Ting can identify grid issues, like brownouts, outages, spikes, and grid-to-home connection problems. If a Ting device identifies a problem, an email is sent, the app sends an alarm notification, and customer service reaches out to assist with a plan to identify the location of the concern. 

As previously mentioned, before we recommend a product to our clientele, I always use it myself. I have been using Ting for about a year and I receive a monthly report of overall draw and any anomalies that may have occurred. The device itself is very reasonable and some insurers subsidize the cost. There is also a nominal monthly subscription fee.