Infrared electrical inspections
An infrared electrical inspection is an annual thermal scan of energized electrical equipment, from panels and switchgear to substations, performed under load. A loose, corroded or overloaded connection heats up long before it fails. The camera finds each hot spot with everything still running, and the report reaches your electrician while the problem is still a repair rather than an outage or a fire.
What the standards and your insurer actually ask for
The inspection interval comes from the National Fire Protection Association, not from us:
“Routine infrared inspections of energized electrical systems should be performed annually prior to shutdown. More frequent infrared inspections, for example, quarterly or semi-annually, should be performed where warranted by loss experience, installation of new electrical equipment, or changes in environmental, operational or load conditions.”
— National Fire Protection Association
Insurers lean on that guidance: annual thermal scans of electrical distribution are an increasingly common condition of property coverage. The industry standard our surveys run to, the Standard for Infrared Inspection of Electrical Systems & Rotating Equipment, is hosted on our specifications page, where thousands of facility managers download it every year.
For electrical substations specifically, where a single failed connection can take down a campus, read why substations get scanned annually.
How the inspection works
- Equipment is scanned energized and under normal load, because faults only show as heat when current flows.
- A certified thermographer surveys each item on the equipment list with a calibrated infrared imaging radiometer.
- Every anomaly is recorded: thermogram, control photograph, measured temperature, location, and the affected component.
- Findings are compiled into a report ranked for repair planning: fix the worst first, on scheduled time instead of emergency time.
- Repaired items can be re-scanned to confirm the fix; new installations and fresh repairs are where excess heat most often turns up.
The equipment list runs from incoming lines and transformers through panels, breakers, disconnects, bus ducts, transfer switches, generators, and down to fuses and junction boxes; the full list is in the FAQ below.
Proactive beats reactive, in dollars
Fire and failure risk down
A faulty connection found by a scan is an hour of scheduled repair. The same connection found by failure is equipment damage, downtime, and in the worst case a building fire.
Maintenance hours aimed
The scan locates the exact component: no exploratory teardown, no hours hunting, no new problems created by poking healthy equipment.
Repairs on your calendar
Findings move repairs to normal working hours and planned shutdowns, not nights, weekends, and overtime after something lets go.
Scanning motors, bearings, and rotating machinery too? That's the same visit; see infrared mechanical inspections. Facilities that want this on a schedule put both on an annual scan program; ask when you call.
What facility managers ask
How often should electrical equipment be scanned?
The National Fire Protection Association recommends routine infrared inspections of energized electrical systems annually, prior to shutdown, and quarterly or semi-annually where loss experience, new equipment, or changed load conditions warrant it. Many insurers now require the annual scan as a condition of coverage.
Is the inspection done with equipment energized?
Yes. That is the point of it. Faults show as heat only under load, so equipment is scanned in normal operation. Nothing is shut down for the inspection itself; repairs found by the scan can then be scheduled for planned downtime.
What do we get at the end?
A comprehensive report: each finding documented with its thermogram, a control photograph, the measured temperature, its location, and the affected component: the record maintenance teams repair from and insurers accept.
What equipment should be on the inspection list?
Incoming lines, transformers, distribution panels, circuit breakers, disconnects, bus ducts, automatic transfer switches, control cabinets, emergency power and fire pump panels, generators, capacitors, fuses, junction boxes, metering cabinets, lightning arrestors, and lighting contactors. For utility and campus substations, see our substation inspection article.
Put the scan on the calendar
Tell us the facility, the gear count, and whether an insurer deadline is driving it. We'll scope the survey and get a certified thermographer scheduled.