It’s a great dream. Turning your beach front home in Florida into a high end guest house, retiring from the rat race, and spending your days taking care of all the guests that are going to flock to your property to get sand between their toes and salt in their hair. However, there’s a little more to commercial renovations in South Florida than just hanging your shingle outside and hoping for the best.
Here’s what you need to know about the process of going from residential electrical to commercial electrical in a South Florida property, so that you can plan ahead.
Commercial Electrical Assessment
The first thing that you will need to do when you are converting a residential property to a commercial one is to have your electrical assessed, and to determine what changes will need to be made. Generally speaking, since commercial properties usually need more power than residential ones, an electrical panel upgrade will be a part of the upgrade, but there may be changes needed to wiring, lighting, kitchen electrical and more. The best way to get a clear picture of what you need is to have a professional commercial electrical contractor do this assessment for you.
Kitchen Upgrades
If you’re planning to convert your residential kitchen to a commercial one, then that will probably be one of the biggest changes you need to make to your electrical. Commercial appliances and equipment often require three phase power, and will almost certainly require that the wiring and power supply in your kitchen be upgraded.
Wiring and Lighting Upgrades
There are different requirements for electrical wiring and lighting in commercial buildings, and these are another area that will be addressed as a part of commercial renovations in South Florida. Wiring will be brought up to the relevant codes, and lighting may need to be added to comply with local codes and health and safety standards.
Backup Power
Another major change that you may consider if you are converting a residential property into a commercial one is to add backup power. Whether in the form of a standby generator or alternative power like solar panels, it’s a good idea to have commercial buildings outfitted to cope with South Florida’s unpredictable weather. After all, business doesn’t stop because there’s a storm!
Security and Smart Upgrades
The final element that you might consider when developing a plan for the electrical upgrades necessary to transform a residence into a guesthouse are security and “smart” upgrades. A commercial property is likely to require alarm systems, cameras, automated gates or garages and other upgrades, and those should all be factored into the initial assessment.
Ensuring You Get the Right Upgrades
As you can see, there’s a lot that goes into ensuring that your new guesthouse is electrically safe and sound, and ready for business. Make sure that you prioritize things like electrical too, because if you leave them until after you’ve made cosmetic changes and upgrades, you may find yourself paying more to repair finishes after changes are made.
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