At one time, if you did residential electrical in South Florida, you knew exactly what to expect. New construction electrical was pretty much the same, with a few variations in size and quantity of outlets, perhaps a bigger panel, and a few other minor differences. Those days are rapidly becoming a thing of the past, and the demand for smart home electrical systems to support a wide range of technologies is becoming much more common.
So far, there are a few contractors who have embraced this change, but much of the industry seems divided on whether these changes are good or bad.
Having been working in residential electrical in South Florida for some time, and in commercial and electrical maintenance, we’ve been watching these changes closely, and we’re excited about the possibilities.
What Sort of Changes Are We Seeing?
The term “smart home” really means networked home. Homes where lighting, blinds, music and entertainment systems and more are centrally controlled through an app or interface. On the surface, that all seems to happen as if by magic, but the reality is, there’s a lot more wiring and communications cables going into the walls of our homes. There’s additional power required for the equipment that makes the magic happen, panels typically need to be more complex and larger to accommodate the additional equipment required to run your home.
How Your Residential Electrical South Florida Installation Will Change
Whether your residential electrical South Florida contractor installs smart home equipment for you, or whether there’s another company taking care of that aspect of your new home, there will be changes to the wiring and electrical that will need to be made.
Additional cabling may be necessary, changes to the panel to cope with additional electrical requirements, additional outlets or junction boxes, and even changes to the types of lighting, because not all lighting is suitable for smart home system operation.
Whether your electrical contractor is taking care of the smart home equipment or not, there will be more planning involved too, since all the wiring and equipment will need to be in place before the walls of your home can be finished.
Choosing the Right Contractors
Perhaps the biggest change that smart homes are making in the electrical world is that it has become more important than ever to hire the right contractors for the job. With far more power now required to run your home, and a lot more equipment to safely install, electrical protection and careful planning has become more important than ever.
Integrating the various systems and elements is another factor, and if you are planning to build smart home technology into your new home or a renovation (even a very old home!), you definitely want to work with an experienced company, who can get the job done safely and on time, and who are good at working with any other specialists you bring on board.
The fact is, smart homes are the way of the future, and there are only going to be more gizmos and gadgets behind your walls in years to come. Make sure that the power and wiring that supports those gizmos is up to the job, and you’ll enjoy them all the more.
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