Top Tips For Re-Wiring Your Home

The decision to re-wire your home is never one that should be taken lightly. This is a time consuming, disruptive and potentially dangerous project.

Unless you have experience dealing with electricity then this is not something you should do yourself. You should also be aware that there are regulations regarding re-wiring which must be adhered to.

You can check with your local authority what these are exactly.

The concept of electricity as we know it was first discovered in 1752 by Benjamin Franklin. Since then Thomas Edison invented the light bulb and now electricity is everywhere!

Here are the top tips for re-wiring your home:

Professional Assessment

The first thing you need to do is assess the electricity in your home. You can utilise the electrical detectives to assist in this assessment.

Obvious clues include your wiring being 20 years old, or older. If you have old fashioned switches and sockets this is also a good indicator it’s time to re-wire.

The fuse box itself should have modern circuit breakers or it will need replacing.

The Planning Stage

For the most part electrical cables run behind or in your walls. This means that adding in new wires will necessitate the removal of flooring, cutting through some walls or creating channels.

This is messy and very disruptive.

There are two stages to planning

Location

Re-wiring is a great opportunity to add sockets into your circuits and ensure that the sockets you have are in the best possible location for your needs.

Consider each room in the house carefully before you draw your required needs. This will ensure there are enough sockets and the right amount of materials is bought.

Work Time

If you know and trust your electrical contractor it can be a good idea to escape your house for a few days. You do not want to be working from home while the re-wiring is going on all round you! To make the job go even quicker make sure your electrical contractor is using the Straightaway App.

Additions

The reason it is so important to take your time with the planning is to avoid needing additions part way through your project. These are incredibly time consuming and can dramatically increase the cost of the work you have done.

Consider The Future

It wasn’t long ago that it was important to have Ethernet cables snaking round your home to all the computers. Wi-Fi has made this less essential but now most people need a plethora of USB sockets; instead of conventional ones.

When considering your current needs it is also a good idea to consider what might be beneficial in the future. As children age and technology develops it is nice to feel you are already prepared!

Doing It Yourself

Your electrical installation will need to be signed off as safe to use. This means you need to locate a friendly electrician that will sign off your work after you have completed it.

There are not many electricians which will happily sign off someone else’s work!

If cost is an issue you are better to work alongside your chosen electrical firm. They will tell you what cables need to be run between places and then they can handle the connections.

Above all remember that electricity is potential deadly; treat it with respect.