What you should know before hiring someone to wire your new home.
If you’re starting your journey towards building your next home, first off, we just want to say...congratulations!! That’s an exciting step and we are happy for you and your family! But before we get into too much rejoicing, let’s talk facts.
Building a home can be a major undertaking that can put stress on your budget, schedule and most of all on your relationships if not handled properly. Nothing is more important than setting reasonable expectations. So how does one go about gathering the needed information? Its your lucky day because we have gathered all the material you need to get started so let’s get right into it!
9 STEPS TO A SUCCESSFUL ELECTRICAL INSTALLATION.
1.BUDGET
The first thing you need to consider when sizing up your electrical installation is your budget. If you’re asking yourself, “how should I know what to expect”?
Here are some of the many factors that will change the overall costs.
Size/Square Footage
Distance Form Utility
Location of Service Panel
Whole House/Portable Generator
Framing Style
Ceiling Height
Exterior Finishes/Siding
Home Automation/Smart
Devices/Cameras
Local/National Codes
Outbuildings
Scope of Work
DIY or General Contractor
Change Orders
2. SIZE
This is the overall area of the project. Most contractors will measure this in square feet, but there are many ways this can be calculated. Just make sure you have all the measurements and can easily communicate them to the proper contractor when the time is right.
Many people have been told that they are not to count the square footage of unfinished space, the garage or basement for instance. But when an electrician goes to wire those areas and finds out you have just as many lights plugs and switches in those locations as you do the living room, he is most likely not going to take a loss and submit a change order.
It is crucial to be able to visualize your new space and not make large changes later as those will confuse and delay even the most skilled contractors, not to mention increase your costs. We advise investing in a simple scaled set of blueprints that will be easy to read and easily sharable with all potential contractors.
3. DISTNACE FROM UTILITY
This is an often-overlooked cost when crunching the numbers. Many times, we go out to walk the property of a potential new home, and there are no utilities to be seen. On the one hand this is a good sign, as you will have maximum privacy and not be sharing with your neighbors.
On the other hand, this can be very costly if you’re having to pay the power provider to set multiple power poles and a pad mount transformer to reach your new home. Then have your electrical contractor trench in pipe and wire 100 feet to the side of the home. The good thing here is that getting this information will usually cost you nothing. A simple call to the power company and they will typically send out a design tech to walk through the process with you.
Strictly speaking from the prospective of the potential electrical contractor on your home.. the further the final utility point is from your home the more expensive the installation. One other option is an overhead line. Some power providers will even install power poles for free for the potential of a new customer so its always worth it just to ask.
4. LOCATION OF SERVICE PANEL
When it comes to locating the main house panel, most lean toward convenience. Others just want to “get it out of sight out of mind” and this can be problematic when it comes to cost. Just imagine for a moment with me if you would. In one house, the panel is located right in the middle of the basement. Every circuit that comes out of the panel is travelling out like a spiderweb from the center to the far reaches.
For example, a bathroom in the corner of the home on the second floor. For comparison’s sake let’s just say that’s 50 feet. Now let’s imagine the same home, but the panel is in the far corner of the garage. That same bathroom circuit now must travel above the garage, up the stairs, over a vaulted ceiling and then down to the upstairs bathroom. That run is now 100 feet plus.
Not only are we using more wire, but we now must upsize the wire to account for voltage drop due to the distance. We have effectively now doubled the cost associated with wiring your basic circuits, not to mention larger more costly wire such as for the range. Location matters.
5. GENERATORS
Whether you’re considering a whole house or a portable generator, this needs to be decided very early on in the planning process. Why, you may ask? Let me explain.
The generator will need a transfer switch, a possible disconnect and the wiring to your main house panel will need to be routed accordingly to be controlled by the switch. There are also low voltage wiring and other mechanisms that will need to be planned out as part of the installation.
If this is not addressed at the conception of the main power project, it may cost you more than double to move and reroute everything after the fact. Not only will it cost more, but you may not have very happy contractors on your hands now that there will be possibly large changes to the framing, siding, electrical, and anything else that might possibly be in the way. Make sure to cover this base early on.
6. FRAMING STYLE
After all the house we have wired here at Electrical Specialists, this has now become one of the first questions we ask our clients as they prepare to embark on their new home journey.
We have learned all too well the labor and material differences that arise due to things as simple as what the house is framed with. Most houses are standard wood 2x4 or 2x6 wall construction. But let’s say for instance you are interested in metal construction for a certain type of “barndominium” or “shouse” (shop/house) we would need to adjust our rates.
The reason being is that we now need to use metal boxes instead of plastic, armored cable instead of romex, and we will have to most likely do our own framing to fill in the gaps, as metal spacing is typically larger than that of wood. All this to say, it’s imperative the contractor know exactly what they are getting into to properly give you pricing.
7. CEILING HEIGHT
This one isn’t rocket science. We all love big beautiful open spaces with vaulted ceilings! They just cost more. More distance vertically and horizontally means more wire. And having to use and maneuver larger ladders and possibly scaffolding means more labor.
If you’re of the mind to provide and set up your own scaffolding in an attempt to save on costs, keep this in mind. The liability of the workers is now on you. Also, in our many years of experience here at Electrical Specialists, we have yet to see this actually save money in the long run. What usually happens is the scaffolding is not there on time, the client needs help to set it up, move it and break it down.
After delays, change orders are made for these accommodations, and now they are upside down on their investment and are out valuable time in the process. Our opinion is leave it to the experts if you want to stay on time and on budget. Just make sure this is part of your discussion.
8. SIDING/EXTERIOR FINISHES
Just as the interior framing can be a major cost issue, the exterior finishes can be as well. I think the best example is siding. If your house has a stucco or concrete finish, it will not only be much more difficult and time consuming for each penetration needed, but the installation will not look as smooth and form fitting as other finishes.
Now let’s compare wood siding and corrugated sheeting. The wood finish allows for ease of cutting in boxes, fishing wiring and roughing in lighting. When approaching corrugated sheeting, the cuts are much more difficult, dangerous and time consuming.
The necessary holes could be a project passed on to the building contractor if proper time and communication was allowed between the trades. In all cases, make sure to run whatever you have in mind by your contractor so there are no surprises mid process.
9. LOCAL/NATIONAL CODES
As you probably already know, codes matter. If you are reading this article, you have most likely already looked into local codes where your house will be located. You will have to be informed of many codes as every trade involved will need to meet them and, in some cases, exceed them. We cannot speak to any other trade codes except electrical, so that’s where we will stay for the time being.
Most municipalities have recently adopted electrical codes that cover things such as Arc Fault Protection,(fire safety breakers) GFCI protection, Utility Disconnects (emergency fire shut off) and whole house surge protection. (if you would like to know more about these items, please refer to our YouTube page for an in depth explanation) These will most likely be part of your installation but I would not leave this to chance as it will make a huge difference in the cost of your installation.
Make sure your contractor knows the codes, the most recent changes made and what the inspectors will be looking for on your project. If you are outside of the city, the county may have its own jurisdiction that will need followed. There is a chance where you are located that there is no one with the authority to inspect installations.
In that event you will be on your own. We at Electrical Specialists made a decision a long time ago that our installations will follow code no matter if there is an inspection or not. We would rather error onthe side of safety rather than budget.
Now keep in mind, codes are the minimum standard for life safety. So not following them is not only dangerous, it’s just plain irresponsible. But many contractors will look past this detail to gain your business so be very careful in your selection. We will explain how in the SCOPE OF WORK section.
HOME AUTOMATION SMART DEVICES CAMERAS
When the discussion turns to scope of work, that is when interior finishes come into play. In this day and age of smart this and automated that, the options are endless. There are video doorbells, video flood lights, smart switches, USB devices, smart hubs, occupancy switching and so much more. These can be tricky to budget depending on if your contractor will provide them or they are willing to install customer provided fixtures.
One thing you will definitely want to check in on is what the contractor’s warranty is on provided and non-provided items. Just make sure to have the conversation if that is the direction you are wanting to go.
OUTBUILDINGS We wont over complicate this one. If you plan on having connected or non connected structures such as a garage shop or shed, make sure to mention this to your contractors so they can plan accordingly and make the proper arrangements. Obviously any additional structure will change the overall costs. It may even change the size and location of the service you need on the property all together.
SCOPE OF WORK
This, in our opinion, may be the biggest cost factor, and the largest reason for your project ending in success, or a failure.
What is “SCOPE OF WORK”?
The scope of work is the contract, the line items within, the cost breakdown and the details of everything being done and not being done. This should be a very descriptive version of the story outline.
For example. If our scope of work were to have recessed lights included, it would state who is to provide them, what the lights are, if they are dimmable or non-dimmable, the color, where they are to be placed, if they are for new construction or remodel, and how much the install will cost per item.
The intention is to have clarity between the client and the contractor on exactly what will be done. And to set clear expectations. Things always change. So knowing that, what is to be done should be clearly outlined to make it easy to adjust.
There should be a clear payment schedule. Most professional contractors will expect a deposit on any large project to secure time on their schedule and order parts before they become hard to find. There should be no guess work on anything, especially the money. Some less experienced contractors will shy away from this conversation and hope to address it later after getting started. This has never worked out well for anyone. Now is the time to set all boundaries and expectations for your project, so don’t let anything “wait until later”.
DIY OR GENERAL CONTRACTOR
This is a topic that doesn’t get addressed very often, but can have a major impact on every part of your project. Many homeowners will take the leap to foreman of their operation for reasons such as.. “we will save so much money”! or “my dad was a contractor, I should be able to handle it”. Or maybe this is your baby, the home you and your family will live in and pass down to the grand kids, and you want to oversee every detail to make sure it’s done just so. Whatever the case may be, you can expect a massive impact on your project in many ways.
Let’s talk timeline. Without a doubt, projects seem to always extend a good deal past the original timeline. And that’s with an experienced contractor at the helm. Yes you will most likely save money on the overall project, but lack of access to certain materials, tools, and preexisting relationships with sub-contractors are something you will be going without.
Angie.com suggests builders will pay on average between $125,000 and $412,000 when building new. The lower number accounts for doing most of the construction yourself. The larger rate being closer to hiring the majority of it done. You will have to way the costs yourself, but do not do so without understanding the difficulty of what it is you will be taking on. And then double it.
CHANGE ORDERS
The dirty words of construction. Some would say anyway. We on the other hand just see them as part of the job. Change orders are defined as any work completed outside of the original scope of work. So first you may want to go back and read that section over again if you did not get a firm grasp on the topic.
The basic idea would be something like this: We had agreed to a contract. (scope of work) A deposit had been deposited and work had already begun. You stop in one morning as we are making progress, to inform us that the Lady of the house is requesting a jacuzzi for the master bath. Great! We are as excited as you for this addition, but no preparations have been made for this as of yet. Its not in the contract, and there’s a good chance your framer and plumber will need to be informed so they can make the necessary adjustments. So what’s the next step? “CHANGE ORDER”
Before any work is done, we go to the contract and update it with a line item stating exactly what we will be doing and how much the cost will be. The order is signed and we are released to complete the additional work. Keep in mind that larger change orders will change the timeline of the project as each contractor has a certain amount of time set aside for each task, and now there is more to do.
This is another obvious one in the fact that the more change orders, the more the cost will slowly climb. We have yet to see a project that does not include a list of change orders so you may want to prepare yourself for eventuality. The best way to keep the cost of change orders to a minimum is to be as thorough as possible in the planning phases and catch everything you possibly want before you break ground. The later in the process items are added, the higher the cost per item.
