Create an Electrical Plan for New Build Home

Prepare for an Electrical Walk-Through of Your New Home

If possible, try to organise a day and time to do a walkthrough of your home after framing is complete. Before the walk-though, make a copy of your new home floorplan and start to think about where you want various electrical features to be placed. Make notes on the floorplan so you are prepared on the day of the walk-through.

Bring a notebook or iPad and make notes for each room.

As you walk through your unfinished home, imagine what it will look like when you are ready to move in. Be sure to take your time and be thorough. Work through the checklist for each room and make sure you are satisfied that the electrician and builder knows exactly what you want.

• Where do you want lights for each room / area of your new home?
  • Living Room
  • Kitchen
  • Bedrooms
  • Den / Study / Rumpus Room
  • Laundry
  • Hallway(s)
  • Stairs
  • Garage
  • Exterior Lights
• Is your bathroom going to have heat lamps as well as traditional lights?
• Try to avoid placing lights directly above the mirror(s) – this can add unhelpful shadows to your face which can interfere with efficient makeup application and more. If you do have lights above the mirror, try getting lights on an adjustable axis so you can point them at an angle that isn’t pointing directly down on your head.
• What type of lighting will the bedroom have? Lamps next to the bed or lights that drop down from the ceiling, or sconces that are attached to the wall?

• Are there any rooms that won’t get much sunlight? Do those rooms need extra lighting options?
• Is there any extra lighting you want in the kitchen such as:
  • Under cabinet lighting
  • Extra lighting over the stove
  • Lighting under and / or over a bar / island bench
• Figure out where your dining room table is going to be and plan for a light to be placed so it is centred above. This may not necessarily be the centre of your dining room depending on the shape of your table and its placement in the room.
• Sometimes motion activated lights are a good idea for garages, closets, pantries, attics – any rooms that aren’t used for long periods of time. Is there a room where someone may forget to turn off the lights? Motion activated lights may be a good solution in those places.
• While you are mapping out where you want the lights, you can also plan out your light switches for each room.
  • Do any of your rooms have multiple entrances?
  • If yes, do these rooms need multiple light switches?
  • Where is the best / most logical place to put those light switches?
  • Do you want a dimmer switch anywhere?
  • Are there any specialised / multi-function switches you would like to have?

Kitchen

A good power point plan is essential for kitchens. Make sure to plan out where your counter-top appliances will be placed. It’s always a good idea to have at least 2 power points on each wall where there will be counter space.

Are you going to have some dedicated counter top appliances such as an espresso machine, microwave oven, or food processor? Think about where you want those types of appliances to be and make sure you plan to install enough easily accessible power points to run them all without having to use extension cords or power boards.

Bedrooms

Imagine where your bed will be in the Master bedroom. Do you have a king or queen size bed? Get the dimensions of your bed if possible and once you decide where it will be in your room, think about putting a power point on each side of the bed. This way you and your partner can each have a power point for lamps, laptops, etc… Also consider getting a power point with a USB port to make charging your phone easier. Make sure you have at least 2 sockets in each power point – if possible, try to get a power point with 4 sockets installed. We all know more power sockets is better than not enough! If you can avoid having to use a power board, all the better.

Bathroom

In the bathroom you will want at least one power point installed near the sink – just make sure it’s not too close! If you have 2 sinks in the bathroom you could have one power point between the 2 sinks, or one for each.

Something a bit different is to think about getting a power point installed in one of the top drawers of the vanity. This makes it easier (and safer) to use hairdryers, electric shavers, etc… near the sink. You can store those appliances in the same drawer as the power point and leave them plugged in for quick, easy access and use.

Consider getting a power point(s) installed that has a USB port to make charging your phone and other portable devices easy.

Living Room

The living room is usually the centre for entertainment in the home. Think about where your TV will go. Do you have a multi-media system (TV, stereo, components, etc…). If the TV will be wall-mounted, you will want to get a power point installed that is behind the TV. This will prevent cables from being visible behind the TV. If the TV is going to be on a table, you can also have a power point installed so it is placed higher up on the wall behind the TV.

If you have a multi-media set-up it’s a good idea to get 2 more power points (in addition to the one behind the TV) down near the floor. This way you will definitely have enough power for all the components of your system.

Garage

It’s always a good idea to have at least 2 power points on each wall of the garage. Try to space them out a bit here so it is easy to power tools at every point in the garage.

Do you plan on having a work bench in the garage? Install a row of power points under the work bench. You’ll also want at least one power point on the wall above the work bench so you can plugin a stereo or TV.

Hallways

It’s a good idea to have at least one power point installed near the floor and about half way down each of your hallways.

NBN & Phone

If possible, try to have your office built so it shares a wall with the living room. Have the NBN box installed behind where your desk will be and near the power point(s) in the office so that it’s not an eyesore in your living room. Since the router will be very near your living room there will be no dramas in getting the wi-fi signal to reach your TV.

If you have a large home, you will need to think about getting a wi-fi extenders placed here and there so the signal is able to reach every corner of your home.

Heating & Cooling

Since you are building a new home, it’s likely that you have planned out what type of heating / cooling system you will have installed. If not, you should get this sorted ASAP.

Are you going to have a ducted AC system or use wall-mounted units? If you are going with a ducted system, no worries – the AC professional will sort out how to install that throughout the home.

Wall-mounted AC systems require a bit of planning. Decide which rooms you want a system to be installed and where in those rooms you want the units to be placed. You’ll also need to have room outside on the ground for the external parts for each unit.

Home Security System

Are you going to install a home security system? Will it be an external system, internal or both?

For external security systems, think about where you want motion activated security lights. Where should cameras go?

For inside the home, do you want an intruder alarm system that is set when you leave and / or at night? You’ll want to designate a space near the front door for the keypad.

If you decide you want cameras in the home as well, decide where these will be placed. These are most often placed on both ends of hallways, one in the living room and potentially one in the office / study.

Smart Home

If you wish to control the various lights, power points, appliances, electronic devices, security system, etc… in one central location then you may want consider all that we discussed above be installed as a smart home system.

By connecting all these systems to a smart home system you can run all electrical aspects of your home from your phone, tablet or computer.

It’s easier to seamlessly integrate a smart home system into a home as it is being built. To do so requires careful planning and forethought. It’s not impossible to modify existing homes so they become smart homes, it just requires a bit more work and resources.