10 mistakes report

www.jzeelectrical.co.nz [email protected] 022 192 6302

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10 Mistakes homeowners make when building a home or re-wiring renovated

property

Contents

Introduction ............................................................................................................................ 3

1.Towel Rail Power Saver ...................................................................................................... 3

2. Budget before you start for electrical plan ...................................................................... 4

3. Install enough power outlets from the start .................................................................... 4

4. Lighting design optimization ............................................................................................ 5

5. Appliances that save money .............................................................................................. 6

6. How are you going to heat your home? .......................................................................... 6

7. Extractor fans and heat lamps in bathrooms .................................................................. 7

8. Install quality fittings .......................................................................................................... 7

9. Future proof ........................................................................................................................ 8

10. Registered tradespersons and Code of Compliance .................................................... 9

Final Word ............................................................................................................................... 9




Introduction

We love our “Do It Yourself” (DIY) home renovations. It has been named as the

national pastime of our population and large companies who specialize in selling

building and renovation products, have built million dollar businesses from the DIY

activities.

Many people even take on the huge task of building their own home completely

themselves, or find ways of being heavily involved in the building.

However, as experienced electricians who have built many homes, has been involved

in many renovation projects, from very small to very large, we can identify common

mistakes that homeowners make when building a new home, or renovating a home.

That is why we came up with this report which alerts homeowners to these mistakes

and can, hopefully, go some way to saving homeowners and builders’ time, money and

effort in their electricity plan when building a new home or on a renovation project.

1. Towel Rail Power Saver

Install towel rail power savers at the same time that towel rails are installed in your new

home or when you are renovating a bathroom. These clever, power saving devices are

brilliant power-saving gadgets. They are independent from your towel rails and save

power in that it can be set to switch on/off through the use of a timer at certain times

of the day. The correct device for your towel rail is determined by the type of towel rail.

The device can be set to switch on an hour or so before you normally take a shower

and switch off approximately an hour after, saving up to 22 hours of power a day. The

heat settings can also be set to suit your needs. Installing the devices at the time of

installing the towel rails, will save money on electrical labour costs of having a

tradesman doing the work separately in another job. These power saving devices can




also be installed in existing towel rails, but the work needs to be carried out by a

registered electrician. Ask us here for a quote or more information.

2. Budget before you start for electrical plan

Set a budget for your electrical plan and then get an electrician to fit into budget. When

you are building a new home or renovating an existing home, make sure you set a budget

for your electrical plan and have your friendly electrician work to fit the material and

labour costs of all electrical work into the budget, rather than guessing what it may cost.

Setting a budget beforehand will forces you and the electrician to consider cost when

determining which fittings and appliances to install in the home.

3. Install enough power outlets from the start

When designing your electrical plan, make sure that you install enough power outlets in

all rooms of your home. Installing additional power outlets in a home is the most

To get a free quote for

your electrical budget, see

our standards rates at

jzeelectrical.co.nz, phone

0221926302 or email

[email protected]




common small jobs electricians have to complete. It comes at high cost to the

homeowner when it has to be done as a separate job. It can also be problematic when

the home is of a certain build, e.g. Lockwood or concrete block construction.

Think about your electrical needs, e.g. power outlets to charge phones, computers and

TV’s in bedrooms and enough power outlets in long hallways for vacuum cleaners. Also

think about the distribution of appliances on the kitchen bench tops, e.g. toasters,

coffee makers, sandwich press, can openers, which may not be obvious at the time

when you install bigger appliances like dishwashers and ovens. Make sure that you have

enough separate power points around your bench top spaces so that you do not need

to use power adapters and multi plugs. Having several smaller kitchen appliances on a

multi plug which runs off a single power point can lead to electrical short cuts and may

cause power trips due to overloading.

4. Lighting design optimization

Optimise the distribution of light in your home with clever lighting design which

requires less light fittings and saves power. For example, install separate circuits for

lights in your living room and a hallway which runs off the living room so that the lights

in the hallway can be switched off to save power and the lights in the living room can




be left on. Also make use of auto sensors to switch lights on when someone enters a

room and switches off when there is not human activity in the room.

5. Appliances that save money

When you are installing new appliances ensure that you check the energy rating on the

new appliances at the time of purchase. Only buy trustworthy appliances with a

warranty period and backup service availability. Buying cheap appliances with no service

and parts availability will cause you to have ongoing costs of expensive repairs or

replacement.

6. How are you going to heat your home?

We are also fully qualified heat pump installers.

When you plan on building a new home, or renovating an older home, make sure you

think about the ways in which you are going to heat the home and include the costs and

materials for heating in your electrical plan and cost considerations. Heating options for

your home will depend on the layout, size and age of the home. For example, installing

under floor heating in older homes can be more expensive and labour intensive than in




new builds. Also, installing heat pumps will depend on the layout of the home, whether

it is open plan or where several singular rooms will have to be heated with different

heat pumps or a system which distributes warm air through a ducted system.

7. Extractor fans and heat lamps in bathrooms

Extractor fans, bathroom heaters and heat lamps in bathrooms should be installed at

the time of building or renovating and not separately to save time labour and materials

costs of a separate job. It is also important to consider the installation of extractor fans

in building planning because the placing of external ducts in, for example, homes with

flat roofs and monolithic building styles is nearly impossible. Installing these bathroom

appliances after the build or renovation is finished will add additional cost which could

be avoided.

8. Install quality fittings

It is always better to buy and install quality electrical fittings which are recommended

by professional electricians, instead of cheaper, bulk produced electrical fittings which

can be bought at building outlet stores. Quality fittings will last longer and save the cost

of having a tradesman replace cheap, worn, broken or corroded fittings which cannot

be replaced by homeowner alone. Quality fittings usually hold a longer warranty and a

replacement can be claimed in the case that it is defective before a warranty period runs

out. If you need advice on whether fittings are of good quality, please contact us here

for free advice. All electrical equipment should have a certificate of conformity to certify

that it conforms to New Zealand safety standards. Ask your retailer or electrician who

is installing the electrical equipment to provide the proof of a certificate of conformity.

If you need advice on whether fittings are of good quality, please contact us for free advice.

Phone 022 192 6302 web: www.jzeelectrical.co.nz email: [email protected]




9. Future proof

When designing your new home or renovation plan of an older home, make sure that

you future proof any electrical work. For example, ask yourself the following question:

Will I need more power outlets in future?

Will I need outside power outlets for electrical appliances which are used outside the

home, e.g. electrical lawn mowers, etc.?

Will I later install a heat pump?

Will I later change the layout of the home and do I need to make provision for it

now?

Will I need additional / different light fittings later on?

Will I need to upgrade fitted electrical appliances, e.g. wall ovens, dishwashers, etc

and will it fit in the room provided?

Will the power supplies to future appliances be sufficient?

Do I plan to install a spa pool – which needs to be separately wired?

Is the switchboard that is being installed large enough to make provision for future

work / additions, etc.?




10. Registered tradespersons and Code of Compliance

All electrical work should be performed by licensed electricians. If in doubt, you may

ask to see any electrical tradesperson’s registration card. If in doubt, you may direct

enquiries to the Electrical Workers Registration Board.

It is important to note that some manufacturers of electrical appliances, will not honour

a warranty unless the appliances have been installed by a registered tradesperson. When

installing heat pumps, unless the heat pump is installed by a registered tradesperson

who is a registered electrician, and a certified heat pump installer, the manufacturer will

not honour the warranty. Also, ensure that the electrician who completes any work at

your home issue a Code of Compliance. The CoC is a guarantee that the completed

work is electrically safe and has been carried out by registered electricians in accordance

with New Zealand’s Electrical safety standards. The CoC should be kept in a safe place

and is an important document which may be required when you sell your property or

lodge an insurance claim.

Final Word

Whether you are undertaking a new build or renovating a property, ensure that you take

the abovementioned advice into account. It may save you hundreds, even thousands of

dollars and time in your building or renovation project.

John Van der Merwe

J-Zee Electrical Ltd



10 mistakes report

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