Common Mistakes Made in Planning
Something I see quite often in construction is poor planning. It's not done through the fault of anyone in particular most times, just lack of experience. In the electrical field I think a large part of the responsibility falls on the electrical contractor. I feel it is my responsibility to try and give you as much information as possible so you can make an educated decision. In some cases the General Contractor insists on being the only person to deal directly with the customer. I think for the most part this is a major error in judgment.
Meeting with each trade individually will be a benefit to both you as the customer and the GC. Proper planning can eliminate a slew of problems later on as the job progresses. My normal first meeting with a customer comes before I start to do the rough in. I will ask a lot of questions and listen closely to the answers. Some of the questions are related to how much light you like to have, the types of lighting you prefer, is there a designer or decorator involved in the project. If there is I want to have them included in a meeting at some point early on. We need to discuss any special needs the customer may have.
After the basics are covered we need to walk the entire house or area where the work will be preformed. Some of the things to discuss at this point are receptacle locations, lighting locations, switch locations and any other extra items such as cable TV, telephone, data, video and sound. In my opinion, every new house today should include a bundled wire run to at the least one location in every room. A typical bundled cable includes 2 coax cables for TV and video, a cat 3 for telephone and a cat 5e or better for networking. Outside lighting should be discussed as well. A finished kitchen plan should be available as well as all the appliance cuts.
At this point we can do the electrical rough. Once it is complete or in progress additional walkthroughs should occur to avoid any misunderstandings or mistakes. This little bit of extra time spent can help a job go so much more smoothly than it would otherwise.
