OK, it’s Saturday morning and I’m catching up on email and enjoying my coffee. I open your email and I’m faced with an all too familiar scenario. How do I get across to yet another client the importance of pre-wiring during construction, while the walls are open, while the incremental cost is low, for options my client firmly believes he or she will NEVER need in a thousand years, while at the same time I know through experience that we will have one or many conversations down the road about how can we add just this ONE feature months or years after the initial construction is complete? As an Integrator I’m clearly not communicating the importance of anticipating future needs now. So what do I do? How best to make my point?

For example, we need to re-visit the idea of video cameras now. Now is the time to pre-wire for whatever you may want in the future. Running cable for cameras later is generally not an option. Wireless cameras are much more expensive plus you still need to wire power to them. The cost for pre-wiring for anything now is trivial. Retrofit wiring later would not only be much more expensive but may not even be possible.

The last time we spoke you mentioned you wanted a “robust system” for AV. Designing and integrating hundreds of different types of homes over the years has given us a unique perspective on what is generally required to support the activities and lifestyles of our clients who live in the homes they build. As an Integrator we make very little profit, if any at all, on the pre-wire phase of construction. That being said THE PRE-WIRE PHASE OF CONSTRUCTION IS ABSOLUTELY CRITICAL in providing our homeowners with the ability to have the features they want (and some they don’t even know they want) both now and into the future. Unfortunately I can quote you too many instances where a homeowner has declined a pre-wire option to save a little money now only to find out a feature they want later is either too expensive to implement or is impossible because there is no wire and no cost-effective way to get it there.

What are some of the things we do with a video camera?
– See who rang the front door bell from a dedicated station in the Kitchen.
– See who rang the front door bell and talk to them from a dedicated station in the Kitchen.
– See who rang the front door bell from anywhere there is a display (TV, Video Projector) throughout the home.
– See who rang the front door bell and talk to them from anywhere there is a display (TV, Video Projector) throughout the home.
– Record anyone (visitor, delivery person, burglar) who approaches the front door.

So let’s talk specifics. Here are some scenarios we have encountered over the years. Note we are only considering wiring, NOT the cost of equipment which is the same for any scenario.

Front Door Camera DURING Construction – Pre-wire cost of $150-$450, depending on home construction (brick, stone or other) and where the monitor will be (dedicated door monitor or home-run to the central equipment area for future integration options).
Front Door Camera AFTER Construction – Retrofit wire cost of $450 (can get wire from door to Kitchen via unfinished basement), to $4,500 (need mason to retrofit back box into stone by front door, drywall patch & paint for finished basement drywall wire run to central equipment area).

Back Yard Camera DURING Construction – Pre-wire cost of $150-$450, depending on home construction (1, 2, 3 floors) and where the monitor will be (dedicated door monitor or home-run to the central equipment area for future integration options).
Back Yard Camera AFTER Construction – Retrofit wire cost of $450 (outside first floor wall to unfinished basement) to $1,200 (outside first floor wall, drywall patch & paint to finished basement) to $3,500 (outside second floor wall, drywall patch & paint to second floor area for power plus incremental cost for wireless camera).

Family Room Camera DURING Construction – Pre-wire cost of $75-$300 to central equipment area to support play area camera for children and teens.
Family Room Camera AFTER Construction – Retrofit wire cost of $300 (basement location to centralized equipment area with partially finished basement) to $1,500 (basement location to centralized equipment area with finished basement).

Wireless Access Point Location DURING Construction – Pre-wire cost of $75-$150 to central equipment area to support wireless connections throughout the home.
Wireless Access Point Location AFTER Construction – Retrofit wire cost of $300 (first floor location to centralized equipment area with unfinished basement) to $750 (second floor location to central equipment area with unfinished basement) to $2,500 (second floor location to central equipment area with drywall patch & paint for finished basement).

The scenarios mentioned above DO NOT include those that were not practical due to cost. You get the idea. A little imagination, forethought and planning now with guidance from your trusty Integrator can SAVE YOU MANY TIMES THE pre-construction COSTS to implement the same solution after construction. We are here to help you get the very best value for your precious construction dollars. Let us help. We are here for YOU!

So What is Pre-Wire and Why Should I Care?
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