Choosing your home electrical system

When building a new home, one of the most important decisions you will make is your choice of how it is wired, because, once it's done there is no doing it again, it is not like repainting a wall, the decision is likely to be for the lifespan of the house.  This choice will affect the security, comfort and lifestyle that your family enjoys while at home. Your choice will determine your relationship with your home.

You have three choices: a traditional 230V system; a proprietary single manufacturer system; or the KNX worldwide standard.

Standard 230V Wiring

• Very old 
• Un-automated
• lowest cost
• poor environmental credentials
• the highest cost of ownership
• inflexible for future
• No addition to the capital value of property

You should consider an un-automated 230V system if minimising your initial capital expenditure is your primary concern, and security, comfort, convenience, on going cost of ownership and environmental impact are not important to you.

Proprietary Single Manufacturer Systems

• Single manufacturer technology
• Limited switch styles
• Controls - lighting, shading, drapes, heating, AV (depending on the system)
• Medium-High initial cost
• Decent environmental credentials
• High risk of future obsolescence

You should consider this type of solution if security, comfort, convenience and minimising environmental impact are your primary concerns, you are comfortable with a degree of risk of ownership, and initial costs and the real cost of ownership are not important to you.

KNX Worldwide Standard Open Protocol Systems

• The world standard for buildings
• Evolves with technology over the years
• 400+ manufacturers make products that comply
• Wide switch style choice, more than 8000 products
• Control of everything - lighting, shading, drapes, heating, AV
• Excellent environmental credentials
• Adds to the capital value of property

You should consider a KNX solution if security, comfort, convenience, minimising environmental impact, initial costs, the real cost of ownership, future upgradability, future serviceability and security of investment are important to you. 

More information at www.knx.org

We work with European KNX manufacturers such as ABB, Basalte, Gira, Theben, Zennio, and Lithoss amongst others. 

More Information

• Click here for The 3 things you should know before choosing your home's electrical systems
• Click here to see some of our favourite switches and keypads 

You are welcome to contact us to discuss your options in more detail, or, for us to recommend a local installer. The best time for this discussion is during the planning stages of your project, so don't wait for your no-obligation advice, contact us today.