Installation and replacement of wiring in the room: how to find a professional

Electricity does not tolerate unprofessionalism. When it comes to installing or replacing wiring in an apartment, you need to understand that for the competent execution of all work, you will need reliable knowledge in the field of physics and electrical engineering, the ability to correctly draw up a wiring diagram, select the necessary cable, and connect everything correctly. What can I say, when work must be carried out in a beauty salon, shop or cafe! If you want to be sure of your own safety, it is better to turn to professional electricians, just how to understand that this is a really good specialist? Let's get together how and where to look for a competent artist who is able to perform installation and replacement of wiring in an apartment, house or commercial premises, so that everything is beautiful, high-quality and safe. How to check its work and recognize problems in time?

How to understand that it’s time to change the wiring?

FROM wiring installation everything is clear from scratch - it is required when it is necessary to equip a newly built room, for example, an apartment in new building or a store in a new mall. Another thing is the replacement of the wiring. Many people do not dare to take this step for a very long time, explaining this by the fact that everything is in order. Say, why come up with a problem? Often such a frivolous attitude to such a serious thing as electricity turns into big problems: from short circuits to fires.

So, it is time to change the wiring if:

• electrical wires heat up or sparkle;
• the room has become noticeably more equipment;
• You started to use tees and extension cords constantly, i.e. number of existing outlets and their location does not meet current requirements;
• often knocks out a machine;
• sockets fall out;
• the housing shield is very many years old.

Some advise replacing the old aluminum wiring with a new copper one in any case, if major repairs are being undertaken. It may happen that a replacement wiring is needed in the near future, and this will lead to the destruction of fresh finishes.

Even if you do not observe arcing, heating and frequent knocking out of the machine, this does not mean that the apartment / office / store is completely safe. Over time, the wiring insulation breaks down., it can be damaged during repairs from strong mechanical stress, be damaged when connected to too powerful equipment or under the influence of aggressive environments. Errors during cable production and installation can also lead to a violation of its insulation. What does this mean? And the fact that now the risk of a short circuit or electric shock is greatly increased, and the equipment can quickly fail, and this means that now is the time to replace the wiring.

To prevent catastrophic consequences, it is necessary to regularly measure the insulation resistance. For commercial premises and ordinary apartments such a procedure held every three years. The inspection is carried out by special organizations that have permission and access, qualified employees and special equipment, which is tested every year.Residents of Moscow and the Moscow region can measure insulation resistance by contacting CenterEnergoExpertizy, a company that carries out all work in the shortest possible time, issues a full package of documents and guarantees the lowest price in the region. When re-applying, a substantial discount is provided.

Where to look for an artist?

When the issue of installation or replacement of wiring is an edge, and the need to resort to the services of specialists is obvious, the most interesting, kind of game begins, reminiscent of the show "Intuition". Of the hundreds and thousands of offers on the market, you must choose one, and each one expects that a specialist or team will do their job well and on time.

You can search for an electrician in the following ways:

• take advantage Word of mouth. If you have a wide circle of acquaintances, then, for sure, there is someone who has recently resorted to the services of electricians and you can advise good specialists, or at least tell who you should definitely not contact;
• independent search via internet. To help you search engines and social networks. The responsible executor will indicate maximum information about himself, incl. work experience, pricing and even work examples. Moreover, the Internet will help to collect the full picture thanks to the reviews that leave about the work of a particular team or individual electrician;
• you can find an electrician through site with free ads. There will be a lot of offers, but a minimum of information. An impression of the master will help to make a call or a personal meeting;
• You can also search the old fashioned way, using newspapers, or by studying ads on pillars and leaflets. The method is so-so, but only a successful specialist can afford to organize a more or less large-scale advertising campaign;
• the easiest but far from the best option is to contact management company. Established electricians will not be interested in doing all the work efficiently and quickly, as they get a fixed fee. In addition, often employees of such companies have problems with alcohol.

Which artist to prefer?

Electricians are different. But just how to understand which of them will do their job better, cheaper and safer? We suggest you to conditionally divide all electricians into the following groups:

• guest workers. Their main advantage is low prices for services, but in most cases they do not have the appropriate education and ideas about what the PUE is. What happens when they take up the wiring installation is easy to guess. It is better to play it safe and bypass such specialists;
• electricians from the management company (ZhES, ZhEK) are not always bad, but, as mentioned above, they have no motivation to do their work quickly and efficiently. Often they work according to the old rules, refuse to keep up with the times, or even come to the site while intoxicated. Fortunately, there are exceptions;
• "Husband for an hour", he’s a jack of all trades help to solve some simple questions in the field of electrics. Typically, such comrades possess superficial knowledge in the field of repair of plumbing, electrical engineering, etc. You should not trust them with wiring;
• construction crewswho have their own electrician. This choice seems to be the best when made overhaul, because no one else is required to be hired. Sometimes such an electrician agrees to perform electrical work separately from the brigade. The price will be below average, but the result is a lottery. It all depends on the personal qualities of an electrician, as we will discuss below;
• private electricians, i.e. specialists who work independently and have issued an IP. Often these are people with good experience who do everything promptly and give a guarantee for their work, and all this at an affordable price. True, among such specialists there are also not very conscientious;
• an electrician who works in his spare time, i.e.in addition to the main work (usually associated with wiring), takes part-time jobs. These are good professionals who will do the job at the highest level and cheaper than the market average. Since the specialist will work after the main work, the replacement of the wiring may be delayed. Another problem is the possible noise about the evenings;
• electrical installation company - The best option, especially for commercial premises. Several specialists will quickly draw up a competent wiring diagram, and in a few pairs of hands they will quickly do everything, give a guarantee and provide all the necessary documentation. Minus is the price.

Signs of a true professional

It is not very difficult to distinguish a good electrician from an inexperienced master. The attributes of a true professional include:

• own professional tool. The specialist or team must do the work with their own equipment and not ask the customer for anything. Availability of expensive instrument indirectly indicates that the specialist takes a responsible approach to work, invests in his business in order to achieve the highest results and maximum security. By the way, the attitude to the tool also shows the level of a specialist;
• specialized education and work experience, preferably at least 5 years, and preferably 7-10 years. When it comes to installation and replacement of wiring, this is really important, and it is about experience in the field of electrical installation in private facilities, and not in production or a state-owned enterprise - there is another specificity of work;
• availability of examples of work performed in the format of photos on the site, on a social network, photo album, etc .;
• clear consultation, clear answers to questions, the ability to take into account the wishes of the client and offer several options for completing the same task;
• the presence of fixed prices for various types of work;
• warranty on work performed;
• electrical safety clearance level - third and higher;
• skill perform settlement workto determine the required cable cross-section, the rating of the machines, etc .;
• neat appearance, punctuality and sobriety;
• Having your own base of reliable suppliers of electrical goods will be a bonus;
• Good recommendations from previous customers.

As for work rates, and this is what interests us in the first place, then too low a price should seem suspicious. As a result, they will do everything horribly, or in the process of work more and more new payments will come up, and as a result, the price will be even higher than the average market price. Not without pitfalls. Some particularly cunning artists ask for their services more than the average price, relying on the logic of the customer, according to which good can’t be cheap. If you do not hire an electrician on the advice of acquaintances, it is better to stop at specialists who provide services in the middle price category.

Assessment of the approach to work

A good specialist, before undertaking an order, must inspect the premises and evaluate the scope of work, but you can already understand how responsibly he approaches work by the first call. Before you name the estimated price, an electrician must clarify a few important detailsrelating to postings and your wishes, and only then can he give an approximate amount. The contractor, who puts fast money in the first place, will immediately announce the amount without even asking about the nuances.

Before agreeing on specific work with you, an electrician must inspect the room. If you need to replace the wiring in the apartment, then he must find out if there is a diagram of the current location of the wiring. Also, the specialist should clarify which electrical appliances will be operated, in what places sockets will be needed. All this will help him assess the scope of work and make at least an approximate estimate.

The customer has the right to ask an electrician or team documents that confirm their qualifications. The specialist should tell you what he is going to do, answer your questions and take into account your preferences if they do not contradict the safety rules. Specify the terms of work and the guarantee for them. If everything suits you, then you can sign an agreement.

Good specialists always have a lot of work, so they will try to replace or install the wiring as soon as possible, and to do everything with high quality, because they are responsible for all the reputation. By the way, the presence of overalls also allows you to judge the level of specialist.

And one moment. Laying wiring is a dirty process, as you will need to ditch the walls. A responsible specialist does his job efficiently from beginning to end, so he will definitely take it for himself.

How to accept the work of an electrician?

Since childhood, many grow up with the installation in the head of "trust, but verify." When it comes to evaluating the performance of electricians, this rule is more than ever the case. In general, it is best to gradually control the work of specialists in stages. A necessary minimum will be an assessment of the wiring before the gates are closed. Pay attention to the following points:

• wires and sockets should be located in accordance with the agreed scheme;
• if the walls of the room are not wooden, then the cable should be laid in the strobes with a depth of about 2-3 cm;
• the wires from the boxes should go strictly vertically - no diagonals. In general, wiring is laid only along horizontal and vertical lines, there should not be sharp angles, as well as clearly straight lines. Keep in mind that when turning there should be a slight rounding, due to which the internal tension of the metal in the veins is removed;
• all cables must be intact, without cuts and twists (junction boxes do not count, there will be twists);
• connections in the socket boxes and junction boxes must be reliable and well insulated (the advantage is shrink insulation);
• after completion of work, electricians must provide a new wiring diagram, but you have the right to require a complete communications card. The plan should indicate the exact location of the wires on the walls, floor and ceilings;
• You can arrange a load check by turning on all consumers of electricity at once and checking the accuracy of the selection circuit breakers. You can also check separately each wiring line by connecting devices with a known higher total load than the one for which the wiring in the room is designed. Ideally, the machine should work. If the machine did not work, or a short circuit occurred, the line was erroneous, or the machines were selected incorrectly;
• the quality of the work performed is also evidenced by the quality of fastening the wires to the sockets. This applies to both the machine and ordinary outlets. Disconnect the room and try using pliers to pull the wire out of the socket. If this is possible, then the electrician will have to redo some of the work. Someone calls this method barbaric, but many network users have already seen that it works;
• sockets and switches must also be securely installed;
• even if outwardly everything is done qualitatively, some installation errors may be present. Check, indeed, if everything is okay can already mentioned earlier insulation resistance measurement. Sometimes the very mention of this procedure makes electricians eliminate many imperfections. If we are talking about a commercial building, then it is necessary to assess the quality of insulation - before opening a store / cafe / salon, the owner will require protocols for measuring insulation resistance.

Some errors in the work of electricians at the finish line may not be noticeable, so many people prefer to appear at the facility several times in order to monitor the wiring process at various stages and identify problem areas in time.If something happens, you can always ask the performer and demand warranty repairs, unless, of course, you obeyed our advice and found a responsible performer.