The idea of tearing the walls apart to rewire a home is enough to cause many homeowners to put off important electrical system updates. If you’ve been dealing with flickering lights, power outages and other signs of an aging wiring system, then you don’t have to stress any longer. Professional electricians can often rewire your house without removing the drywall.
While it isn’t an easy feat, electricians have several techniques that they can use to remove and install wiring without leaving behind a major mess that requires remodeling. In many cases, the work that our electricians perform is nearly undetectable by the time they are done. Exploring how electricians work their magic gives you insight into how they’ll plan your home rewiring project to be as minimally invasive as possible.
Start With an Inspection and Planning Session
The first thing an electrician will do when they visit your home is assess the current electrical system. They’ll ask you about any issues you’ve noticed around the house such as tripped breakers or sparks from the outlets. Next, they will locate or create a map of the current wiring system to determine the best way to tackle the project.
During this session, you can tell the electrician if you’d like to have them install new lighting or outlets. Since they’ll already be reconfiguring the wiring, this is the optimal time to create power sources for an outdoor kitchen or new lighting fixtures. With all of your preferences in mind, the electrician will create a wire map that they can use as they begin rewiring the system.
In most cases, the map will include redirecting the wires to an accessible part of your home that doesn’t require drywall removal. Most homes have attic or crawl spaces that allow the electricians to work without tearing out walls. Mister Sparky electricians make sure to let homeowners know the route they plan to take, and you can expect to receive a general estimate of the timeline and procedures they’ll use for the project.
Move Forward With the Wire Removal and Installation Stage
After carefully planning the project, it’s time to begin. The electrician will shut off power to your home as a safety precaution. The next step usually involves disconnecting the wires from the main electrical panel and removing as much of the unwanted wiring as possible. Portions of the wire that exist too deep within the walls to reach can be left behind without causing any problems, since they are no longer connected to the power supply.
To install the new wires, the electrician connects them to the electrical panel and then runs them to the designated space in the attic or crawl space that is closest to where the other end of the wires needs to reach. At this point, they may drill small holes in the bottom or top edges of the walls that provide them with access to the wires. If possible, our electricians choose access points that can easily be covered with baseboards or patching. With special tools, they can then fish the wires through the walls to guide them to the appropriate outlets or fixtures.
Once the wires are all routed to the right places, the electrician secures them by tightening clamps in electrical boxes and outlets. They can further secure the wires by stapling them to rafters and joists in the attic or crawlspace to prevent them from moving around over time. After securing the wires, the system is ready for the electrician to finish the final connections and switch on the power.
Finish By Testing the System and Cleaning the Workspaces
With the power back on, the electrician can get to work testing each outlet and fixture to make sure that all of the connections are working properly. As part of the final testing process, your electrician might need to bring in a building inspector to satisfy local laws and ordinances. When they’re satisfied that all of the new wiring and connections are working as they should, they’ll begin cleaning up any small messes that occurred during the project.
Before your electrician packs up to go, they’ll walk you through the new electrical system to show you what they’ve done. This is the perfect time to make sure you know how to shut off power in emergency situations, and you can find out when to plan for future inspections.
At first glance, home rewiring projects might seem overwhelmingly complicated. But, the typical homeowner doesn’t have to worry about ripping out walls or dealing with major damage to the interior of their home. In fact, talking to our electricians at Mister Sparky can give you the reassurance that you need to replace outdated or unsafe wiring. While every job is different, our crew works quickly and carefully to install new wiring to upgrade your lifestyle and improve your home’s property values.