Renovation electrical checklist for Brisbane homes (the one your builder won't give you)

Most renovations get the electrical wrong by trying to add it back in after the plasterboard is up. The right time is before, when everything's still in open frame. Here's the checklist I run through with every Brisbane renovation client.

Before the walls go up

You only get one chance to run cable cheaply, and that's while the studs are exposed. Once the gyprock's on, every additional powerpoint is a $220 fish-job. So at the open-frame stage:

• Walk the house with the architect, the builder and the sparky.
• Mark every appliance location, in physical chalk.
• Decide the lighting plan, room by room.
• Think about next 10 years, not just the day you move in.

Switchboard sizing

If you're adding a kitchen, a bathroom, a study, a master suite or any combination of those, your existing switchboard is almost certainly undersized. The renovation is the one chance you have to upgrade it for the cost of a normal switchboard upgrade, there's no "extra" labour for tearing the old one out, because it has to come out anyway.

Powerpoints, where and how many

The Voltech rule of thumb for new powerpoints in a Brisbane reno:

• Kitchen, minimum 6 doubles around the bench, including 2 dedicated for fridge/freezer and one each for kettle, toaster, microwave, range hood. Add USB-C combos near the breakfast bar.
• Bedroom. 1 double behind each bed, 1 at the desk, 1 near the door for vacuums.
• Living. 2 doubles at TV wall (yes, two), 1 each at lamp positions, 1 hidden behind the sofa.
• Hallway. 1 every 3m, 1 near the front door for the vacuum.
• Outdoor. 1 weatherproof under the patio, 1 near BBQ, 1 at the front for festoon lights, 1 at the side gate for cleaning.

Adding more during the reno is cheap; adding them after is fish-job pricing.

Lighting plan

The four-zone rule: every room should have:

1. General overhead light (downlights or pendant)
2. Task light (kitchen bench, desk lamp, vanity)
3. Ambient / accent (wall sconce, picture lights)
4. Switching options (dimmer, smart, scene)

We do most of our renovations with LED downlights on dimmer + a couple of accent pendants per room. Smart switches (Clipsal Iconic Wiser, HPM Excel Wifi) integrate with Home Assistant or Apple Home if you want.

Data, TV, comms

If you're running cable anyway, it's daft not to drop in:

• 1× Cat6 to every bedroom
• 2× Cat6 to the home office (one for desk, one for printer)
• 1× Cat6 + 1× coax to TV wall
• 1× Cat6 to ceiling-mounted Wi-Fi access point in central hallway
• 1× Cat6 to garage / shed for security cameras
• 1× Cat6 to outside front of house for video doorbell

Future-proofing for EV / solar / battery

Even if you're not buying an EV today, run a 32A circuit from the switchboard to the garage. Conduit-only is fine if you don't want to spend the cable now. The switchboard upgrade should leave at least 4 free slots and have provision for 3-phase if your supply allows.

For solar, leave the switchboard with space for a solar isolator and battery space. For batteries, pre-wire a 6mm² cable from the proposed battery location to the switchboard.

Doing this in the reno: ~$600. Doing it later: ~$2,500. Easy decision.

Smoke alarms

QLD law, interconnected, photoelectric, hard-wired alarms in every bedroom, every hallway connecting bedrooms, and one on every other storey. We'll cover this in the build under the smoke alarms line item, certified for sale-ready compliance.

Labels and certificates

Every Voltech-renovated home gets:

• Every circuit labelled in the switchboard
• A printed circuit map taped inside the cover
• Form 16 / Certificate of Test
• Photos of all critical labels
• A signed letter to the owner with all of the above

The next sparky you ever ring, yours or the next owner's, will be able to figure out the house in 5 minutes instead of 5 hours.

, John