It is often the case that audio-visual enthusiasts will spend a significant amount of time and money on their home av installation. While plenty of time is devoted to things like seating arrangements and equipment, not enough time is paid to wiring requirements. Great audio-visual equipment often gets compromised with poor wiring choices.
Table of Contents
Make Sure That Safety Is at the Top of Your List
Being safe is something that may seem self-evident. It cannot get stressed enough that safety needs to be a primary consideration when doing any installation.
You should always use wires and cables that comply with national safety guidelines as part of any installation. These guidelines may apply to temperature fluctuations, abrasion, chemicals, and fire.
It is essential to take note of any exposed wiring. For example, power cords that run underneath furniture are almost always a potential fire hazard.
Plan Out Your Wiring Map First
It is fair to say that once all of your great flatscreen TVs, speakers, and recliner chairs get installed, you do not want to rip them up to do additional wiring. That is why it is so important to map out all the wiring you will need before you start doing any home av installation.
You must take note of the required length of cable needed for the routes of your wiring. Your plan must include speaker cables, network cables, HDMI cables, and any other wiring you may need.
Something that is often overlooked is items like lighting requirements. It is also essential to think about any possible future additions to your system and where they will fit in your current plan.
Make Sure You Label Everything
There can be nothing more frustrating than meticulously laying out all of your cabling and suddenly finding you don’t know what one cable does. This makes labeling each end of a cable run vital for your home av installation.
Another critical tip when labeling is to make sure you do not place labels too close to the end of wires. Wires often need to get trimmed for various reasons, so make sure you leave enough space to make any alterations.
Another good tip is to use colors in your labels. That way, you can easily differentiate different kinds of cables, such as audio cables from video cables.
Think About Installing Raceways for Cables
If you are going to the time and expense of doing an installation from scratch, chances are you want the entire finished product to look great. Nothing detracts from the aesthetics of a home av installation more than wires in plain sight.
While you could undoubtedly route wires behind couches or underneath baseboards, there is a better solution. It is easy to install raceways made of wood or plastic to run cable through. These raceways can then get painted to match the colors of your walls.
Having an excellent home av installation starts with outstanding planning for everything you will need for the finished product. While getting excited about the high-end components of your system is enticing, do not forget the most basic details of the wiring involved in your plan.
