The Smart Move with Home Technology Upgrades

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Why hiring a professional electrician saves you time, money, and frustration!

There’s a very good chance you’re reading this on your smartphone or tablet, after all that is the primary way people consume news, entertainment, TV shows, movies, and so much more these days. “Smart” technology of one kind or another, from cellphones to doorbells, to whole home security, to digital assistants, is found in a vast majority of American homes. Most of us have setup our own cellphones, tablets, and desktop computers, so it seems like a no-brainer DIY project if you decide to upgrade to a larger home smart technology endeavor. It should be plug-and-play, right? If only it were that easy.

At On Time Electrical, we get calls every week from customers at their wits’ end with a smart home technology upgrade. What seems straightforward often isn’t when you discover that your current home’s layout or systems don’t match exactly what the product’s instructions indicate. Or, you run into other needed home repairs and modifications when you start installation. In many cases, online step-by-step tutorials can provide good information, however, they tend to be narrowly focused to showcase the best case scenarios for an installation. Once you start having trouble in your specific home environment, all bets are off. Now, if you’re a confident DIYer with solid experience in electrical work and carpentry, then this article may not be for you. If you’re here because you’re utterly exasperated and you’ve online searched your way to fast, experienced, affordable, and responsive help…breathe easy! Help is here.

When considering a smart home technology upgrade, there are four basic factors that play into the decision on whether or not you should hire a professional.

  1. Customization and upgrades desired (or needed)
  2. Layout/floor plan of space involved
  3. Size, scope, and complexity of your project
  4. Age and condition of your home

One or all of these factors can cause your smart technology installation to go from DIY weekend project to an emergency electrician service call. The older your home is the more chance there is that a technology upgrade will reveal a host of other electrical related issues. There are also local, county, and state codes to follow when doing residential electrical work. Experienced, certified electricians, like those who earn the right to wear our On Time Electrical uniform, know exactly how each job needs to be done to meet all the government code requirements, while also keeping an artistic eye on the aesthetics of your project. They can identify areas in your plan where even a small adjustment can save you money.

There are benefits on both the installation and product side of the equation when it comes to having an electrical professional install your smart home technology.

We’ll start with the professional installation benefits:

  • Safety: The technology may be “smart” but the installations, in many cases, still require some drilling, hammering, wiring, etc. Not only can you harm yourself or break your product with an errant swing of the hammer or rev of the power drill, but when you are working with electricity you can suffer far more dangerous, even lethal, consequences. Please consult a professional electrician.
  • Convenience: What starts as an easy DIY weekend install can easily turn into several days or weeks around your busy schedule if/when steps don’t go as expected. Even worse, you get the whole system installed and it doesn’t work and now you have to troubleshoot back through walls and wiring to figure out why. A highly-trained and experienced electrician, like your On Time Electrical team, does this work week in and week out. It’s muscle memory for us to make several checks along the installation process to make sure everything is going smoothly, all wiring is correct and to code, and it will turn on and work as expected when the job is done. Additionally, we can ensure you are well-versed on all the features of your new “smart” technology. You’d be surprised how many customers react with surprise when our technicians show them all the features they haven’t been using on their smart tech products!
  • Experience, Accuracy, & Efficiency: All of these go without saying when you’re working with the right professional. As we’ve already touched on, a true electrical professional proficiently installs smart technology weekly in a vast array of customer environments. We know the proper way to install your products and systems, but even more importantly, we know the best workarounds to deploy when unexpected hiccups arise…and they always do!

Here are the benefits of having a professional installer when it comes to the product/systems you purchase:

  • You won’t be stuck with incompatible technology: Not every smart device works and plays well with others, despite how “quick and easy” their marketing may suggest. A majority of our service calls involve helping customers figure out exactly which product will communicate with their existing technology. That critical decision is often half the battle and the right choice will save you a lot of wasted time and money. If you don’t want to get your mind around it, you don’t have to! On Time Electrical professionals can quickly identify which brands and devices will work in your home. Another quick note here; sometimes customers have compatible products, but their home network just doesn’t have the bandwidth to handle the increased load. Here, too, we can help provide the best solutions to upgrade your network to one that will easily support all of the added tech, with room to grow!
  • You won’t suffer from “project exhaustion”: This is another all too common pitfall for many DIYers; keeping up the momentum and energy to push through the entire whole home smart technology upgrade when the going gets tough. Sometimes, all it takes is one real speed bump and customers give up, leaving them with an incomplete vision and purchased product sitting idle on a workbench or in a cabinet. Additionally, installing the products on walls, doors, or outside is only part of the journey. You want the final effect to be aesthetically pleasing; a neat finish, wires dressed and hidden, any drill holes properly covered, etc. Having a professional do the job in a fraction of the time with all the proper tools and know-how allows you to enjoy the full benefits of all the technology you buy.
  • You won’t waste hours struggling with lackluster manufacturer customer service: The one thing worse than struggling through a DIY technology installation yourself is trying to do it with the guidance of customer service agents, online or by phone, who are often reading off a script and have zero actual electrical, IT, or carpentry expertise. By letting your local On Time Electrical electricians install your new smart technology, you have instant access to customer support and on-site service calls whenever you need it. We are always available to answer questions and provide free consultations.

Put your smart home technology upgrade in our hands…and relax! On Time Electrical customer service is available 24/7 at (704) 820-4803. You can also visit us online anytime at www.itselectriccharlotte.com. Check out our weekly and monthly specials, plus we waive the service call fee on ANY repair! Locally owned and operated, we’re On Time Electrical. It’s electric!