7 Habits of Highly Successful Homeowners

At some point after researching home systems that can make your life better, you're ready to work with a professional to have them properly installed. Hopefully, you've found a local residential electronics company that is certified by an organization such as the Custom Electronic Design and Installation Association (CEDIA), and now you're ready to put that company to work.

What are the best ways to work with your new electronics friend so you get the most value from this relationship? Here are my seven habits of highly successful electronic house owners.

• 1. Floor them with plans. Whether you're building a new home, doing a remodel or retrofitting an existing home, bring your floor plans to the first meeting. These plans will provide a guide to all discussions about how you want to use electronic systems throughout your home. A good custom electronics pro will walk you through each room in the house and listen to you describe the experience you want in a given room.

• 2. Build a team. Your custom home electronics pro needs to have the appropriate contact information for all the other trades that you are working with to build or remodel your home. That list should include the builder, the architect, the electrician, the interior designer, the cabinetmaker and even the landscaper if you're planning on outdoor entertainment or wiring other buildings. Successful electronics installations are those where each of these trades are effectively communicating with one another throughout the project.

• 3. Know what you want, where. Do you want a TV in the bathroom? Will you have a set in the exercise room? Do you want a plasma TV above the fireplace or in a floorstanding cabinet? Do you want speakers outside, in the landscaping? The better you can answer these questions, the more accurately your electronics contractor can wire your home. If you're not sure whether you really want speakers in the guest bathroom or a TV in the kitchen, err on the side of caution and have wire installed to these locations in case you decide to add them at a later date.

• 4. Don't skimp on wiring. You can never have too much wire installed before the walls are finished and closed, especially in a new home or a remodel. This is where a good electronics company can be of great service to you. They know the current and future electronic trends and can advise you on what experiences you may want to have in a room so it can be properly wired. You may want to see who's at the front door from any television in the home, for example, but you may not yet want a camera at the front door. You should still run the wire to this location in case someday you want to have a camera there. The cost of prewiring a home is small compared with your overall custom electronics investment, but it many respects it represents the greatest value to you. A home that is prewired properly will meet your present and future needs.

• 5. Know the furniture layout. The better you know the placement of furniture in a room, the more accurately the video, phone and data ports can be placed in your home. If you know a computer desk is going along a certain wall, for instance, the communication outlet can be placed in that location so all the connecting cables are hidden behind the desk. If you're unsure of the placement, maximize your flexibility by having ports on opposite sides of the room.

• 6. Leave room for equipment and wiring cabinets. Ideally audio/video equipment and structured wiring cabinets should not be in the attic or stuffed in the back of a bedroom closet. Given that your technology needs will change over time, it's important that space be allocated in the home for these products. A structured wiring cabinet requires about as much space as an in-wall ironing board (unless the home is larger than 4,000 square feet). An audio/video cabinet or rack should be at least 19 inches wide and 24 inches deep to accommodate this equipment. It also should have some ventilation and allow for access to the backs of the equipment.

• 7. Toss Something old, get something newer. You may want to keep your existing audio/video or computing equipment and add only the components you don't have. But this approach often costs more money than it saves. Trying to upgrade an old computer to work on a home network may cost more money in hardware/software upgrades and labor than buying a new computer.

Incorporating these seven habits will help your electronics company provide solutions for your home that can meet your needs and budget for years to come.

Gordon van Zuiden is the founder and president of cyberManor: www.cybermanor.com.

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