I want to rewire my home to upgrade the electrical system or fix issues, but hiring an electrician can be expensive. With some planning and safety precautions, I can rewire my home myself using these clever tricks even without professional electrical training.
Assessing My Electrical Needs and Creating a Rewiring Plan
Before I start, I need to understand the current state of my home's electrical system and decide what I want to achieve with the rewiring. I'll start by:
- Making a list of all the circuits, outlets, switches and fixtures in my home. This helps me understand how everything is currently connected.
- Checking which circuits or outlets are problematic - are some rooms underpowered? Are any outlets or switches sparking or heating up?
- Deciding if I just need to replace individual wires or components or do a complete rewire.
Once I know what needs fixing, I can come up with a rewiring plan. I'll draw up a simple circuit map to help guide my work. Safety is critical, so I'll also:
- Learn about proper safety procedures - dealing with electricity can be dangerous. I need to educate myself.
- Have the right safety gear - non-conductive gloves, good insulated tools, voltage tester, safety goggles etc.
- Label each circuit so I know what's connected where.
With the background work done, I'm ready to move on to the rewiring itself.
Using Existing Wiring to Pull New Cables
One tricky part of rewiring is getting the new cables into the walls, floors or ceiling cavities. Rather than tearing open lots of walls, I can use the existing wires to pull the new ones! Here's how:
- I'll disconnect the existing wires from the main circuit breaker and outlet terminals.
- Leaving plenty of length at each end, I'll tie the new wire securely to the old one. Strong tape or cable ties work well.
- At the outlet or switch, I'll pull the old wire, dragging the new one along the same path inside the walls.
- I may need to detach the old wire and re-pull in stages for longer cable runs.
- Finally, I remove the old wire and terminate the new cable.
This avoids the huge mess and repair work of chasing cable runs through finished walls.
Using Moldable Plastic Channels for Surface-Mounted Wiring
Rewiring usually means pulling new cables through wall cavities and studs. But if I don't want to tear up my walls, I can use plastic channels to run cables visibly along floors, walls or ceilings.
PVC or metal surface-mounted raceways let me rewire a room without any structural work:
- I measure and cut raceway sections to length using hacksaws or pipe cutters.
- Position and screw raceways to surfaces using their built-in channel or clamps.
- Snap channel covers off to open up the wiring space inside.
- Feed new cables through each raceway section before snapping the covers back on.
- Use coupler fittings to join raceway sections for continuous runs.
- Connect cables at outlets and switches just like regular wall-running wires.
With some creative routing, I can completely rewire rooms this way. The channels also provide physical protection for exposed cables.
Using Old Switch or Outlet Boxes to Find Framing Members
Locating studs or joists inside finished walls is important for securing new outlet and switch boxes. But avoiding Using Old Switch or Outlet Boxes to Find Framing Membersstud finders preserves my walls. Instead, I'll use the existing electrical boxes as framing indicators:
- Outlet and switch boxes are almost always nailed or screwed to studs or joists.
- By feeling inside a box, I can locate the original fasteners on the left/right or top/bottom.
- Those fastener positions indicate exactly where the framing members are.
- I mark lines on the wall aligned with the fastener locations.
- With the framing positions mapped, I can cut open the correct areas of drywall to install new boxes securely.
This trick saves me lots of time and unnecessary wall damage from missed stud marks or inaccurate stud finders.
Safety First! Avoiding Hazards and Shock Risks
Safety should be my top priority when DIY electrical work. Here are some key safety steps I make sure to follow:
- I shut off the main breaker to de-energize circuits before starting work.
- To confirm power is off, I test wires with a non-contact voltage tester before touching them.
- I only work on one circuit at a time to avoid confusion.
- I double-check that all circuits are correctly reconnected and terminated.
- Every cable run is secured tightly with no exposed copper.
- Keep non-electrical-savvy people and pets away from my workspace for their safety.
- I wear insulated gloves and shoes to avoid accidental shocks.
- I don't rush the work - trying to go too fast can cause accidents.
- I get my work inspected by the local building department when it's completed.
Rewiring a home is very satisfying work. As long as I stay safe, take my time and don't cut corners, I can get great results without hiring an electrician!