Home Design Showcase: Electrical and Wiring Options

Electrical options have become a big focus during design appointments at the Highland Homes Personal Selection Studio. From built-in solutions to charge your tech to indoor and outdoor pre-wires and outlets, adding electrical and wiring options during the construction of your new home will save you time and money down the road.

Let’s take a look at electrical and wiring options available with Highland Homes, the benefits of adding these during construction, and how to create an electrical plan for your new home in Florida!

Benefits of Pre-Wiring During Construction

Pre-wiring during construction presents three main benefits – time, money, and safety!

Pre-wiring your home during construction means you can move in with the foundation for lighting, electrical needs, and technology in place, without the need to drill or cut into the drywall. Even if you do not plan to install everything right away, having wiring in place future-proofs your home and makes it easy to install that home theater, backyard entertainment area, or spa in the future!

By having wiring done during construction, you can ensure everything is properly connected to your main electrical panel, meets or exceeds building codes, and passes inspections. You won't have to pay an electrician in the future, and adding options such as whole-house surge protection protects your devices and could potentially save you thousands of dollars.

Electrical and Wiring Options with Highland Homes

Your new home in Florida is designed to meet or exceed the Florida building code, which uses the National Electrical Code as its adopted standard. This means your home will have electrical outlets in pre-determined locations, including 220V and dedicated outlets for necessary appliances, with the option to add additional electrical outlets. And, your new home also includes the following electrical features (at minimum):

• Five RG6 coaxial cable pre-wires, in your choice of locations;
• Two CAT 5 telephone pre-wires, in your choice of locations;
• Three exterior GFI outlets, in pre-determined locations;
• Dual-switch ceiling fan pre-wires (meaning a separate switch for the fan and light) in the gathering room, den, lanai, and bedrooms;
• Exterior coach light pre-wires on both sides of your garage;
• USB outlet(s) in the drop zone;
• Decora rocker-style light switches.

In addition to what’s included, a wide range of wiring, switch, and outlet options are available to choose as upgrades. Some of the most popular electrical options are:

• Dimmer switches – you’ll love these in the gathering room, bedrooms, and dining spaces;
• Pendant light pre-wires over the kitchen island or bartop;
• Flood/security light pre-wires on the exterior of your home;
• In-ceiling speakers or pre-wires for a surround sound system;
• A media box, a centralized location for all your phone, data, security, and cable connections;
• A whole-house surge protector, a one-time use device that protects your 110V outlets and anything plugged into them against damage from a lightning strike;
• A generator outlet for powering your home with a generator in case of loss of power;
• Additional electrical outlets including:
  • Raised outlets for wall-mounted TVs;
  • USB outlets for charging devices;
  • 220V outlets, popular in the garage for 220V tools and equipment;
  • Dedicated outlets for things such as a garage freezer, electric fireplace, or high-powered computer equipment;
  • Strategically placed 110V outlets in living areas and bedrooms for stereos/smart speakers, lamps, kitchen appliances, pet fountains, etc.;
  • Strategically placed 110V outlets in closets for charging a vacuum you prefer out of sight and plugging in a clothes iron or steamer;
  • Strategically placed exterior GFI outlets, for things such as string or Christmas lights, plug-in yard tools, an outdoor kitchen, hot tub, etc.

It’s also possible to have an additional electrical panel added for future needs and in some cases, when a great number of electrical options are added, this may be required for your electrical system.

As a side note, we are frequently asked about ethernet jacks - These are not installed during construction but rather installed by your cable company as part of your cable/internet setup after you move.

With so many electrical options and needs to consider, it’s important to plan ahead of your visit to the Highland Homes Personal Selection Studio – after all, you don’t want to forget anything important! Don’t worry, it’s as easy as 1-2-3.

Create an Electrical Plan

We aren’t talking about tracing out every circuit – electricians will take care of that – but instead taking a look at each room in your home and planning the pre-wires, outlets, and switches you need.

Step 1 – Think about the devices you plan to utilize.

Do you plan to install wired cameras, a home theater system, or outdoor security lighting? Maybe you need a dedicated outlet for a garage freezer, computer equipment, or a hot tub. Or, perhaps you weld, woodwork, or use machine shop tools that require 220V outlets.

Step 2 – Layout your home.

This is made super easy with interactive floor plans on our website! Not only do our interactive plans show the layout and dimensions of each room, but you can place your furniture and electrical components to visualize how your new home will come together.

Start by finding your home plan on our website, then scroll down to the interactive plan. You may have already seen this tool, or even created a personalized plan when you were shopping for a home! Now, you’ll take the next step by planning your home layout.

Start by selecting any plan options you have opted to purchase. Next, decide the use and layout for each room and place your main furniture.

Step 3 – Add your electrical components.

Now that furniture is in place, you can start to visualize where you’ll have your TVs, lamps, and other electrical devices. Go through your home plan room by room and:

• Mark your TV and phone outlet pre-wires.
• Add options like dimmer switches, lighting and speaker needs, and additional outlets for anything you’d like to plug-in in specific locations. Refer to our Additional Outlets list above to get some ideas of what you may want additional outlets for, and don’t forget about outdoor needs, as well!
• Think through your list of devices from Step 1 and add the necessary components.
• Consider future needs and remember, pre-wiring during construction saves you time and money in the future.

At any step in the process, save your personalized home plan. After you click the save button, you’ll receive an emailed link to your personalized plan. You can continue to work on and perfect your personalized plan until your design appointment at the Highland Homes Personal Selection Studio.

Finalizing the Electrical Options for Your Florida New Home

During your design appointment at the Highland Homes Personal Selection Studio, your Design Consultant can access your personalized home plan and help you finalize your electrical options. By creating your personalized home and electrical plan before your design appointment, you’ve just saved a ton of time which you can instead use to peruse cabinets, countertops, flooring, and all the beautiful features and finishes available to personalize your dream home.