How to change the electrical wiring in an apartment with your own hands

Replacing the electrical wiring in an apartment is a complex and expensive undertaking that is performed only if absolutely necessary. In most cases, it is timed to coincide with the overhaul of housing, when people temporarily leave it. The main reason for making such a decision is the inconsistency of the line capabilities with the required requirements or its emergency state. Before changing the wiring in the apartment, it is recommended to contact the management organization with a request to increase the allocated capacity. This will avoid the constant shutdown of the automation when the load increases.

Who needs to change the wiring

Not only the comfort of living in the house depends on the state of the electrical economy. If you replace the wiring in a timely and competent manner, you can forget about the risks of short circuits, cable overheating and the possibility of fire for several decades.

Replacing the electrics in the apartment is required in the following cases:

• Lack of current in sockets and switches. This is an indication that there has been a line break or broken contacts in the back box. If the house is three-room, the cable change can be carried out in whole or in part, in those places where there is damage.
• Regular activation of automatic protective devices. This happens when the laid communications overheat, since they are not designed for modern household appliances with high power.
• Irrational installation scheme during the construction of a building. A two-room mansion could be equipped with cable routing using the branching method, which leads to overloads and emergencies.
• Insufficient number of outlets. A studio apartment can be equipped with just one socket, which turns out to be behind a massive wardrobe.
• Exposure to dampness. This often happens when neighbors are flooded or the roof of a building is damaged. From contact with moisture, both the metal and the insulation of the cables become unusable.
• Full resource consumption. The electrical wire is designed for a certain period of operation, at the end of which it loses its physical properties.

Before you replace the electrical wiring in the apartment with your own hands, you should carefully study the safety requirements and refresh your knowledge in this direction.

Replacing electrical wiring after flooding

Regardless of the reasons, flooding of housing has catastrophic consequences for internal communications.

This manifests itself in such negative phenomena:

• Violation of the shape of the channels through which the cables are laid. There is a risk of rupture due to overpressure.
• Passing through the ceilings, water is saturated with active reagents that are present in them. The liquid becomes corrosive and corrodes the insulation.
• Metal oxidation occurs from contact with water. As a result, the conductivity at the contact points deteriorates. In some cases, the connection is broken, but more often there is heating and sparking.

Replacing the wiring in the apartment should be carried out immediately after the walls have been dried and disinfected.

How many years is needed replacement

The old panel house, built at the end of the last century, was equipped with cables with aluminum conductors. It was considered economically viable, which was the basis for massive municipal construction. Over time, the engineers realized the mistake.

Aluminum electrical wire has the following disadvantages:

1. Brittleness. In places of bend, the vein breaks off after 10-15 cycles. Because of this, you have to build up the line and do twists.
2. The current passing through the metal changes its structure. The wire becomes porous and brittle.
3. Aluminum oxidizes even under the insulating tape. Corrosion first degrades the conductivity of the contacts, and then the connections disappear completely.

Depending on the operating conditions, the replacement of electrical wiring in Soviet-built buildings must be carried out no later than 20 years after their commissioning. If cables with copper conductors were installed in the apartment, their service life is 50 years.

Preparation for electrical work

You should start with drawing up a project. To do this, you need to draw a diagram of each room with the application of all energy consumers, indicating their power. This data will help determine the type of cable, the number of outlets, and their location. It is advisable to make drawings for each room indicating the entry point.

The schema should contain the following data:

• shield;
• counter;
• cable laying lines;
• socket blocks;
• switches;
• mounting boxes;
• grounding;
• residual current devices;
• automatic switches (packers).

When drawing up a project, you must adhere to the following rules:

• the power of the jacks and wiring is 1.5-2 times higher than the maximum load;
• maintaining minimum distances from sources of threats to energy consumers;
• separation of lines for lighting groups and sockets;
• laying of separate lines for powerful household appliances;
• the ability to turn off the current for each room individually.

Since the supply of energy is carried out on the basis of an agreement with the management company, a wiring replacement scheme should be agreed with it. Mistakes can cause an emergency at the entrance or throughout the house. Such incidents are fraught with penalties and forced shutdown. An official paper insures a person against such troubles.

Materials and tools

To replace the electrical, you will need the following tools:

• perforator, grinder, screwdriver;
• level, tape measure, square;
• a hammer;
• tester, indicator;
• nippers, pliers;
• Screwdriver Set;
• spatula, paint brush;
• stationery knife;
• soldering iron;
• headlamp.

Calculations of materials and fixtures are made on the basis of the diagram.

To change the internal line in the apartment, you should stock up on the following materials:

• cable with copper conductors with a cross section of 1.0-2.5 mm;
• tin or solder;
• rosin;
• insulating tape;
• socket boxes;
• mounting boxes;
• switches;
• bags;
• connecting blocks;
• putty;
• primer;
• finishing.

For the convenience and safety of working at height, you need to purchase a stable step-ladder. To protect the skin, eyes and breathing, you should work in a construction helmet, protective gloves, goggles and a respirator. You will also need a 1 kW dielectric mat.

Dismantling the old line

Defective communications can only be replaced in a completely de-energized room. If the accounting equipment, plugs or bags are inside, there will be no problems. When the devices are taken out into the staircase, it is necessary to take precautions. After disconnecting the power, close the flap door and post a warning sign on it.

Step-by-step dismantling process:

1. Remove paintings, sconces, curtains, shelves, take out furniture that needs to be disassembled and carried.Cover the rest of the interior elements with plastic wrap.
2. Remove the covers of the junction boxes, sockets and switches. Remove the devices from the holes and disconnect them from the line. Check their condition, make a decision: keep products or purchase new ones.
3. Try to pull the old cables through the holes in the wall. If the line gives in, you should not pull it out. It will come in handy as a tightening cable when installing new wiring.
4. Draw the lines for the old cable. Cut out the grooves with a grinder, get the wires.

If the new scheme differs significantly from the old one, you can not remove the old communications from the walls. It is enough to cut off the protruding wires, and seal the remaining holes with putty.

Laying new wiring

Depending on the design features of the building and living conditions in it, an open or hidden method of laying is chosen.

The open version assumes the absence of destructive and wet work. Communications are laid in hollow boxes, plinths, platbands and cornices, overhead switches and boxes are installed. The disadvantage of this approach is the weak protection of the line from moisture and mechanical stress.

A hidden gasket requires a lot of effort and investment, but it is more practical and reliable. The cable is hidden under the plaster, the walls are even, the internal sockets and switches almost do not protrude from them.

Step-by-step process for performing a hidden gasket:

1. Transfer the scheme to the walls. Mark places for mounting boxes and socket boxes, connect them with straight lines.
2. Drill holes for plastic boxes with a rotary hammer with a crown. For block installation, connect them with jumpers.
3. Make grooves. To facilitate the work, you can make them in a triangular section. So the strobe will be cut in 2 steps without further knocking out the material between the walls.
4. Cabling. It should be pre-tightened into a plastic corrugated tube, which is then rigidly fixed in the strobe.
5. Connect the wires in the junction boxes. Fasten the fixtures in the holes. Do not install covers on them yet.
6. Visually check the correctness of installation and the tightness of the fixing of the conductors in the terminals.

Finally, the lines are tested with a multimeter to determine the presence of bad contacts, open circuits and short circuits.

Connection to the dashboard

Before connecting the line to the shield, it is impractical to close up the grooves. If a mistake is made, there is no need to carry out destructive work. When a package switch is already installed in the panel, the conductors are connected to it when the toggle switch is turned off. To install a new device, you will have to involve a company representative who has access to the house switchboard in order to de-energize the riser during installation.

After installing the bagger, it is turned on and the performance of the laid line is checked. If everything is assembled without errors, the power is turned off, the strobes are closed, the covers are screwed to the boxes, switches and sockets.

Safety regulations

When carrying out electrical work, the following safety measures must be observed:

• always de-energize the room before starting installation;
• use a tool with insulation of at least 1 kW;
• use a dielectric mat and goggles;
• lay the cable only vertically and horizontally;
• do not directly connect aluminum and copper conductors;
• if possible, abandon twists in favor of pads;
• use cables and sockets corresponding to the power of the consumers.

These rules are simple, but the lives of people and the safety of their property depend on their implementation.