Electrical installation in timber-frame construction – It’s so easy
German installers would certainly welcome the opportunity to dispense with the laborious task of slitting walls. Here in America, it is so easy to install any type of pipe or wiring. They are simply installed in the wooden studs of the walls and roof. The three trades of plumbing, air conditioning and electrics are now working simultaneously and things are really moving forward on the building.
Around 80% of the lighting in Florida’s houses consists of recessed ceiling spotlights and lamps integrated into fans. That’s great, of course, because the fans fulfill two functions at once: Light and air. And the integrated ceiling spotlights simply look great.
We ordered an upgrade here because we only wanted LEDs and also wanted them in a 4-inch version and not the standard 6-inch version, which we thought was clunky. The electricians also laid all the other cables required for the building services – very easily via the roof beams and attached them to the wooden studs.
Typical US: Simple, fast, but with a system
In Florida, electrical installation is carried out in accordance with the National Electrical Code (NEC). Plastic-sheathed cables (Romex / NM Cable) are used almost exclusively, which are pulled directly through the wooden studs without empty conduits. Drilling holes in the joists is completely sufficient – this saves an enormous amount of time. Socket and switch boxes are usually made of plastic and are screwed directly to the wooden studs with two screws.
What is striking: The switches are often higher than in Germany (approx. 120 cm) and sockets are significantly lower (approx. 30 cm). GFCI protection (residual current circuit breaker) is also mandatory – especially in damp rooms and outdoors. The fuse box (breaker panel) is usually mounted on the outside of the house wall and in modern houses already contains combined RCD/LCBs.