Must-read before renovating: A complete guide to home water and electricity planning to avoid troubles and dangers after moving in

When preparing to decorate a new home or renovate an old house, most people focus on the beautiful style design and storage cabinets, but often overlook the "invisible project" buried under the walls and floors - water and electricity pipes. These pipelines are like the blood vessels and nervous system of a house. If they are poorly planned, they may cause inconvenience at best, or cause leakage, power outage or even fire risks at worst. A senior Taipei decorator often laments that many homeowners wait until the furniture is brought in, only to find that the sockets are not enough or in the wrong position. In the end, they have to install ugly extension cords, which is not only unsafe, but also destroys the aesthetics of the decoration. So, how to carry out comprehensive water and electricity planning? First of all, we must start from the highest principle of "safety". According to Taiwan's electrical regulations, residential circuits should be clearly divided into two independent circuits: "lighting" and "socket". Kitchens, bathrooms, and high-power-consuming air conditioners must each have dedicated circuits. Especially in humid bathrooms, all sockets must be equipped with earth leakage circuit breakers (ELCB), which is the basic line of defense to ensure life safety. The wires in many old apartments are still early aluminum wires or 1.6mm single-core wires, which are simply unable to handle the diverse electrical appliances in modern households. During renovation, it must be fully replaced with 2.0mm single-core wires or 3.5mm² stranded wires that meet the specifications, and sockets and switches with safety labels must be used. The second is the consideration of "practicability". Rather than just imagining it out of thin air, it is better to take the floor plan and carefully walk through the future life activities: Do you need sensor lights at the entrance? Are the sockets on both sides of the sofa and at the head of the bed at a comfortable height? Are the number of sockets on the desk and TV wall sufficient for TVs, game consoles, audio and network equipment? A common mistake is forgetting to reserve a charging socket for the sweeping robot in the entrance cabinet, or forgetting to plan special sockets and water outlets for the washing machine and water heater on the balcony. The planning of the kitchen is even more important. In addition to the basic three-machine sockets (range hood, stove, dish dryer), under-kitchen water dispensers, dishwashers, and food waste processors are becoming more and more popular. These must be decided before water and electricity come into the site. Professional designers usually produce a detailed "Lamps, Switches and Sockets Configuration Diagram", which is the most important basis for the homeowner's acceptance. Be sure to confirm each one. Finally, there is the “future” reservation. Technological life is changing rapidly. Equipment that may not be necessary now may become a necessity in the future. For example, even if you do not plan to install a whole-house water purification or softening system at the moment, you can first ask the master to reserve an interface and space at the main water inlet. Taking into account the trend of electric vehicles, if your home is open to the sky or has a parking space, it will be a far-sighted investment to bury a power line sufficient to carry the charging pile to the parking area. Network wiring is also worth thinking about. Although Wi-Fi is very convenient, pre-embedding Cat.6 or Cat.6a network lines in the study room, behind the TV in the living room, and in each room can ensure the most stable and high-speed wired network backbone, which is of great benefit for home office, online games, or the series connection of future smart home devices. During the planning stage, communication with the designer or workman is crucial. You can take the initiative to provide your electrical appliance list and living habits (such as the habit of using a laptop at the dining table, the habit of getting up at night and the need for a night light, etc.) and ask them to provide corresponding plans. A transparent and detailed quotation should clearly list the number of circuits, wire specifications, number and brand of socket switches to avoid future disputes. Remember, although good water and electricity planning is invisible, it silently protects the convenience and safety of every day. It is definitely the link in decoration that cannot be saved and careless.

New knowledge on air conditioning power consumption and Taiwan climate maintenance regulations in recent years (2025-2026 current situation)

With the high temperatures in summer breaking historical records and the adjustment of electricity price structure in recent years, the latest statistics from the Energy Administration of the Ministry of Economic Affairs show that air-conditioning equipment accounts for more than 47% of residential electricity consumption in summer. Many people mistakenly believe that if the air conditioner is not cold, they only need to "replenish the refrigerant." However, in fact, refrigerant is not naturally consumed during normal operation in a closed circuit. If the refrigerant is insufficient, it means that there are micro leaks in the copper pipes or joints. Simply replenishing the air conditioner will only treat the symptoms but not the root cause. Refrigerant leakage will aggravate the high temperature overload of the compressor and shorten its service life.

According to Taiwan's standard operating specifications for air-conditioning projects, it is recommended that professional technicians with a refrigeration and air-conditioning decoration technician license perform "full machine high-pressure water washing and evaporator deep sterilization" every 1 to 2 years for detached air-conditioning indoor units. Especially in the humid summer in the Shuangbei Basin, the air drum and water collection tray are easy to breed black mold and jelly-like biofilm. This is also the main reason for the sour smell in the air-conditioning outlet and the backflow of the drainage pipe. Regular maintenance can maintain CSPF (Air Conditioning Seasonal Performance Factor) level one energy efficiency level, which can save an average household 15% to 20% of air conditioning electricity bills every year.

Autonomous simple maintenance vs professional maintenance safety red line

• Homeowners can do by themselves: Remove and clean the nylon filter regularly every 2 to 3 weeks (rinse with clean water and dry in a cool place, do not expose it to the sun to avoid deformation and embrittlement); clean the air outlet blades of the indoor unit with a dry cloth; check whether there is any accumulation of debris within 50 cm around the outdoor unit that hinders heat dissipation.
• Professional technicians must be entrusted according to regulations: Refrigerant pressure testing and leakage repair welding, high-pressure cleaning of indoor unit air drums and aluminum fins with liquid chemicals, reset of the drainage slope of hidden cold water pipes in the ceiling, and 220V dedicated power circuit configuration and leakage circuit breaker replacement.