Do I need to rewire my house?

In most cases, no. Depending on the house and equipment, smart controls can potentially go behind suitable existing switches, near the equipment being controlled, or inside the switchboard.

How much should we automate to start?

As little as you like. Most people start with one or two genuine annoyances, see how it goes, and expand from there only where it is useful.

Will it work in an older home?

Often, yes. Older homes are some of the most common retrofits we do. We assess the existing wiring, switchboard and equipment first, and recommend what suits that particular house.

Will my normal switches still work?

Yes. Smart control is an added layer alongside normal controls, so family, guests and anyone without a phone keep using the house the usual way.

What if part of the house is not compatible?

Then we leave that part alone and say so. The assessment comes first, and we only recommend automation where it genuinely works with your installation.

Smart Homes Hamilton

Make the home you have smarter.

You don't need to be building new. We can assess the electrical systems already in your home and work out where smart control would genuinely make everyday life easier.

No full rewire in most situationsStart with one or two thingsHamilton, Cambridge and Te Awamutu

Retrofit My Home 0800 233 532

2E Electrical electrician retrofitting lighting in an existing Hamilton home

Smart home starts with the electrical system that's already there.

The retrofit process

How do you actually make an existing home smarter?

Start with your existing home

Before recommending anything, we look at the systems already in the house, and at the network and connectivity requirements where relevant.

Existing switchesSwitchboardLightingHot waterHeatingPool equipmentGarage and gatesOutdoor circuitsSolarOther equipment you want to control

Tell us what annoys you

Don't begin with technology. Begin with problems. The best retrofit projects start from the everyday things that get left on, run at the wrong time, or cost more than they should.

Lights left onPool pump schedulesTowel rails running all dayHot water timingGarage door uncertaintyOutdoor lightingEnergy use nobody understands

Work out the simplest approach

Depending on the house and the equipment, smart controls may potentially be installed in a few different places. We recommend the simplest approach that does the job.

How the technology works

Behind suitable existing switchesNear the equipment being controlledInside the switchboardAs part of selected electrical upgrades

Install and configure

2E Electrical installs the suitable electrical controls, configures the system, tests it, and shows you how everything works before we leave. Your normal switches and manual controls keep working alongside the automation.

Stage by stage

You don't have to do everything at once.

A retrofit can start with a single annoyance and grow over time. This is one example of how a staged rollout can look. It is not a required package, and your order may look completely different.

Stage 1

Start here

The two most common first projects in an existing home.

Outdoor lighting
Towel rails

Stage 2

Add later

Once the first things have proven useful.

Hot water
Energy monitoring

Stage 3

Keep going if it's useful

Only where it earns its place.

Pool
Garage door
Blinds
Other household automation

Normal house first

A smart retrofit should make the house easier to live in, not harder.

Normal physical controls should remain intuitive where practical, for everyone in the house and every visitor.

Automation does the remembering, so people don't have to.

If a smart feature ever gets in the way, it has failed at its job.

Who is this for?

Most houses qualify.

Not every property is suitable for every feature, and we will tell you honestly where something is not worth doing. But the homes below retrofit far more often than people expect.

Older Hamilton homes

1980s and 1990s homes

Renovated homes

Homes with solar

Homes adding pools or outdoor areas

People who want to automate only one or two things

People who assumed smart homes were only for new builds

Questions

About smart home retrofit

Talk to the team

What would you change about your home?

Tell us the one thing you'd like your existing home to do better.