The smart-home wiring checklist for an HDB, BTO or condo renovation in Singapore

We renovate whole homes, which means we see the same regret every year: the flat is beautiful, the owner wants smart curtains, and the pelmet has no power point. Or the wall switches are smart but blink at night because there is no neutral. Or the Wi-Fi dies in the bedroom behind the household shelter. None of these can be fixed cheaply once the walls are closed.

This checklist is the infrastructure layer. It is deliberately brand-agnostic. Whatever you eventually install, Matter, Zigbee, Apple, Google or Home Assistant, the wires below make it possible.

1. A neutral wire at every switch box

Older HDB flats and many condos have only live and switched-live at the switch. A smart switch needs power for its own radio, so without a neutral it has to use no-neutral models that leak a tiny current through the lamp, which causes flicker with LEDs and rules out many switch designs. During rewiring, ask for a neutral pulled to every switch box. This is the single most valuable line on this list.

Cost

Roughly S$500 to S$1,500 across a 4-room flat during a rewiring job. After renovation, S$60 to S$130 per point if the conduit allows it at all.

2. Deep back boxes where the panel needs them

Smart switches with relays are thicker than a dumb rocker. A 35 mm or 47 mm deep box avoids the panel standing proud of the wall. Decide the switch model at design stage so the electrician orders the right boxes; this is why we finalise finishes before the electrical stage.

3. Empty conduits to every future position

Conduit costs almost nothing while the walls are open. Run empty 20 mm conduit to:

• A ceiling position in each room for a presence sensor
• Above the main door for a doorbell camera and inside for a chime or panel
• Two corners of the living room for a camera or speaker
• The service yard and kitchen sink cabinet for leak sensors that need power
• The balcony for a future outdoor camera

Pull a draw wire through each so a cable can be added later without hacking.

4. A 13A point inside every pelmet

Battery curtain motors exist, and we install them where there is no alternative. But a wired motor is quieter, faster and never needs charging. The point sits inside the pelmet or curtain box, so it is invisible. Add one per curtain track, and one in each bedroom even if you are only doing blinds today.

5. Power behind the TV wall and inside the feature wall

For the TV, the streaming box, a hub, and strip lighting in the cove. Two double sockets and one LAN point. If the feature wall has fluted panels or a fireplace niche, the strip lighting driver needs a concealed location with air around it.

6. A 48V driver location for track and cove lighting

Magnetic track lighting and LED strips run on 48V or 24V DC from a driver that must be hidden but serviceable. Plan a location above the false ceiling with an access panel, or inside a top cabinet. Drivers fail before fixtures do; make them reachable.

7. The hub point at the DB box

Every home needs one place for the brain: a Matter hub, a Thread border router and, in our Comfort and Complete packages, a small Home Assistant computer. Give it a ventilated recess near the DB box with a double socket and two LAN points. Do not seal it in a carpentry box with no airflow.

8. Cat6A to at least two ceiling points for Wi-Fi

The household shelter is a radio-proof box in the middle of your flat. One router by the front door will not reach the bedrooms reliably. Run Cat6A from the DB box to a ceiling point in the living room and another in the bedroom corridor for wired access points. Wired backhaul beats mesh every time. Cat6A rather than Cat6 costs a few dollars more and supports 10 Gb later.

9. The main door and gate

A smart lock is battery powered, but the doorbell camera, the gate lock's indoor unit and any wall panel by the entrance want power and a conduit. Also confirm the door thickness and the gate profile before ordering a lock; Singapore HDB gates need a gate-specific lock such as the Aqara Smart Gate Lock U500, not a door deadbolt.

10. Storage heaters and air-con

Storage heaters draw up to 20A. Use a 20A-rated smart switch made for Southeast Asia, not a lighting switch. For air-con, most Singapore split units are infrared controlled; an IR controller near each indoor unit needs a USB or 13A point within reach.

11. Bathrooms and the service yard

An IP44 downlight and a motion sensor in each bathroom, a leak sensor by the washing machine and under the sink, a contact sensor on the service yard door. Most are battery devices, but the downlight and any exhaust fan control need the right wiring at the switch.

What to skip

• Smart bulbs in fittings that have a wall switch. Someone will switch the wall off and the bulb goes dumb.
• Wi-Fi sensors. Battery life is poor and they clutter the router.
• Proprietary wired systems that need a specialist forever. If the installer cannot tell you which open standard it uses, walk away.
• Wall tablets hard-wired into the wall. A magnetic dock for an iPad does the same job and can leave with you.

Rules that apply in Singapore

• Electrical work must be done by a Licensed Electrical Worker (LEW). A Grade 7 LEW is sufficient for domestic loads.
• HDB renovation requires a permit, and hacking scope must follow the approved plan.
• Household shelter walls cannot be drilled beyond the permitted 50 mm inserts, so plan Wi-Fi and cabling around the shelter, not through it.
• Radio devices sold in Singapore should be IMDA-registered. This is one reason we buy Aqara through the local distributor.

At ELEVATED, this checklist is part of the electrical stage of every renovation we run, so the smart layer is planned on your drawings and wired while the walls are open. If your renovation is with someone else, print it and hand it to your electrician anyway.

Questions people ask

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