Location of Electrical Outlets
Note that your local building codes will almost certainly dictate basic rules about quantity and placement of electrical outlets. Electricity can be lethal! Let a reputable electrical contractor perform all electrical work. Always insist on copper wiring and NEVER accept aluminium wiring.
Even though an electrical contractor is wiring your home, you will benefit a great deal by giving some thought to the placement of electrical outlets in your home, basement, garage, and outdoors. Be sure to let your contractor know your needs ahead of time.
Take a look around other people's homes and make some notes where you see concentrations of appliances.
In living rooms and family rooms, you will probably need many of your outlets in corners. Around televisions you will have a large concentration of devices and connections to telephone, DVD player, satellite, cable converter, speakers, and similar devices.
In bedrooms, you will need more outlets mid-wall or on both sides of where you intend to place your bed, to power radios, telephones and lamps.
Your home office can be especially demanding. Your computer, monitor, printer, lamps, router, modem, shredder, computer speakers, phone, radio, scanner, fax machine, all require electricity.
In kitchens, you will need a large cluster of outlets, many of them on individual circuits (not shared). All fridges, freezers, microwave ovens, and washers typically require their own circuit at the breaker panel.
Proper planning and communication with your contractor can avoid overloading and dangerous situations after your home has been completed.
Tips for Electrical Outlets:
An additional electrical outlet identified before the main house wiring goes in, costs about 1/2 of an outlet that goes in after the house is completed, do not skimp.
You might consider installing a 220 volt dryer outlet in your garage. This is useful for testing stoves and dryers. It can also be used for powering welders, other heavy tools, or reverse feeding generators should the need arise. Dryer plug, cable and socket sets come as a kit and are quite inexpensive at the big chain home product suppliers. Be sure to use a cover over these outlets when they are not in use, tiny fingers can get in. When not in use, keep them switched off at the breaker panel.
If permitted by code, each outdoor outlet should be an individual GFI (ground fault interrupt) type and each on its own breaker. The GFI helps to protect you from damaged tools and cables; the individual circuit means that you won't be running inside to reset the breaker every time you start two high load devices outside.
All outlets in bathrooms should be individual GFI type. Insist that your electrical contractor does not wire the bathroom lights from the wall GFI, or your bathroom lights will go out if your curling iron shorts. Place bathroom outlets so that cords will not be running through sinks, but out of reach of showers and bathtubs. Not always easy to do.
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