Vent: Used to run wire through attics in July heat, now I just spec wireless and let the customer deal with batteries

Back in 2018 I did a 4 story townhouse in Phoenix, 112 degrees in the attic, sweat dripping into my eyes while I fished wire down a 3 inch chase. Took me 6 hours to run 4 zones. Customer complained about the cost. Last month I did the same layout with wireless sensors and a cellular panel. Took 90 minutes. Customer asked why the batteries cost extra. Anyone else just done with crawling in hot attics for pennies?

3 comments

3 Comments

bennett.jana25d ago

Got to agree with you @kim_johnson51 on the tradeoffs thing. For me, it's not just about attics. It's the same pattern everywhere these days, people swapping a tough upfront job for a bunch of small headaches down the road. Like how everyone replaced their old reliable furnace with a heat pump, now they're shocked when it can't keep up during a cold snap. Or how a customer insists on a fancy smart lock, then calls me twice a year because the wifi dropped and they're locked out. The old hardwired stuff was a pain to install, but once it was in, it was done. Now I spend more time explaining battery schedules and signal boosters than I ever did dragging wire through a hot crawlspace.

kim_johnson5125d ago

Is it really that bad though? I mean yeah attics suck in July, no argument there. But swapping out a whole hardwired system for wireless just because of a few hot afternoons feels like using a sledgehammer on a nail. You save 4.5 hours of labor but now that customer is buying batteries for the next 10 years and probably calling you every time one chirps at 2 AM because they can't figure out which sensor it is. Plus wireless can be finicky depending on the construction of the building and interference from other crap in the house. I've seen plenty of "simple" wireless installs turn into a headache because the signal drops every time someone runs the microwave. Not saying crawling around in 112 degree attics is fun but sometimes the old way has tradeoffs too.

the_aaron24d ago

Nah, I'm with you on the old way being better for long term. All these batteries add up quick and customers never remember to change them until 3am.