How should I wire my new house?

[GregBot]

Hello,

This is my first post here. I've been lurking on this message board and gobbling up the YouTube xEssentials series (such an awesome resource for a newbie like me) for months. I have dreamed of creating an awesome Christmas light display since I was a kid! I'm 30 y/o and finally just closed on a brand new house that's suitable for a light show. My first property is a townhouse that faces a golf course...so programing a light show with FM audio wasn't really an option. The neighbors wouldn't have been very keen to the idea of speakers.

One of the primary driving factors for our family to purchase this new home was so I can finally create a light show display!  Enough about me...here's my question:

I'm having an electrician come to install an electric car charger in our new home. I think it's the perfect opportunity to have him/her wire my house to make my 2021 light show easier to set up. The only problem is that I have no idea what my final layout is going to look like. I know that I want DMX moving heads on the roof, pixels along all the rooflines, matrices over all the windows, and I'd also like to future proof the wiring for props that I haven't even thought of. I know that this sounds like a lot for my first year...we'll see what I actually am able to do.

Here are some pictures of my house:
Front of house: https://ibb.co/bgq3ck6
Corner view: https://ibb.co/hyRP6bF
Side view: https://ibb.co/MMdJChQ

What should I have the electrician install? Obviously I need power on the roof. What about data? Should I have cat5 wired from the garage to the roof so I can keep my controller in the garage?

Thank you so much in advance. I'm so excited to be a part of the xlight community!!

PS: The reCAPTCHA on this forum makes it very difficult to signup/post. I'd be happy to help make it a little more user friendly while also keeping out bots.

-Greg Ah Sue

[jnealand]

With LEDs you do not need that many outlets.  I suspect I could run my whole show from one 20a circuit but it would certainly not be convenient.  I have two 20a circuits on the front of my house and one on each side.  The outlets need to be where your controllers will be not necessarily where the props are.  I would also look carefully at where the builder puts outlets inside the house as they are usually put for minimal expense and not for greatest use.  The same goes for your garage.  Think about where you would plug in a power tool or an extension cord to run a car vacuum out in the driveway.  Much easier to add more now and much cheaper than doing it later.

You can do the same with Cat5.  Think about convenience for you and not for the builder.

[RandyS]

I would also suggest that you make the extra outdoor outlets (20 Amp) switched from a convenient location inside your home.  I have done this in our last 3 homes and I love it.