Vent: had a customer quote my own advice back at me yesterday

I was swapping out a dying panel at a house in Tacoma and the homeowner, total retired electrician, starts talking about how he hardwired his kid's place instead of using the wireless sensors I recommended. He said, "You guys always push the app stuff until the battery dies at 2AM." That got me thinking about the last three service calls I did where the wireless units were the culprit. Maybe I'm leaning on the battery stuff too much when a solid wired run would last 20 years without a hiccup. Anyone else second-guessing their install defaults after a chat like this? What's your threshold for going hardwire vs wireless on a basic residential job?

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umabailey15d ago

Honestly, that quote about the battery dying at 2AM hit me hard. I had almost the exact same thing happen last month, a guy in Puyallup told me he rips out every smart sensor we put in and runs his own wire because he's tired of climbing ladders in the dark. He wasn't wrong either, I've done three callbacks this year where the wireless unit just gave up for no good reason. Now I'm starting every basic job with a quick look at how easy the wire run would be, and if it's a straight shot through an attic, I'm going hardwire every time. The app stuff is cool until it's not, and my back thanks me when I don't have to keep coming back.