Lets start with alarm systems.

If you are installing a R2000 8 channel simple alarm kit, it doesn't matter who does the installation, you installing a budget system and chances are its included in your armed response contract. the armed response will use sub contracts at the cheapest rate. You can expect a team being paid R500 for labour only for the day to provide trunking and conduits etc.

If plan on installing a R5000 plus systems, use a competent team, dont use your gate installer and expect them to understand and setup a complex smart alarm systems. I thought it was a quick simple task, 5 years later I am still learning and I have completed and have certification for the most complex system of the brand I install.

A 3 days course of doesn't make you an expert at anything, in fact a 3 year course doesnt make you an expert, its the hands on experience and knowledge you gain from working with the products that make people masters at what they do. I have been a electrician for almost 40 years, not just a certificate on the wall, hands on experience and still learn new things literally everyday.

Which brings me to solar systems, as I sit here typing, I dont profess to be an expert in this field, even though I have 12 years hands on experience in standby plant installations and repairs, both generator and inverters From (5 KVA to 250KVA). Completing a 3 days solar introduction course would assist to steer me in the right direction.

I believe if you plan to upskill, the green card is a valuable tool to add to your portfolio, however without electrical training it pretty worthless if you plan to install and sign over solar systems as a day job.

Then we move onto CCTV networks, privacy and security. A person who installs a CCTV system for example is not a IT specialist, they might have a basic understanding of how to connect and setup up a simple P2P network in a surveillance system, but I have found in some cases they could expose your entire network. New systems have measures in place basically force installers to change the default password admin or 1234. Making your password admin 1234 is just as bad the default.

Make sure the people installing equipment can be trusted, considering you share your usernames and passwords and in most cases have the serial numbers and passwords for the devices they have worked with your wifi router etc. That is why I strongly advise you NEVER EVER install cameras inside your home especially not the bedroom. Besides the teams who work on the system, the servers where the data is collected and stored also has your details, location etc.



I find the most ridiculous things when working on customers properties, just yesterday a stupid thing like securing a hard drive to the xvr case, how difficult can that be, yet not only has the hard drive come loose, because it might not have been tightened for some reason, no screws installed so the hard is loose. The hard drive has a metal case and the XVR has a PCB with exposed components. This is how it works, the customer moves the XVR for some reason the hard slides on to the PCB and it goes bang, the installer tries to claim as a warranty claim, but tech support is getting little smarter and now check for stupid things before just replacing units, or if it is out of warranty the customer is quoted to replace the unit

The point of this thread is to just to make you stop and think before you got out a throw a tons of cash at people who might not have your best interest at heart, but rather see you as a cash cow, to milk to the limit.

Make sure that you create a detailed scope of work and both you and the contractor/installer, understand it. Its not always the contractor/installers fault.

I am also finding that just because you pay a lot of money for something, doesn't mean you getting what you pay.

For example if an installer comers highly recommended on group chat and you get a quote to install a sensor outside the back door and the quote is R5500.00, to supply and install the unit 10 metres away from the panel, you are not getting what you pay, you cash cow getting milked.