We all want to live in hi-tech homes, surrounded by the comforts that the most up-to-date gadgets can bring. Sound systems, huge flat-screen TVs, elaborate home computer set-ups and bulky air conditioners and dehumidifiers may enhance our lives, but such conveniences come at a price: ugly spaghetti junctions of wiring, switches and electrical sockets. Experts say that with good planning, such eyesores can be reduced or eliminated. Renovating provides an opportunity to decide what's needed and where, and to conceal all the unsightly spaghetti. Architects and designers can plan wiring and cabling in walls, under floors and in ceilings. 'Architects can also install recessed trunking in walls or allow wiring to run inside built-in desks and cabinets with access doors and covers,' says architect Hubert Un of Hubert Un & Associates. If renovating isn't on the cards, a cable management system can help to tidy up your space. 'Bundling wires together with spirals or ties helps reduce mess and fixing these bundles to the undersides of desks or cabinets can get them effectively out of sight,' says architect Adrian McCarroll of Original Vision. Plastic raceways (PVC covers) and baseboard cord organisers are available at most hardware stores and are great for hiding speaker wires and most types of low-voltage wiring from computers, TVs and phones. They come in a variety of colours and can be painted. Michelle Koller, creative director of Tequila Kola, suggests concealing wiring and plug sockets with cloth tucked behind cabinets. 'If the cabinet is dark wood, use a black cloth. If it's white, use a light coloured cloth,' she says. 'The fabric will blend in and look like it's part of its shadow.' Switches and sockets in different colours and finishes are visually jarring but easily dealt with because many switch ranges offer a variety of wall plates from the same family. Un says he likes German brand Gira ( www.gira.com ) for looks and performance, but there are cheaper options such as the metal-plated switches available at many hardware stores on Lockhart Road, Wan Chai. A hi-tech means of organising home electrics is an intelligent building system that links lighting, audio visual, air conditioning, blinds and other devices to a single switch outlet. McCarroll recommends the brand Vantage ( www.vantagecontrols.com ). But computerised systems controlled from one location can be pricey and necessitate rewiring almost everything in the house, says Un, so installing one is viable only as part of a full-scale renovation. If none of the above appeals, you can always purposely show off your wiring. That was the thinking behind German designer Britta Bohne's cable carpet, which is supposed to be decorated with electrical spaghetti fastened to its surface. Opinions differ on whether to hide large TVs and audio visual equipment. No one wants a room to be dominated by an excess of home-entertainment equipment, but these days many systems are well designed and attractive. Recessing flat-screen TVs into the wall helps reduce their dominance, says McCarroll. 'We've also used sliding screens to hide the TV from view when it's not in use.' Another option is to mount it on a moveable wall with wiring inside that slides into an adjacent wall pocket when not required. Other ways to disguise TVs include glass overlays that turn the TV into a mirror when it's off, and decorative wooden frames. A TV can also be mounted on a cream, backlit panel on a wall painted in a bold colour such as warm red. For audio visual gear, McCarroll likes to build cabinets that can be closed or open-fronted. 'The trouble with closing is that infrared remotes don't work. But this can be addressed by fitting speaker fabric over the opening or using a radio frequency remote system.' Custom-made units are readily available from furniture shops along Queen's Road East. If you prefer a built-in unit, a sleek, low bench along one side of a room can be combined with floating cabinets above for the TV and other items. Air conditioners and dehumidifiers are vital in Hong Kong homes and if you're renovating and have enough space, they can be housed in concealed units in ceiling voids. If space is scarce, they can be disguised. It isn't expensive to create louvred or slatted screens to cover wall-hung units. But Un says this can reduce an air-conditioning system's efficiency by more than 15 per cent. Punching holes in a panel and mounting it over an air-conditioning unit can also work well, as can building streamlined storage and shelving around it. Although many air-conditioning units available these days have a dehumidifying function, they're never as effective as dehumidifiers. 'We've found that the best method of concealing dehumidifiers is to build them into cabinets and connect a permanent drain so they don't need to be emptied,' says McCarroll. 'It's best not to screen them in, but open louvres are OK.'
