Short answer
In a residential complex low-voltage work is planned in three layers. Inside the apartment: intercom, data and TV outlets; in the block common area: cameras, fire detection, satellite head-end and distribution cabinet; around the estate: barriers, perimeter cameras and cabling between blocks. Which systems are mandatory is determined by the project specification and regulation requirements.
What sets a residential complex apart from a single building?
In a single apartment building, all cables stay in the same building. A residential complex project, however, has dozens of blocks, distances between blocks, a shared parking lot, a playground and an estate entrance. A mistake in one block is repeated across the whole project; a single wrong cabinet position ends up installed dozens of times.
That is why, in a residential complex, a good method is to draw a detailed low-voltage detail for a typical block, try it on site in the first block, and then roll it out to the other blocks. A problem seen in the first block can be corrected in the other blocks.
Expert note: Use the first completed block like a model apartment. Test the door phone, TV and data lines under real conditions, and solve the problems before the following blocks start.
Inside the apartment: door phone, data and TV
An apartment has at least a video door phone monitor, central TV outlets and data outlets. Putting the data outlet only in the living room rests on the assumption that the wireless modem will cover the whole apartment; with thick reinforced concrete walls this often turns out not to be true.
In-apartment conduits should reach the TV wall in the living room and the bedrooms, and be gathered in a small low-voltage box at the apartment entrance. This box makes it easier to bring fiber or a new internet infrastructure into the apartment in the future.
When choosing a door phone system, check that the panel at the block entrance suits the number of apartments and that you can also call the apartment from the estate entrance. IP-based door phones can forward a call to the apartment through a phone app; this feature needs a network connection inside the apartment. Make the decision while drawing the typical block detail, because the cable type changes accordingly.
- Door phone monitor point at the entrance door
- TV outlet in the living room and bedrooms
- Data outlet in the living room and rooms
- Low-voltage collection box at the apartment entrance
- Smoke detector point in the kitchen and hallway (depending on the project)
Block common area
In each block, there is a main door panel at the building entrance, cameras in front of the stairs and elevators, a satellite and TV head-end, a data distribution cabinet and a fire detection system. In which areas fire detection is mandatory is determined during design according to the conditions in the Regulation on Fire Protection of Buildings.
Place the block cabinet in a locked room or a locked cupboard. A cabinet standing in the open in the stairwell is exposed to tampering by residents and to dust.
If you want a camera or emergency communication in the elevator car, plan it together with the elevator company. Running cable down the elevator shaft later may require stopping the elevator and a separate permit process.
Estate perimeter and common areas
The estate entrance may include a barrier, a security booth, a license plate reading camera and a visitor door phone. A separate camera plan is needed for the parking lot, playground and perimeter wall. If these cameras are far from the blocks, the cable distance may exceed the limits of copper cable; in that case fiber optic cable or intermediate cabinets are used.
Cables between blocks run underground. Lay the conduits before the landscaping and infrastructure work is finished; digging after the grass and pavement are done is both expensive and causes trouble with the residents. In Şanlıurfa's hot summers, cable trays left above ground deteriorate in the sun.
Management room and monitoring
The camera feeds, door phone calls and barrier control are often brought together in the security booth or the management office. A data line must come to this point from every block. Which screens and which recorder will go in the management room, and who will have access, should be settled before handover.
A housing estate camera also processes personal data under KVKK . The privacy notice sign, retention period and access rights are the responsibility of the estate management; at handover, pass this on to the management in writing.
What gets added later in a lived-in estate
After a residential complex is delivered, residents usually bring extra requests within the first year: an extra camera for the parking lot, a camera for the playground, card access for the blocks, and for the barrier license plate recognition. Meeting these requests depends on the spare conduits left during construction and the empty spaces left in the cabinet.
Leave an empty port, an empty shelf and a spare power outlet in every block cabinet. Add unused spare conduits to the underground lines between blocks. These conduits are cheap during construction; after the landscaping is finished, the same job requires digging, repair and long correspondence with residents.
If, in addition to satellite broadcasts, you are considering IPTV or fiber internet distribution in the central TV system in the future, leave room for it in the vertical lines inside the blocks. You do not have to decide for certain now.
- Empty port and shelf space in the block cabinet
- Spare underground conduit between blocks
- Extra camera output for the parking lot and park area
- Barrier and turnstile : power and data line
Specification and handover
In a public or private residential complex project, the low-voltage scope is described in the employer's or the authority's specification. Discussing with the employer, from the very start, the things not written in the specification but that residents will ask for in the first month, for example a parking lot camera or an extra data outlet, reduces the extra work that comes up later.
At handover, the as-built drawing by block, cabinet labels, IP address list and user passwords should be given to the estate management with a signed record. Desa Bilişim prepares this handover file by block in residential complex projects.
Also make clear who will maintain the system after handover. Even if the estate management changes the maintenance company, thanks to the handover file the new company does not have to discover the system from scratch.
Expert note: For specification interpretations, regulation requirements and contract scope, consult your organization's legal department, the project designer or an expert.
Frequently asked
Which low-voltage systems are mandatory in residential complexes?
What is mandatory varies with the project specification, the characteristics of the building and regulation requirements. Some systems, such as fire detection, are tied to regulation. For an answer specific to your project, consult your project designer.
How long can the camera cable between blocks be?
Copper network cable has a distance limit, and for links beyond this limit fiber optic cable or an intermediate cabinet is used. The exact solution is determined in the project based on the distance between blocks and the route.
Who should watch the housing estate cameras?
The cameras should be watched by people authorized by the estate management. Access to recordings, the retention period and the privacy notice sign are the management's responsibility under KVKK.
Let's draw the typical block detail together
Contact us to plan the apartment, block and estate layers of your residential complex project.
