Low-EMF Electrical Wiring — Design & Installation
©2024 by Michael R Neuert, EMFCenter.com
Michael’s Full Retirement in October of 2024:
After more than 32 years in this field, I have fully retired from my EMF work with clients, and my Q&A sessions with eCourse students. Please note that our celebrated on-line course “EMF Solutions for Your Health” is still available, including recent updates about 5G.
Satya Giordano (my EMF apprentice and co-owner for over 10 years) now provides all of our EMF testing, shielding and consulting services. And he is accepting new clients, both on-site and via telephone. Many thanks to you all over the years, Michael Neuert
New Straw Bale Home in Calistoga, California. We installed shielded low-EMF electrical wiring for this beautiful wine country home while it was being built — and at very little extra cost for the electrical installation. The service meter panel is located far from the house at the entrance to the property, and all wiring to and from the house is underground. Magnetic fields inside the home average 0.1 milligauss or less. Electric fields when measured with the body voltage method measure 0.1 volts or less from the wiring. To avoid the use of wireless devices, hard-wired cables were installed for everything from thermostats to the phones and internet. Combined with the extensive use of natural materials, low VOC paints, and the thermal insulating properties of the straw bales, this new eco-home is a model of modern healthful construction. (Interesting note: the straw bales themselves, combined with the stucco surfaces on both sides of the walls, provided relatively high shielding effectiveness of the RF fields from outside sources such as cell towers.)
A. What is “Low-EMF” Wiring?
“Low-EMF” wiring (sometimes also called “EMF-Free” wiring) is a special electrical wiring system which uses specific methods and materials — which meet and exceed the requirements of the current National Electric Code — to greatly reduce the electromagnetic fields (EMFs) emitted from electrical wiring, lights, appliances, meters and panels. (Click this link to purchase Michael’s “Low-EMF Wiring Guide”.)
Materials: The selection of specially shielded cables, boxes and conduit systems to reduce both the electric and magnetic fields.
Methods: The proper techniques to eliminate stray currents, grounding problems, and wiring errors that often cause high magnetic fields.
Location: The optimum placement of wires, meters, and panels to minimize exposures by distance.
Shielding: The added shielding of meter panels, transformers, refrigerators, appliances, and other sources as needed.
B. Design Consultations…
We offer professional consultations to assist you in the design and installation of low-EMF wiring for your new construction or remodel project. With proper planning, your shielded low-EMF wiring can usually be installed for relatively low additional cost when compared to conventional wiring systems.
Nationally, we provide consultations via telephone to help guide homeowners, electricians, designers and architects in the proper design and installation of this special wiring system. In California, we provide onsite consultations and detailed written specifications for the installation of EMF-Free wiring for your particular construction project.
All design consultations are performed by Michael R. Neuert, an engineer and licensed electrical contractor with over 28 years of practical experience in the reduction of EMFs from electrical wiring, panels and other common sources. To arrange a site visit, schedule a telephone consultation, or request a quote, contact us.
C. Installation of Low-EMF Wiring…
In the San Francisco Bay Area: Unfortunately, Michael is now too busy with his EMF consulting/teaching activities to actually install the wiring for local clients, as he had done in many previous years. However, he can still guide and oversee your own local electrical contractor to install the low-EMF wiring properly for your new and remodel building project. He still provides the specialized electrical services needed to troubleshoot high EMF emissions in existing buildings and repair any wiring problems that are causing the high levels. Please contact our office for information on wiring services.
More “Low-EMF” Wiring Examples…
New Round Home in Penngrove, California. We installed shielded wiring for this beautiful and rustic new yurt home — at almost no extra cost to the electrical installation. The meter panel is located several hundred feet away at the edge of the property. The electrical service wires enter underground so there are no overhead wires to see or emit EMFs, and the main panel is located in a utility area far away from where people sleep or spend a lot of time. All the wires inside the building are shielded. Magnetic fields inside the home average 0.1 milligauss or less. Electric fields when measured with the body voltage method measure 0.1 volts or less from the wiring.
Home Remodel and Shielding in Palo Alto, California. We provided a complete package of electrical specifications, installation instructions and shielding materials for this Palo Alto home. Because of the close proximity of the meter panel to the living room, and of the electric ovens to the children’s play area, we installed MuMetal shielding materials to reduce the magnetic fields from the meter and two ovens. We also added shielding for the electrical pumps and controls for the hydronic (hot water) heating system which emitted strong EMFs from the basement. Using our specifications, a local electrical contractor performed the actual installation of the EMF-Free wiring.
EMF-Free Wiring for Warehouse in Graton, California. When a small herbal company purchased this rural warehouse building, the owners needed to revamp the electrical system to accommodate their processing facility, warehouse and offices. The design and installation of their new electrical system using shielded EMF-Free wiring materials added almost no extra cost to the electrical construction budget for the project.
Convenient “Shut Off” Switch for Condo in Santa Rosa, California. High electric fields were measured in the upstairs bedrooms of this condominium end unit. The owner wanted to reduce the EMFs for her family, but did not wish to rewire her entire unit with new wiring. To keep costs low, we installed a special switching system with hand-held remotes. This affordable “shut-off” switch allowed the family members to conveniently turn off all the upstairs wiring from their bedsides with the simple push of a button, thus eliminating the EMFs during sleep.
Minimal EMF-Free Wiring for Home in Lafayette, California. One of the people in this home had been experiencing strong symptoms of chemical and electromagnetic hypersensitivity. The family had been turning off the electricity whenever she was home. While this seemed to help her health, the rest of the family was having difficulty living without power. To avoid both the cost and the disruption of a complete rewire, we modified the electrical system in two ways. First, the old wiring was left as is, but all the breakers were turned off so that the old circuits were completely dead. Second, we added a bare minimum of new shielded EMF-Free circuits — typically one shielded outlet per room, plus shielded wiring for the refrigerator, oven, etc. In this way, the EMFs were reduced, yet the family had some electricity for normal use. This wiring strategy saved greatly on costs and eliminated the need to open up any walls.
Low-EMF Rewire of Older Home in Santa Rosa, California. The EMFs in this small home were relatively high, mostly due to the old “knob-and-tube” wiring in the building. The owners wanted to reduce the EMFs but did not want to remodel or open up any walls. Amazingly, for less than $2000, we completely rewired this small older city home without opening any walls! New shielded wiring was run through the attic, down the inside of existing walls, and also in conduit along the outside of the building, mostly behind bushes. The project included shielding for the main meter panel on the side of the building, because the panel was very close to one of the bedrooms. The result was a simple low-cost wiring system in which both the magnetic fields and electric fields were greatly reduced.