Intercom installation

An intercom for a house, a new handset in a flat, or a video intercom in place of an old audio unit. Intercom installation looks quite different depending on whether you are connecting to the whole building’s system or putting up your own kit at the gate.

Two different situations

In a block of flats the intercom belongs to the building’s system. Swapping the handset in your flat for a new one compatible with the system (for example Urmet, Laskomex or Proel) is a short job, but the model has to match the central unit. A video intercom in a block only works if the entrance panel has a camera in the shared system, so check with the building manager first.

At a house, a complete kit goes in: an outdoor panel at the gate or door, a monitor or handset inside, a power supply and often an electric strike or gate control. Most of the work is running the cable from the gate to the house.

What fitting a kit involves

• mounting the outdoor panel at a height that suits both visitors and the camera;
• running the cable: in conduit, underground, along the facade or through existing ducts;
• fixing the monitor and power supply indoors and connecting the electric strike;
• setting it up and testing speech, picture and door release.

What to prepare

• the kit you bought, or a note that you want to choose it with the handyman;
• the distance from the gate to the monitor position, and whether a cable is already in place;
• in a block of flats: the system name from the current handset, or the building manager’s contact;
• photos of the gate and the monitor spot in the job.

Common questions