Tips, guides and news about electrical documentation and AREI regulations
Distribution board with modules and terminals, channel plan for the board door, terminal plan, functions by room, bus lines with bus budget and a dossier as draft or final – for KNX, Niko Home Control, Loxone, Shelly, Sonoff or vendor-neutral planning. Shown on a fictitious Brussels KNX apartment, with all limits.
Step by step from the automation system to the dossier: modules in the distribution board, push buttons and motion detectors on the channels, channel plan for the board door, terminal plan, functions by room, lines with bus budget, draft or final and team work – for KNX, Niko Home Control, Loxone, Shelly, Sonoff or vendor-neutral planning. For KNX also addresses and files for ETS.
New in PlanElec Pro: move a whole archive of Trikker files (.trik) at once. Files, folder or ZIP, one project per file, one report, the original stays attached. Plus what is and is not carried over.
Import Trikker files (.trik) into PlanElec Pro one at a time or as an archive: entry point, choosing files or a ZIP, preview, destination, progress with e-mail, report. Plus limits, what is and is not carried over, and Sketch and floor plan import as alternatives.
PlanElec Pro connects to your own Claude or ChatGPT through MCP. What works today, setup in both assistants, three example requests for installers, engineering offices and architects, permissions and limits.
PlanElec Sketch is a free browser tool for the Belgian single-line diagram and situation plan: no account, no limits, opens Trikker files, PDF from your browser. With a matrix against PlanElec Pro and Trikker.
Fair comparison of Trikker, PlanElec Sketch and PlanElec Pro for the single-line diagram and situation plan in Belgium: platform, price, PDF, file import, AI, with sources and date.
Amperio vs PlanElec for Belgium: dictation, AI assistant, AREI/RGIE checks, distribution boards, offline work, job-site tracking and 12-month cost compared.
In the PlanElec studio you dictate devices, circuits and dimensions to the AI assistant in Dutch, French, German or English. You review the recognised text before sending, every change runs through the AREI/RGIE self-check and can be undone in a single step.
PlanElec automatically prepares open projects for work without a connection. Requirements, status indicator, syncing when you reconnect, conflicts, limits and tips before a site visit. Pilot phase.
The 3D view is available to every user. In Lighting mode you place lights, compare lighting scenes, set sun position and shadows and read a heatmap with guidance values – without a standards-based lighting calculation.
In Export you create a release copy: PlanElec archives the PDF unchanged with its own ID, QR code and SHA-256 hash. The verification page confirms origin and file integrity, not an AREI/RGIE inspection or a signature.
Lay out modules on roof surfaces, assign strings to inverter MPPTs, document the PV side of the single-line diagram and estimate yield with PVGIS, limits included.
PlanElec detects visible DIN modules on up to six photos, with row, starting slot, width and type, and proposes them for an empty distribution board. You review every module and import the layout in a single undoable step.
Upload a plan page as PDF, PNG, JPEG or WebP, review the AI proposal with walls, rooms, doors, windows and device symbols, confirm the scale and import everything into an empty floor.
Missing scale, device not in the diagram, export blocked, cable length open, module not placed, sync message, AI limit or 3D notice: cause and fix for each message.
Align one floor to another with point pairs or a numeric offset, and see why “Set origin here” moves all floors together.
Calculate power, current, power-supply size, feed points and feed cable for 12, 24 and 48 V LED strips. Formulas, tables, the RGBW case, AREI/RGIE rules for SELV and bathrooms, and a free calculator.
The PlanElec assistant carries out plain-language instructions across the whole project – from floor plan and circuits to the distribution board. Every change runs through the AREI/RGIE self-check and is a single undo step.
PlanElec recognises walls, rooms, doors, windows and device symbols in a PDF, scan or Trikker export, and populates an empty distribution board from photos. You review the proposal and import it in one click.
Trikker 2.0 has been available as a beta for macOS since 30 September 2026. What is new, how to bring Trikker PDFs across with floor plan recognition and plan in the browser – on Mac, PC and tablet.
From 1 November 2026 the mandatory sealing of the RCD at the origin of a Belgian domestic installation disappears. What the Royal Decree of 13 August 2026 removes exactly, what stays unchanged, and what it means for inspection reports.
A bus instead of strapping conductors: what a KNX installation shows on the single-line diagram and situation plan, what belongs in ETS and how PlanElec keeps the two apart – with the AREI/RGIE reference beside each statement.
What 3 kA, 6 kA and 10 kA mean, the minimum values the AREI sets for domestic installations, what determines the short-circuit current at the point of installation, and how the figure reaches the single-line diagram.
Follow project changes and assistant tasks in the studio, check who requested each action, and give the PlanElec assistant instructions in your own words.
The new installation tree connects existing devices, protection paths, distribution boards and documents in one planning workflow.
Assign existing floor-plan devices, check protection paths and develop an electrical plan into distribution boards, cabinet layouts and a single-line diagram.
Furniture in your floor plan, side-by-side 2D and 3D views and an illustrative lighting preview: this update makes your project easy to see and discuss.
Assign two lights and two push buttons, document the power supply and bus line, and export an initial material list with an illustrated example.
Seven item groups, how they derive from the single-line diagram and the situation plan, the items that are routinely forgotten — earthing material, boxes, cable allowance, spare ways — and where the AREI fixes a quantity and where it does not.
Measure the route, not the straight line: installation zones under AREI 5.2.9.10, installation method, segments at junction boxes, allowances from trade practice, and when the AREI/RGIE requires the length on the diagram.
The installation method belongs on the single-line diagram. All seventeen methods from AREI 5.2.2.1, their rules in section 5.2.9, their effect on current-carrying capacity and typical inspection findings, with the article next to every statement.
When a sub-distribution board per floor earns its place, how to size and protect the riser, what the AREI/RGIE actually says about selectivity, and how storeys appear on the situation plan and the single-line diagram — with the article reference beside every statement.
The number of control points decides the wiring arrangement. Symbols from Table 2.23, conductors per variant, referencing on the situation plan and the boundary with home automation — with the AREI/RGIE article beside each statement.
Which symbols AREI/RGIE Table 2.23 provides for Belgian domestic installations, when you introduce your own sign through the legend, and which data belongs next to every symbol on diagram and plan.
Document the outdoor unit, indoor unit, backup heater, protection, cable and manufacturer data of a heat pump correctly under AREI Book 1 V06.
What a new-build single-line diagram must contain: title block, supply, protective devices, cables, loads, sources and the match with the situation plan under AREI Book 1 V06.
A single-line diagram shows the electrical structure; a situation plan shows where equipment sits. Shared circuit references turn the two Belgian AREI/RGIE records into one checkable dossier.
Draw the PV inverter, EV charger, dedicated circuits, protection, energy metering and possible reverse power flow correctly on one shared single-line diagram.
Locate PV modules, inverter, fixed isolators, distribution boards and cable routes on the situation plan, using the same references as the single-line diagram.
What the Synergrid C10/26 list is, why grid operators require it, how to read reference, firmware, Smax and restrictions correctly – and how to check a device right in your browser.
PlanElec vs Trikker for Belgium: AI assistant, floor plan recognition from Trikker PDFs, single-line diagrams, situation plans, PV, KNX and PDF dossiers compared.
Use an image, PDF or DXF drawing as a scale-accurate reference, align the layer and draw the editable floor plan over it – or let AI propose walls and rooms.
Place devices at the right location, create shared cover frames and connect electrical symbols to the appropriate topology.
Keep lighting control, circuit assignment and the physical cable path separate, and use the appropriate tool for each step.
The complete list of rules PlanElec checks automatically — and an equally explicit list of what the self-check does not assess.
Calculate the voltage drop of your cable and see at which length a larger cross-section is needed. Formula, length table and free calculator for Belgium.
1×230 V, 3×230 V or 3N~400/230 V: understand the Belgian street network, neutral conductor and connection phase count, and plan protection, EV charger and heat pump accordingly.
Which renovation triggers new plans and a conformity inspection: substantial and non-substantial alterations, modified and unchanged parts, old installations under Part 8 and the file obligation.
Floor plan, AI assistant, automatic circuit and board planning, single-line diagram, situation plan, self-check and PDF dossier: the feature overview with status and limits.
Use PlanElec proposals for devices, switch chains, cable routes, circuits, phases, and the distribution board without skipping technical review.
Download the single-line diagram, situation plan, self-check report, board layout and planning lists as drafts, combine them into an installation dossier and archive release copies with versions.
Create a project, choose the floor plan or the single-line diagram as your starting point, use guidance, a template or AI floor plan recognition, and produce your first draft PDF.
PlanElec step by step: create the project and floors, draw or recognise the floor plan, connect devices, fill the distribution board and export PDFs.
Washing machine, cooker, tumble dryer and fixed-location appliances from 2600 W: the AREI requires a dedicated circuit. With references and RCD guidance.
AREI requires protection against overvoltages (section 4.5.1) but prescribes no specific SPD type. What that means for your distribution board, existing installations and PV.
Which electrical inspection is mandatory when you sell in Belgium, what goes into the installation file and when the 18-month deadline applies – per AREI/RGIE Book 1 V06, with references.
Ten points where Belgian domestic installations often stumble at inspection – with limit values, AREI references and the right correction for each one.
Your electrical inspection came back negative? Read the report, identify the applicable AREI deadline, plan safe corrections and prepare the re-inspection.
Does a smart home installation have to meet the AREI/RGIE? The fixed electrical installation does. What is allowed, what goes on the single-line diagram and what the inspection checks.
How do you install a home battery under the AREI? This guide covers circuit, isolation point, single-line diagram, backup operation and grid operator registration.
Yes, smoke detectors are mandatory in all three regions – under regional housing law, not AREI. Number, placement and start dates for Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels.
AREI/RGIE requirements for your EV charger in Belgium: dedicated circuit per connection point, RCD and DC fault-current protection, cable design, documentation and grid questions.
Single-line diagram yourself with PlanElec or by an electrician? Three scenarios for an existing installation, an unknown old installation and a new build, a quotation check and a clear decision rule for Belgium.
Single-line diagram with PlanElec, Excel or on paper: what the AREI/RGIE requires, where drawings and spreadsheets hit their limits and what PlanElec checks automatically.
Document a Belgian PV extension properly: align strings, inverter, connection point and unresolved data across the single-line diagram, situation plan and dossier.
What applies to older electrical installations in Belgium: part 8 of the AREI/RGIE with the key derogations, the duties without exception, control visits and step-by-step modernisation.
Plan a distribution board under the AREI/RGIE: main switch, 300 mA and 30 mA RCDs, at most 8 circuits per 30 mA RCD, row allocation, spare capacity and a complete example for a single-family home.
How to draw a checkable situation plan under AREI/RGIE: floor plan, Table 2.23 symbols, circuit references matching the single-line diagram, legend, title block and a final site check.
Preflex conduit or XVB installed directly? Comparison for new builds and renovations in Belgium, with the AREI/RGIE rules on conduits, fire classes and installation zones.
In Belgian homes every RCD is at least Type A. When you need Type B or Type A with RDC-DD – EV charger, heat pump, PV – and why A-SI does not mean selective.
Yes: every main distribution board needs a main switch-disconnector that breaks all line conductors at once – at least 40 A in homes (AREI 5.3.5.1(b)). All requirements at a glance.
TT or TN-S decides the fault-current path and the disconnection condition. Formulas, local earth electrode below 100 Ω and the 30 Ω rule for Belgian homes under AREI Book 1 V06.
Which cable cross-section for a 16, 20 or 32 A breaker in Belgium? AREI/RGIE Table 4.11, minimum sizes for socket circuits and what else you need to check.
XVB or VOB? Where AREI/RGIE lets you install sheathed cable and single-core wire, which fire class applies and how to compare costs properly.
Documents, visual checks, tests, measurements: point by point, what the inspector checks and measures during an electrical inspection in Belgium – with limit values and AREI references.
At most 8 sockets per final circuit, and a multiple socket counts as one: how to count, choose cable and breaker, and plan lighting and dedicated circuits under the AREI.
XVB or VOB in conduit, with no metal elements: which wiring is allowed in bathroom zones 0, 1 and 2, how to install it and which RCD the bathroom needs.
A situation plan shows where the electrical components in your building are located. What AREI/RGIE requires on it, how it links to the single-line diagram and what the inspection checks.
No: AREI requires neither a 30 mA RCD per socket nor one per circuit. One 30 mA RCD protects up to eight final circuits – here is how to count, for new and existing installations.
What drives the price of a Belgian electrical plan, how to compare quotations with an editable calculation model and what PlanElec costs during early access and after the paid plans start.
Booking an electrical inspection with an approved body: how long it stays valid, when a re-inspection is needed, what drives the cost and what the inspector checks – with AREI references.
How to create and draw a reviewable Belgian single-line diagram: required information, Table 2.23 symbols, an example, solar PV, circuit references and PDF export with PlanElec.
What changed in the Belgian AREI/RGIE on 1 April 2026, what follows on 1 November 2026, and how to assess the consequences for design, documentation and inspection.
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