Running Cat6 outdoors, armoured or just run through some PVC pipe?

[Rob_B]

We're moving and will eventually be getting an outdoor building about 10metres from the house that I'll need power & internet to.
I'm assuming an electrician would run armoured cable to it but that leaves me with lacking internet, Armoured Cat6 seems (relatively) expensive vs just running some PVC pipe down the side of a fence to the building, I appreciate it'd need sealed propery but is it THAT bad an idea?!

Cheers!

[Wirko]

I would worry little about water, but much more about voltage surges caused by lightning strikes in the neighbourhood.

Is it possible and reasonable, in your case, to replace wires with radio waves? Maybe even fibre optics, but I don't have the slightest idea how much two optical converters and a cable would cost.

If you stay with Ethernet, do consider surge protectors on both side of the cable. At least for gigabit ethernet there are cheap ones on Ebay, don't know about 10G though.

[Rob_B]

I think wireless might be tricky due to router placement options and walls. Never seen those surge protectors before, I'll take a look thanks

[MrJim]

Something like this, perhaps?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Wireless-Wa...c=1&th=1&psc=1

[[GSV]Trig]

Can you not just wifi mesh it, 10m isn't that far, when we moved house a few weeks back I left an AP in the old house with the router and then had another in the window of the new house and that was fine over about 30m.

[Wirko]

You also mentioned a PVC tube, that's certainly a good idea. Not because of rain but for mechanical strength and UV protection. There's ice and wind, and UV radiation will slowly make the thin mantle of the cable turn into dust.

Keeping water and condensed moisture out of the tube is quite impossible in the longer term, I think. The best you can do is to allow all water to get out. Run the tube in a slope, not horizontally. Make a crook/curve at the higher end of the tube so that the opening faces downwards and water doesn't get in, and make sure water can run out at the lower end.

Something like this, perhaps?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Wireless-Wa...c=1&th=1&psc=1

It even has detachable antennas with standard connectors so it's possible to fit directional antennas if necessary. However, this would make the whole installation costlier and a lot bulkier.

[Rob_B]

Not sure of mesh would work, thick walls and would be through a thick insulated wall of the garden building. Will look though. Either that or try homeplugs again, they're "good enough" as it'll not be heavy usage.

[b0redom]

A few years back I had pretty much exactly the same quandary. I had a garden office built, which had to have power. I had the builder run power AND armoured cat6 inside a PVC tube. The sparky then terminated both at both ends. In the grand scheme of things, it adds almost nothing to the cost, but increases performance and reliability dramatically.

TL;DR spend the extra.

[DDY]

I did something similar a year ago, I buried a PVC conduit carrying 2.5mm² flex for power and a plain non-shielded non-armoured CAT5e in the patio gravel drainage strip, running the length of the garden from the house to the shed.

CAT5e only because I have a few decade-old drums that need using up, certainly would have used CAT6 otherwise. That said, I could quite easily pull through additional cables through the conduit if needed.

At the house-end, the CAT5e connects to a PoE injector with built in surge protection, at the shed-end a PoE wireless access point with everything in the shed connecting to that wirelessly. I figure keeping the access point separated from the shed mains power adds another layer of surge protection, plus I can turn off the shed power from the house (so I don’t burn the shed down if I accidently leave something switched on) but still have good wifi at the back of the garden and shed.

Not had a single issue so far, performance is excellent.

[neonplanet40]

Personally, when running cables to my log cabin, I decided to use external Cat6 inside PVC tubing. I thought better safe than sorry (I also ran a spare). The cost wasn't much more but the extra layer of reliability etc made it worth it. I got the electrician that was also doing armoured cable for electric, to do them both in the trench). As most of the work was being done, it didn't change the cost much at all.

[Agent]

You can buy Cat cable that is specifically built to be used outside, eg: https://www.cablemonkey.co.uk/cat5e-...er-sheath.html & https://www.cablemonkey.co.uk/cat6-c...er-sheath.html

It's often LDPE based. I've had it on my house for over a decade without any issues and the cable is still in good condition. Certainly don't need armoured for a normal home install.

[b0redom]

On your house is one thing, under the garden is another. I got the armoured stuff as it's rodent proof and unlikely to be broken by someone with a spade.

[Saracen999]

On your house is one thing, under the garden is another. I got the armoured stuff as it's rodent proof and unlikely to be broken by someone with a spade.

Agree with that. I'd be surprised if it isn't a legal requirement for mains power, for that reason. Network cables, not so much, but a cost, lot of hassle and major pain to replace if it does get damaged. .

I do run cable for some cameras up on walls, inside plastic pipe but mainly, that's just to prevent wires being cut too easily .... if they can be reached which isn't easy.

[Agent]

On your house is one thing, under the garden is another. I got the armoured stuff as it's rodent proof and unlikely to be broken by someone with a spade.

I didn't get the impression Rob was looking to run the cable under the garden, but along the fence?

If it was under the garden then yeah, I'd be looking at armoured too

[Rob_B]

Well, above ground if I can hide the pipes would be easier I guess