First Cat6 install - all advice needed!

[vrykyl]

Ok, so Im in the process of starting renovations / modernisation of my house - and given the rediculous amount of cables currently running around every room it makes sense for me to fit a decent network into the property.

As the electrics are being done at the same time (by myself), and the rooms in question are being stripped back to bare brick and replastered, I wanted to get some cat6 based networking installed all in one go. However Ive never done this before (ethernet install that is), so I was hoping the hexus network guru's can double check my 'shopping list', and give me tips and pointers before I start!!!



My current 'plan' is to fit at a minimum a double cat6 based socket into every room that needs one, and have all the cables run back to my hallway, where Im hoping to fit a 6u or possibly 9u cabinet up at ceiling height - with the cabling either dropping out of the ceiling (upstairs ports), or in through the wall (downstairs ports).
Again, as the section of hallway in questions doesnt have a ceiling atm, now seems the best time to get started


Anyways - after a quick google I established that in theory its not really any harder than the electrics Ive already been doing - and Ive drawn up what I think I need in the way of kit to make a start...

Heres what I THINK I need:

CAT6 cable - cat6 rather than 5e for future proofing and guaranteed gigabit speeds.
Wall Ports with Cat6 rated keystones - am I right in asuming these come with everything I need, bar a standard single back box?
Punchdown Tool for attaching said cables to the keystones
Patch Panel for terminating the ends of each cable run into the cabinet (does the patch panel include cat6 keystones?)
and finally a Cable Tester to check ive not ballsed things up!

Does that seem like a comprehensive list? Anything glaringly obvious missing? I know I'll need a decent switch to actually manage all that lot, but for the actual installing phase, is that all the kit I need?

Any thoughts, comments, advice etc on how to go about this - especially if you've done your own install?

Thanks folks

[GoNz0]

sounds right, all i can say is buy good cable, shielded if you can as it may be harder to get round corners but i never had that issue while rewiring as twin and earths as hard to do!

leave at least a foot hanging out each box, strip the insulation back and coil as much as you can into the wall box.

may sound a lot but at least a 35mm deep box, may be harder to chip out the brick but i doubt you will have engineering bricks like i had to contend with!

also consider the switch in the loft as it will never look good in a hall way.

[vrykyl]

Regarding the cabinet location - my house has a 'porch' area thats actually inside the house - whilst difficult to describe, its actually a 'no-mans land' between my outer and inner front doors, not much wider than the cabinet i'd be fitting - so you wont be able to see it unless you specifically look for it when entering the house, and any noise from the cabinet will be cut off from the rest of the house.

Plus my loft has maybe 100 years of soot build up in it, next to no insulation, no boarding, and the roof is scheduled to be completely removed and redone in the summer!!


Is that cable from scan I linked to ok? Last thing I want is to plaster this stuff in and find its not up to the job!
If not, what would you suggest?

*edit* - do the back boxes HAVE to be 35mm? All the ones Ive fitted for plugs etc (and have tons of spares) are 30mm MK's...

[dave87]

http://forums.hexus.net/pc-hardware/...style-wip.html

^^ I've wired up some of my house, worth a read, might give an insight into what I did.

Have you got a cabinet of some description for it to be wired to? I (read my very clever Grandfather) made mine, but you can buy metal ones from eBay etc. I wanted one that fitted where I wanted it to go, so custom made was the best option.

Just thinking, what is driving you to Cat6? I don't automatically disagree with using Cat6, but I'm just thinking what is driving you to use it?

I've done (some of) the house in Cat5E, and only a few of my devices are GbE anyway - I've got nothing that is 10GbE. When I looked at running Cat6 it was more expensive and more difficult to terminate properly, so I ruled it out. I've run through most of two 305m boxes of Cat5E doing my house, which will be expensive using Cat6, and I've only linked 3 rooms back to a central cupboard with that. That said I flood wired - put in way more than I needed - so I future proofed myself as much as possible.

Otherwise I used pretty much what you've bought. Remember you need the backboxes for those faceplates - deeper is better in most situations, less likely to put pressure on the cables

Any questions, give me a shout. Can also point you in the right direction when it comes to switches when the time comes

[GoNz0]

yeh its fine if you want to pay 3 times as much as you need to, scans the last choice for networking cable, shop around!

£37

[GoNz0]

Shielded £51

if you go unshileded (unlike dave i would rather struggle a bit to get shielded cat6 in, put the work in now instead of regret it later) i would make sure you use metal capping to cover it instead of plastic to cut down on and unwanted noise, you would need to earth the metal trunking to make it work though!

tbh i would struggle on with shielded and metal cap it without earthing it. just remember to bend the end of the capping over so there are no sharp edges.

i opted to go local for the network box's, ended up getting brushed steel everything so it all matched, just one network cable per room as i decided if it needed more than one i would fit a small switch.

[Pancake]

yeh its fine if you want to pay 3 times as much as you need to, scans the last choice for networking cable, shop around!

£37

Seems legit, cat6e doesn't exist

[GoNz0]

Seems legit, cat6e doesn't exist

Compliance Standards: Compatible with CAT5/e/6, EIA/TIA-568 Category 6

SKu comes back as cat6 but seems to be the box marked up as 6e for some reason, enough of it floating about the net though.

(it does exist, but is not yet approved http://www.binbert.com/blog/2010/05/...-cat6e-cables/ probably like draftN until it was certified )

[dave87]

(unlike dave i would rather struggle a bit to get shielded cat6 in, put the work in now instead of regret it later)

It was primarily a cost decision, but yes, I wasn't willing to go to the extra hassle when I've not got anything that will make the most of it.

[vrykyl]

Thanks for that Dave - will give that a thorough read - have bookmarked for reference

I havent got a cabinet yet, and though I hadnt seen your thread, I'd been toying with the idea of making one!! Im not adverse to buying a prebuilt one, I just like the idea of building something to perfectly fit the space.

With regards to cat6 - tbh I hadnt really given it much thought... all my current gear is gigabit (but not 10gbe) - my microserver tops out at 117mbs transfer speeds on my current network, and I stream ALL my video content around the house - my previous attempts with my old 10/100 kit did not make for a happy HD streaming experience...

Gonzo - thanks for the heads up - should I be going for shielded cable then? Im not especially bothered by cost if its going to do the job and be reliable - I just had no idea where to look!

[GoNz0]

you can run it with mains cable if its shielded m8. it wont do dead 90 degree bend though. takes an inch to bend

[vrykyl]

you can run it with mains cable if its shielded m8

Perfect! What about my current 30mm back boxes? Ive got tons of them, is the extra 5mm going to be a major issue? If the sheilded wont bend tightly will it mange in a box that small?

[dave87]

Couple of threads that inspired my home network:

http://www.avforums.com/forums/membe...e-install.html

http://www.avforums.com/forums/home-...io-cinema.html

http://www.avforums.com/forums/home-...nema-room.html (part 1, part 2 disappeared?!?)

Worth the read if you've got a free evening

[GoNz0]

Perfect! What about my current 30mm back boxes? Ive got tons of them, is the extra 5mm going to be a major issue? If the sheilded wont bend tightly will it mange in a box that small?

i used a bit of common sence, once it got to the grommit in the back box i ripped off the outer shielding leaving the inner in place until i got close to the connection, as flexible as the normal stuff then

why not have a test fit if you already have the box's, you can grab a cheap faceplate from the local leccy suppliers tuesday and hack up a old network cable to play with.

[vrykyl]

Thats a good idea - stripping back the outer shielding inside the box will let me coil some excess inside hopefully.

Have decided I'll probably order some full copper STP cat6e cable (NG305MCS), just hope 305m will be enough!

[Tattysnuc]

Try these folk for cable...

http://www.cablemonkey.co.uk/acatalo...lid_Cable.html

I've found them reliable and cheap - I haven't used them since I cat5e'd my house 1+ year ago

Put in more cable than you plan to use - that is if you know you want 2 runs into a room, put in 3 or 4. You can use Cat5/6 cable for many more things than just networking! I regret not putting more than 1 into each room now, and I've had parquet floor laid so I CAN'T get more put in. Doh!

I didn't bother with a patch cabinet - I've put sockets in the rooms, and then terminated the runs in a cupboard with plugs on the ends and thrown them into a Gigabit switch. Works beautifully for me!

Label all your cables. Once you start using it you'll forget what each cable is.
Try to mount the sockets so that they don't sit too proud to the wall. It's a bugger once you have a box on the wall (protrudes 25 mm) then the cable sticking out from that (another 25mm+) - a 50mm gap looks daft between your furniture and the wall.

Tools I used:

1 punch down tool for making the plugs
1 spade type tool to connect up the sockets
1 cable tester to give you piece of mind they are working fine once installed.

I got mine off ebay as they were cheaper.

I'm not sure what reasons you have to go Cat6. I've got 5e running about a foot from some thick mains cable (had to, it was the only run up between floors in our old house without incurring major redecoration work in addition to that which we'd already got) and that has worked fine. Speed drops are insignificant

As for a wiring tip, leave plenty of cable slack in each run, and plenty in the socket.

The depth of the socket is irrelevant, but the more you have the easier it is to do each point. Thick shielded cable is a pig to bend to your will... especially in a confined space. That coupled with the back of the keystone.....

305m should be plenty for a domestic install. I've a 5 bedroom Victorian pad, and I'd LOADS of 5e left. I've been making cables with it. We've dozens of metres of it coiled up under the floors for additional runs, but better to have too much than too little

Good luck! There's nothing too it. The only real difficulty is keeping it tidy, the rest is just patience and perseverance.