Ethernet cabling in house

[clv101]

I want to run Cat6 cable through my house.

Is there a better way than installing a six-gang faceplate in the wall next to the switch, with 0.5m patch cables between switch and faceplate. Then taking those six sockets individually to twin or single-gang faceplates around the house?

 

[bledd]

Yes, patch panel.

12 port
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B0...atch+panel&dpPl=1&dpID=41WUFS8pfOL&ref=plSrch

8 port
TRENDnet TC-P08C6 8-Port Cat 6 Unshielded Patch Panel - Black https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B003SSX1Z2/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_LbnaAbJ5RH4YN

The 12 port one can be mounted to a wall etc

 

[MassiveJim]

I want to run Cat6 cable through my house.

Is there a better way than installing a six-gang faceplate in the wall next to the switch, with 0.5m patch cables between switch and faceplate. Then taking those six sockets individually to twin or single-gang faceplates around the house?

as bledd said you normally run them back to a patch panel, but they you'll need some sort of cabinet/bracket to hold the patch panel, depending on your setup, your suggestion might be the neater option

 

[Avalon]

Also consider if 6 is the best choice, decent 5e will do the same speeds over distances that would apply to most homes and is generally cheaper and easier to work with.

 

[clv101]

Thanks, yes 5e should be fine. Doubt any run will exceed 30m.

 

[The_Baron]

Just done this in my new home. Ran 2 Cat6 cables to each room (4 to the living room). All terminate at a 24 port patch panel and unmanaged switch in a cabinet in our laundry room. We were renovating and therefore happy to grind into walls and make good after. I fired in a Unifi AP for good measure.

 

[WJA96]

Also consider if 6 is the best choice, decent 5e will do the same speeds over distances that would apply to most homes and is generally cheaper and easier to work with.

Having done 3 home network installs recently, and terminated over 250 connections, I far prefer to work with solid core CAT6 now. Possibly because I use the EZ RJ45 system and it's also easier to get really nice straight strands for inserting into Punchdown blocks too. Yes, there is a difference in the bending radius and the cables are thicker so you just need to use bigger conduit and drill bigger holes.

I would second Bledd's recommendation of CCS/BT cable. It's the cheapest CAT6 on Cable Monkey's website (it is purple though!) and it's very good to work with. You can also get outdoor cable which is filled with gel, but that IS horrid to work with and I would strongly suggest conduit instead. The Screwfix catalog is your best friend!

Plus, why would not want to put in the best possible cable option? 10Gbe (not to mention 2.5GbE and 5GbE) are rapidly becoming affordable and 10GbE is 100% fine on CAT6 up to 100' or 30-ish meters. When you're backing up to a NAS or doing machine to machine file transfers it makes a massive difference. I've heard people say 10GbE is fine on CAT5e but it's not rated for it so why not just do the job right first time?

And to answer the original question, in domestic environments I have used the CCS vertical entry CAT6 RJ45 sockets a lot. They are very easy to work with, and they have the great benefit of almost being modular so you can use a 4-way for 4 ports or a 4 and a 2 for 6 ports. They take up 1 13A socket's width each and they surface mount on a board with your small switch etc. because they come out vertically you can run the patch cable straight between them if the switch faces up and the sockets face down. I wish I had taken a picture of the last one as it all surface mounted on the wall and was no more than 2" thick so it took up almost no room at all in the cupboard it was fitted into.

 

[bremen1874]

Why would using EZ plugs make you prefer Cat6 over Cat5e? I can't see the connection, and it's not as if there's any good reason to be crimping a lot of plugs on in the first place (especially to solid core).

Why are you wanting 'straight strands' into your IDCs? I would have thought that fully twisted until the last possible moment and then trimmed off would be the better option.

Why gel filled or conduit? What's wrong with normal air filled external cable as a reasonable middle ground?

I've done a fair bit of network cabling over the last 25 years, but never as my primary role. I'd pretty well guarantee that everything I've installed using Cat5e/Cat6 will happily support Gigabit. I'd never want to make any claims that it'd support anything higher unless I actually was able to certify it (and that needs significantly expensive test gear).

 

[WJA96]

Why would using EZ plugs make you prefer Cat6 over Cat5e? I can't see the connection, and it's not as if there's any good reason to be crimping a lot of plugs on in the first place (especially to solid core).

Because the CAT6 solid cores are stiffer and hold their line better going through the holes in the EZ RJ45 jack.

Why are you wanting 'straight strands' into your IDCs? I would have thought that fully twisted until the last possible moment and then trimmed off would be the better option.

Because the straightened strands sit really nicely in the IDC and are a doddle to use with the punch down tool whereas a twist doesn’t lie flat in the connector and is a bit more random where it gets cut off.

Why gel filled or conduit? What's wrong with normal air filled external cable as a reasonable middle ground?

Rats love to chew on electrical cable. They will dig up buried electrical cables for the privilege of doing so. Putting it in a conduit seems to stop the rats being able to detect it.
Plus no-one ever damaged a CAT5e/CAT6 cable running it through a conduit whereas nailing it to the wall while up a ladder? I’ve done that and unclipping 10m of cable you’ve just nailed up to replace it is a right pain.
And conduit looks much nicer than a whole line of network cables.
And conduit gives some protection against being cut by random vandals.

And the gel apparently protects against water ingress and shorting as a result in cables that are damaged inside. The air-filled external is really only a bit thicker on the final insulation to give some protection against being cut with a spade. And that makes it a right barsteward to work with.

I've done a fair bit of network cabling over the last 25 years, but never as my primary role. I'd pretty well guarantee that everything I've installed using Cat5e/Cat6 will happily support Gigabit. I'd never want to make any claims that it'd support anything higher unless I actually was able to certify it (and that needs significantly expensive test gear).

I’ve had a lot of sex over the last 25 years. I’ve mainly had good feedback and picked up a few things along the way. That doesn’t mean;

A. That I’m necessarily an expert.
B. That I’m necessarily any good at it.
C. That I’m necessarily in any position to advise others.

Just because you’ve always done something doesn’t mean you can’t move on to something better

CAT 5e is rated to support 1GbE. CAT6 is rated to support 10GbE up to 30m. The cost difference and working difference (in my humble opinion) is negligible so I would always go CAT6. Before I embarked on my current networking installation frenzy I attended Cable Monkey/Connectix’s network installer training. And their Optical Fibre course (because my original idea on my home install was to run 8 optical fibres to the various rooms in my home and put SFP or SFP+ switches on the ends to give me true future-proofing) and because I’m a sucker for this sort of thing, I bought the testing equipment, so if you need anything certified, in theory I could do it (but I’ve never actually tried).