DIY Networking for a Future Proof and HIGH SPEED Home! (Smurf Tubing and String Pull Trick!)

[rickpoole]

You should use the wall plates with jacks rather than just have the cable going through the plate. Using a plate with a jack allows you to change the length of the cable going to the equipment easily. Just having the cable go through the wall plate limits your options later on. Plus, if you ever damage the cable going to the equipment it is easier to replace a patch cable than to have to patch in a new length of cable.

[largepimping]

Guys, it looks like you're going to have CAT6 "patch cables" coming out of your walls. If so, bad idea. Run your *solid conductor* CAT 6 inside the walls to an RJ45 jack, then run a *proper* CAT 6 patch cable (stranded conductors) to the device. Yes, do this on both ends. Not sure what the perceived benefit is of "connecting directly" as you say around 26:05, but I'm assuming that the thinking is that "fewer connections" is going to increase the signal integrity. You're not going to have faster gigabit (or even 10 Gb) connectivity by skipping a couple RJ-45 male-to-female connections, so there's zero benefit. But having those cables come out of your walls is only going to cause trouble in the long run.

[TimDousset]

You will want to avoid running CAT cables parallel to any power to avoid electrical noise. In a perfect world, you'd only cross a power run at 90 degrees.
It's also a little unusual putting an RJ45 connector on the end of a permanent run like that. Normally, you'd terminate into a Keystone RJ45 socket and use a patch cord from the wall to your device.

[MikeHeath]

Terminate the ends with a keystone jack and plug a patch cable into the wall and to the device. That makes so much more sense and is more professional than terminating the wire with an RJ-45 plug hanging out of the wall. The prong on the RJ-45 plug will break over time and then you have to recrimp the cable.

[StudPack]

We're actively reading all comments and learning from all of you, thanks for you're input!

[eturnus]

I know lots of others have jumped in but you should 100% be using wall plates/jacks. The wall plate makes it so the cable in the wall is set and doesn't get moved or manipulated ever. It is just the "right" way to do it. Also as a FYI the middle piece in CAT6 or crossbar is to keep the cable pairs in the cable separate.

[BrentTech]

Hey Paul. 20+ year Network admin here... Not too shabby on the Cat6 cable termination. I would recommend one change to the stripping process. That string that is in the cable is used to strip the blue jacket back. So you'd use the wire stripping tool, remove a section of blue jacket, but the stripping tool CAN nick the 8 inside wire jackets slightly. Sometimes it weakens them to the point that they can break off even. So the idea is that you pull the string back at 180 degree angle to the cable, using it like a rip-cord, to cut down the side of the blue jacket, exposing even more of the internal wires... then trim off the blue jacket with snips, along with the string and the center plastic spacer/insulator. Now you have guaranteed strong wires you are terminating.

And yes, listen to the others commenting about making the wires into jacks instead of home-runs to the devices... cables break, get pinched in TV mounts, etc... and replacing a patch cable is a few bucks vs hoping you have enough slack to re-terminate a cable. Plus you get the flexibility of choosing your patch cable length. You guys aren't ones to cut corners... don't disrespect a proper network install. ;-) Great work, men.

[tibbymat]

Hey stud pack! I’ve been in telecom for over 15 years and just wanted to drop some tips for you.
- As many have mentioned already, best to put a wall plate with a jack instead of the modular end.
- The difference between 568a and b are American and (everyone else) comm standards. The orange and green pairs are the only ones that swap. If you swap those pairs on each end you can create what is called a “crossover cable” and that’s how devices communicate over cat cable without networking equipment.
- Your landline as you mentioned runs on the blue pair which never changes position between A and B
- When you get your pairs untwisted, instead of cutting flat, cut at a 45* angle, it’s easier to feed the wires into the mod end.

Love the videos boys! Keep it up. If you ever need Canadian over for help gimme a shout! I need an excuse to come eat some good ol Texas bbq!

[dwmca]

USUALLY, signal/data wiring should cross power lines at right angles to minimize power noise interference into the signal/data lines.

[scottmalone]

If you're wanting to keep the male ends I'd recommend having strain relief caps on the cables. In all honesty, having a wall plate that either terminates in a female punchdown or a male-male passthrough would be the best practice. That way you can purchase premade cables that are much easier to replace and are designed to be more responsive to movement than that cable you purchased which is meant for install in walls.

Lastly, unlike electrical, network cabling can't just be unscrewed at the termination so if you need to redo the end it has to be cut off. Because of that it's important to have extra slack in your line so that you can reterminate easily without having to pull an entire new line.

Other than those notes great work!

[danielfluty]

Hey guys, take a few minutes and go watch YouTuber Essential Craftsman’s spec house videos on this. Episode 100 and 132. It shows the “rough” stage and the finished part. Yes - you want keystones at the wall ports, and you’ll want a proper network rack, Jordan, to terminate in a modular keystone patch panel. I use a Ubiquiti network stack (APs and cameras) for my house. Love it. Don’t forget cat6 in the ceilings for the APs! Please don’t use a full mesh system. You have open walls - take advantage of running cat6 until your arms hurt. Keep it up, guys!!

[aps]

Networking is one of the major reasons I'd love to build a new house. More ports than you think you'll need, running to a quality switch, and get as many things OFF of wifi as possible.

[ronhutchins]

I've ran hundreds of miles of Cat4/5/6 ethernet cable and would suggest moving the Smurf tubing at least 18" from the 120v power lines.

[Evan-lgxp]

AT&T technician here 👋
Good work dude. All new builds from good builders have Smurf tube running straight to the panel (structured media enclosure). This makes it soooo much easier for us. The better it's strapped down and secured the easier the pull is. House is really coming together.

[azndragon]

I usually never comment but I do this for a living in California. We always try to stay away from high volt due to interference. There have been times where we had no choice. Usually we have no issues with interference if it's parallel in a short span. Also trimming cat6 into a keystone and using a patch cord is the better way to go just in case you move and need a longer cable. Also don't forget to think about the interconnect from the garage to the main house. Usually what we do in bigger high end residences are to have a main distribution and have an intermediate distribution so you don't have to home run everything back to the garage and saves on cost of wiring. Loving the series keep up the good work!

[EdQuinene]

We need a montage of Paul's "Like" button outros :-). I wonder how much thought he puts into those. Another great video to add to the series!

[laialbert]

Whenever possible, you want 12in between electrical and low voltage or to cross at perpendicular. What you don’t want is to have long runs run in parallel immediately next to each other as the high voltage can induce interference or current in the low voltage.

[nzimphotography]

Conduit and a vacuum looks way easier than the time I ran Cat-5e through air ducts in an HVAC system using remote control cars on a rental property.

[TheOriginalMrB]

568A was for government network standard installation. 568B is what everyone else uses. If you look at the keystone jacks you’ll see there is a sticker with how to wire those to A or B standard too. Same for the premade patch cables you can buy them in A or B standard.
As others have said already, I recommend using the keystones with a standard faceplate for the TV, Router/firewall, PC, wired network speakers, etc. Do the RJ45 ended runs for your cameras and WAPs.

[helmanfrow]

1. Make sure to strap that smurf tube down tight. Unlike rigid conduit it can flex and stretch while you pull, making the job a pain.

2. 19:24 Glad to see you using the right box adapters. Make sure you seat the adapter ALL THE WAY DOWN on the tube, which is like 3 or 4 clicks. If you snap it to just the first click you leave a gap between the leading edge of the conduit and the mating edge of the connector. This gap can snag your cable or fish tape.

3. 20:08 If you want to get fussy then there are tables online specifying acceptable proximities for parallel power and Ethernet.
For the most part, however, Cat.6 cable is good at rejecting induced interference from power cables except in extreme cases.
Running it in close proximity for a foot or two (in this case) will (likely) not cause any issues but best practice is to put as much space as possible between parallel runs, and to cross only at ninety-degree angles.


4a. Run drops to the ceilings for your WiFi APs
4b. Run a drop or two to every wall whether you think you'll need it or not. You can lay the cable on top of the spray foam if necessary and terminate only when you need it.

5a. 22:00 this cannot be overstated: You must always match your connectors to your cable and then your crimper to your connectors.
5b. Every connector will be suited to a particular a) conductor gauge, b) cable OD and c) type of conductor (solid or stranded). Reputable dealers will list these in the marketing materials. You cannot, for example use Cat.6a connectors with Cat.6 cable (and vice versa) because the conductor gauge and OD of the two cables are significantly different.
5c. For PoE applications you should probably avoid pass-through connectors because they can sometimes arc at the ends. Use load bar connectors instead.
5d. All that said, 22:06 ABSOLUTELY use keystone jacks mounted in wall plates! Having a wire hanging out of your wall is just plain sloppy!

6a. 23:34 The twisty part in the center is the _spline._ It's there *not* for strength but to maintain the internal spacing and overall twist of the individual pairs.
6b. 23:40 The difference in twist pitch is the product of some complex mathematics designed to reduce interference between the pairs.

7. 23:59 I have a technique for untwisting the pairs with the smooth outer edge of my electrician's scissors, which lets me straighten the cables as I go. Everyone has their way.