Home Wiring (Edumacate me!)

[Ambush Bug]

So, as it turns out, Mrs. Bug and I will be closing on our house this coming Friday. (w00t!) I will be spending that day lurking in the house, awaiting the locksmith and several other utility-types to come and do their thing. Then, that weekend, parents and sister-in-law are coming up to help us paint up the place as well as get everything cleaned before moving.<br><br>Thus, I come to the meat of this post. I have never ever lived in a permanent residence that was 'mine', so to speak. I've lived in apartments, and when I was younger, in the parents' house, but never my own place.<br><br>As I am a geek, I think you can imagine where this is going. <!--EZCODE EMOTICON START :) --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/images/emoticons/smile.gif ALT=":)"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> The short version is that I wanna go ahead and start running network (and coax, maybe?) to all the rooms in the house that Mrs. Bug and I think will have computers in them. I do <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--><em><!--EZCODE BOLD START--><strong>NOT</strong><!--EZCODE BOLD END--></em><!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> want to use wireless networking in any way, shape, or form, because I am a paranoid guy and wireless is slow compared to 100-base-T. So don't even mention wireless stuff, because it isn't going to be used. <!--EZCODE EMOTICON START :) --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/images/emoticons/smile.gif ALT=":)"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> <br><br>There's two rooms I know for sure that will need CAT5 run to them--my 'lair' and Mrs. Bug's 'office', next to the kitchen. The lair is completely and totally paneled--the real deal, too. Access to the ceiling of the lair isn't a problem, as it's all old tiling which we will probably end up replacing with a drop ceiling sometime in the near future. The office isn't much of a problem, either, since we can go up through the basement ceiling and into a wall without too much problem.<br><br>However, I want to do all of this <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--><em>right</em><!--EZCODE ITALIC END-->. Cutting holes in walls and such is a mess, having helped my dad re-wire much of the phone wiring at his place in the past. So I wanna get it right on the first try.<br><br>What I'm looking for is any help, links, products, and such that you guys know of that would be a help to me. I've already been researching this subject a bit (store: <!--EZCODE LINK START--><a href="http://www.hometech.com">HomeTech</a><!--EZCODE LINK END--> and article: <!--EZCODE LINK START--><a href="http://www.themodfathers.jolt.co.uk/?pa ... ModFathers' Home Wiring</a><!--EZCODE LINK END-->), but I crave more info. <br><br>Particularly, any information you've got on running cables through walls, ceilings, and floors would be of great use. I can pick up a cable fish without too much problem, and I've done some runs of my own in the past with fishes, but I've never had to deal with hardwood floors or paneled walls in the past, only drywall and concrete floors with cable runs already in them.<br><br>Help me, XMEN Hive-Mind! You're my only hope! <!--EZCODE EMOTICON START :) --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/images/emoticons/smile.gif ALT=":)"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> <p></p><i></i>

[XMEN Iceman]

It is very easy to do is this. <br><br>Find a central closet with power. You can tap off the light switch in the closet or find an outlet to tap into on a shared wall in another room. Install an outlet for your hub and/or internet router. Punch a hole into the attic to run the wires, or into the basement. Mount the hub/switch on a closet shelf.<br><br>Next, look at each room and see if you can come into an ajacent (sp) closet and punch through the wall and install an outlet. Almost every room I have ever wired has a closet in it or the room next to it. I punch a hole in the ceiling or basement ceiling, and drop the cable down behind the door jamb where you never see it. I then punch through the wall into the room where I need the connection. I then wire it into the outlet cover. <br><br>Done! Is very easy. Done it many a time. <!--EZCODE EMOTICON START :) --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/images/emoticons/smile.gif ALT=":)"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> <p><table border=0><tr><td><embed align=left src=http://www.thzclan.com/avatars/ezice.swf menu=false quality=high bgcolor=#000000 width=217 height=166 type=application/x-shockwave-flash pluginspage=http://www.macromedia.com/shockwave/dow ... <td><table border=0 style='Filter: Shadow(Color=#BB1403,Direction=255)'><tr><td><span class='usertitle'>XMEN Iceman [DTM]<br>Founder and Leader of the Base Tribes XMEN Clan<br>Proud member of the Dragon Talon Mercenaries teamplayers Guild<br>Citizen of New Fenecia<br><br>You weren't much of a challenge - T2 bot after killing Iceman<br><br>- click on avatar for links - no, not sausage links!</span></td></tr></table></td></tr></table></p><i>Edited by: <A HREF=http://p090.ezboard.com/bxmenclan.showU ... ceman>XMEN Iceman</A> at: 5/24/04 4:20 pm<br></i>

[XMEN Gambit]

Can't personally help you much, Bug, since when I did mine the drywall wasn't up yet. I got it done the easy way! <!--EZCODE EMOTICON START :) --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/images/emoticons/smile.gif ALT=":)"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> But my advice follows. I admit that I did not read your links, so there will likely be overlap.<br><br>Think very carefully about how and where broadband will enter your abode. Having a closet with a shelf or two and dedicated power for your hub & other equipment is way useful. In my case, I had a cable drop put in my office where it comes in, and I have a gateway/switch there, but I then have it connected to the wall, and thence my hub in the closet, for dispersal to the rest of the house. This way I can directly monitor the incoming connection.<br><br>You don't have to run just one Cat-5 line to a room. Several of my large or "important" rooms have a multi-jack outlet, with multiple wires running back to my hub. You also can run an extra one for phone, or even speakers - ya got four pair to work with, after all! Point is, you're running a line, and it's not that difficult to run an extra one while you're at it. 1000-foot spool is cheap, and you don't have to put the ends on right away. <!--EZCODE EMOTICON START :) --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/images/emoticons/smile.gif ALT=":)"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> <p><!--EZCODE IMAGE START--><img src="http://www.xmenclan.org/xmengambit.gif"/><!--EZCODE IMAGE END--><br>XMEN member<br>Card-carrying DTM<br>OKL Fish-napper<br><br>Though a program be but three lines long, someday it will have to be maintained.<br><!--EZCODE ITALIC START--><em> The Tao of Programming</em><!--EZCODE ITALIC END--></p><i></i>

[XMEN_Hammer]

Condenced version of ICE working on own house :<br><br><br>ICE: Hey Hammer wanna come eat BBQ this weekend and swim some ?<br>Hammer: Sure thats sounds great.<br>ICE: OK I just need one small thing , K....<br><!--EZCODE EMOTICON START :lol --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/images/emoticons/laugh.gif ALT=":lol"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> <br><br>But is KOOL <!--EZCODE EMOTICON START :) --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/images/emoticons/smile.gif ALT=":)"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> He help's me, more than I do for him <!--EZCODE EMOTICON START :) --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/images/emoticons/smile.gif ALT=":)"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> Cause he has 5 comps here he has to do tech support for <!--EZCODE EMOTICON START :lol --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/images/emoticons/laugh.gif ALT=":lol"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> <p><!--EZCODE IMAGE START--><img src="http://www.xmenclan.org/avatars/hammer_ ... <!--EZCODE IMAGE END--><br>Proud member ot the Soup Clan<br>Proud Member of the XMEN Clan<br>Proud Member of the Dragon Talon Mercenaries<br>If you run, you will only die tired. </p><i></i>

[LoS Malthus]

Do you guys find that the airflow in a closet is sufficent for the switch/hub? I ask because a buddy got me a great 24 port dell gigabit switch (for the lan parties at my house) but it's LOUD. Louder then any of the PC's I have running in the basement right now. So I'm considering building some kind of enclosure to hold all the networking stuff and the servers, and a closet would be perfect (I could use it to store my other pc stuff out of sight of the wife <!--EZCODE EMOTICON START :) --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/images/emoticons/smile.gif ALT=":)"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> ), but I'm concerned about getting enough airflow to the switch. <p><!--EZCODE HR START--><hr /><!--EZCODE HR END--><br>Real Geeks don't make there own backups. They accept it as karma and move on. </p><i></i>

[XMEN Gambit]

I don't have problems with mine, but it's a fanless 10Mb hub. That Gb switch might have issues. <!--EZCODE EMOTICON START :) --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/images/emoticons/smile.gif ALT=":)"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> <p></p><i></i>

[Dark Knife]

A stud finder. (snicker)<br>A snake. <p></p><i></i>