Hello everyone,
In about three weeks, we are supposed to finalize our electrical planning on site. Unfortunately, our electrician is somewhat old-fashioned, which makes it difficult for me to collaboratively plan a future-proof electrical setup with him. Therefore, I am currently educating myself to ensure that the networking in our single-family home is fundamentally future-proof.
Basically, it’s about the LAN network... LAN wall outlets are relatively expensive, so proper planning is even more important.
About us:
- Mid to late 20s – couple without children. Planning for 2 children in the near future.
- Single-family house with a usable basement, 2 full floors, and fully equipped with concrete ceilings
- Utility room in the basement with air-to-water heat pump, ventilation system, photovoltaic system
- The router is planned to be located in the office on the ground floor
- The upper floor includes bathroom / bedroom / 2 children’s rooms
- No satellite dish or cable TV — we will use Internet TV exclusively!
Now, I am struggling to network our single-family home sensibly but as cost-effectively as possible.
I have the following questions:
1. Slightly off-topic: In the living room, I would like to have an in-wall conduit installed on the TV wall (the TV will be wall-mounted) so that no cables are visible. Is this sensible and affordable? I will get exact prices from my electrician if this makes sense at all. Would it also make sense to install power outlets at TV height? How do you plan the connections on your media wall reasonably? What should be considered?
Since we plan to use a Magenta TV box and thus IP-TV, a total of four LAN ports in the living room area would presumably be useful, right?
2. How many LAN outlets and especially where should LAN outlets be installed? Mainly: which cable? Is CAT6 sufficient?
→ Such a double LAN outlet certainly costs close to €200, so planning must be really sensible.
Is it really necessary to install 2 double LAN outlets in each children’s room? I always wonder: what is actually going to be plugged in there?
One port for the TV and one port for a multimedia device should be enough, right? So four connections would probably be overkill, correct?
The fact is: It will certainly take years or decades before our children actually use these outlets... Who knows what changes might happen by then? Therefore, could we not cost-effectively use empty conduits (empty pipes) instead?
Is it also possible to “branch off” from an existing double outlet afterward to add more ports for the room? What should be considered here? Or should we consider having an empty conduit prepared in another spot in the room so that a socket can be installed later?
3. How do you solve the “router problem”? Should the one router be placed in the office (ground floor) with LAN outlets in the existing bedrooms upstairs to ensure a stable LAN connection? Or is a router upstairs absolutely necessary?
4. How important are LAN outlets in the utility room? Should the router possibly even be located in the utility room? Because of the concrete ceiling between basement and ground floor, a second router would almost certainly be needed. How should this situation be handled with a basement?
5. What do you think about installing empty conduits for CAT cables in the kitchen / hallway etc. to enable later retrofitting? Is this relatively affordable in new builds?
I would appreciate any feedback so we can make the best possible plans 🙂
In about three weeks, we are supposed to finalize our electrical planning on site. Unfortunately, our electrician is somewhat old-fashioned, which makes it difficult for me to collaboratively plan a future-proof electrical setup with him. Therefore, I am currently educating myself to ensure that the networking in our single-family home is fundamentally future-proof.
Basically, it’s about the LAN network... LAN wall outlets are relatively expensive, so proper planning is even more important.
About us:
- Mid to late 20s – couple without children. Planning for 2 children in the near future.
- Single-family house with a usable basement, 2 full floors, and fully equipped with concrete ceilings
- Utility room in the basement with air-to-water heat pump, ventilation system, photovoltaic system
- The router is planned to be located in the office on the ground floor
- The upper floor includes bathroom / bedroom / 2 children’s rooms
- No satellite dish or cable TV — we will use Internet TV exclusively!
Now, I am struggling to network our single-family home sensibly but as cost-effectively as possible.
I have the following questions:
1. Slightly off-topic: In the living room, I would like to have an in-wall conduit installed on the TV wall (the TV will be wall-mounted) so that no cables are visible. Is this sensible and affordable? I will get exact prices from my electrician if this makes sense at all. Would it also make sense to install power outlets at TV height? How do you plan the connections on your media wall reasonably? What should be considered?
Since we plan to use a Magenta TV box and thus IP-TV, a total of four LAN ports in the living room area would presumably be useful, right?
2. How many LAN outlets and especially where should LAN outlets be installed? Mainly: which cable? Is CAT6 sufficient?
→ Such a double LAN outlet certainly costs close to €200, so planning must be really sensible.
Is it really necessary to install 2 double LAN outlets in each children’s room? I always wonder: what is actually going to be plugged in there?
One port for the TV and one port for a multimedia device should be enough, right? So four connections would probably be overkill, correct?
The fact is: It will certainly take years or decades before our children actually use these outlets... Who knows what changes might happen by then? Therefore, could we not cost-effectively use empty conduits (empty pipes) instead?
Is it also possible to “branch off” from an existing double outlet afterward to add more ports for the room? What should be considered here? Or should we consider having an empty conduit prepared in another spot in the room so that a socket can be installed later?
3. How do you solve the “router problem”? Should the one router be placed in the office (ground floor) with LAN outlets in the existing bedrooms upstairs to ensure a stable LAN connection? Or is a router upstairs absolutely necessary?
4. How important are LAN outlets in the utility room? Should the router possibly even be located in the utility room? Because of the concrete ceiling between basement and ground floor, a second router would almost certainly be needed. How should this situation be handled with a basement?
5. What do you think about installing empty conduits for CAT cables in the kitchen / hallway etc. to enable later retrofitting? Is this relatively affordable in new builds?
I would appreciate any feedback so we can make the best possible plans 🙂
B
Bauenaberwie6 Jul 2022 10:25hanse987 schrieb:
I would generally install all telecommunications cables inside conduits to allow for future replacement. Unlike electrical wiring, it might be necessary to upgrade these cables over time.
A common setup for access points (APs) is to attach a keystone jack to the installed cable and then connect the keystone module to the access point with a short patch cable. For concrete ceilings, you need a wall box to house the cable segment with the keystone jack, and the access point is mounted in front of that box. With a suspended ceiling, you can push the excess cable length into the ceiling cavity, so a box is not required. Ok, thanks for the information, but why make it so complicated with a module and then a patch cable? Why not just run a patch cable directly from the utility room to the access point?
The installation cable, as the name suggests, is intended to be laid inside the wall or conduit. A patch cable is the connection cable between the device and the network socket (in this case a single keystone module). Running a patch cable through a conduit is not easy at all. The connector is very bulky and angular. It is possible, but in my opinion, it is a makeshift solution.
A
Axolotl20226 Jul 2022 12:55hanse987 schrieb:
If only the cable is coming out of the ceiling, you will have a problem with the access point, as there is usually no space behind it for the cable section, let alone the connector. Attaching the connector to the cable is a good idea. For example, there is enough space in every Unifi access point (as long as the cable does not stick out from the ceiling by 50cm (20 inches) or more).
Michilo schrieb:
As the name suggests, installation cable is designed to be installed inside walls or conduit. A patch cable is the connecting cable between the device and the network outlet (in this case, a single keystone module). Running a patch cable through a conduit is not easy – the connector is quite bulky and angular. It can be done, but in my opinion, it’s a makeshift solution. That’s why you don’t put a keystone module on an installation cable, but instead attach an RJ45 connector directly.
Axolotl2022 schrieb:
Plugging a connector directly onto the cable is fine. For example, there is usually enough space inside any UniFi access point (unless the cable sticks out directly from the ceiling by 50cm (20 inches)).
That’s why you don’t add a keystone jack to the in-wall cable, but rather attach the RJ45 connector directly. I would disagree there. Sure, you CAN crimp a standard RJ45 connector onto an in-wall cable. But in my opinion, that’s poor workmanship, just like using a patch cable that's installed as permanent wiring. (From the perspective of someone with over 30 years of infrastructure and cabling experience.)
Poor workmanship might work for a while, but usually it ends up causing problems down the line.
Axolotl2022 schrieb:
Plug onto the cable is fine. There is enough space, for example, in every Unifi access point.I can gladly send you my Unifi access point. There is no space for installation cable and field-attachable connectors. Yes, there are Unifi access points that offer a bit more space, but the space is not very generous, especially considering the very stiff installation cable.
hanse987 schrieb:
I can gladly send you my Unifi access point. There’s no room for installation cables or field-installable connectors. Yes, there are Unifi access points that have a bit more space, but overall the space is quite limited, especially considering the very stiff installation cable. A "standard RJ45 connector" fits behind the Unifi access point, but in my opinion, that’s just a makeshift solution. The field-installable connectors are all too long anyway, and the ports on the devices often can’t withstand the mechanical forces that arise (leverage!). And yes, even a permanently installed cable on a fixed access point "moves."
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