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 🙂
leschaf schrieb:
Great thread!
One question: Are there any concerns about placing the network cabinet in an older building's basement with 65-70% humidity, or can routers, switches, and NAS devices handle that?It should be fine as long as there is no condensation. Since these devices usually generate enough heat themselves, I don't see a problem. For example, my QNAP NAS is rated for 5-95% relative humidity and 0-40 degrees Celsius (32-104 degrees Fahrenheit).
X
xMisterDx15 Nov 2022 21:38This is unusual, at least for industrial applications.
I just reviewed a few datasheets, and they all state "5 to 95%, non-condensing".
I just reviewed a few datasheets, and they all state "5 to 95%, non-condensing".
F
fromthisplace19 Feb 2023 08:55Dear forum,
Our electrician will be working at our place soon, and I am researching the components for the network cabinet. I would appreciate your feedback on the components. 🙂 I want to start with the switch because it is the heart of the cabinet and also raises the most questions for me.
Initial situation:
Three-story house, a total of 16 network ports, including 5 PoE (4x access points, 1x camera).
I agreed with the electrician that he will provide the patch panel, terminate the cables, and label everything properly. I will buy all other components, and he will install them. I will take care of the rest.
Users:
2 adults, 1 baby, “typical” streaming and browsing needs. My wife will work from home after parental leave, including video conferences and calls, and I work part-time from home without video conferences. TV will be via satellite at first but with lots of streaming. No special requirements for firewall, security, or configuration beyond the standard router features. I want decent quality products—nothing over the top—that run reliably after installation and require little maintenance.
My research on switches and unclear points:
Since we already have 16 ports, plus the router and (eventually) a NAS to connect, I want to buy a 24-port switch. For different reasons (well-known brand, affordable brand, German brand), I found the following manufacturers:
Netgear, TP-Link, ZyXEL, YuanLey
Next, I looked at the PoE ports and noticed they are either not included at all or come in large numbers depending on the model. The total PoE wattage varies from 130W to 400W. Some switches also have 1 or 2 uplink and/or SFP ports.
Before suggesting specific models, I would appreciate your help with the following questions:
1. Is any brand in my list generally recommended or to be avoided?
2. I understand that the total wattage of PoE switches is shared among connected devices. Is that correct? Is 130W sufficient, or is that a reason to exclude a switch?
3. Uplink/SFP ports: Are these faster ports mainly intended for the router and NAS? Should there be at least two of them, or are the “regular” ports enough for our setup?
4. Uplink/SFP ports: I don’t fully understand the difference. Could someone clarify this for me?
5. Managed/unmanaged: I understand the difference. Intuitively, I would prefer or find an unmanaged switch sufficient. But this limits my choices considerably. Is it a disadvantage to buy a managed switch and barely or never use its features?
Thank you for reading so far—I look forward to your feedback. 🙂
Our electrician will be working at our place soon, and I am researching the components for the network cabinet. I would appreciate your feedback on the components. 🙂 I want to start with the switch because it is the heart of the cabinet and also raises the most questions for me.
Initial situation:
Three-story house, a total of 16 network ports, including 5 PoE (4x access points, 1x camera).
I agreed with the electrician that he will provide the patch panel, terminate the cables, and label everything properly. I will buy all other components, and he will install them. I will take care of the rest.
Users:
2 adults, 1 baby, “typical” streaming and browsing needs. My wife will work from home after parental leave, including video conferences and calls, and I work part-time from home without video conferences. TV will be via satellite at first but with lots of streaming. No special requirements for firewall, security, or configuration beyond the standard router features. I want decent quality products—nothing over the top—that run reliably after installation and require little maintenance.
My research on switches and unclear points:
Since we already have 16 ports, plus the router and (eventually) a NAS to connect, I want to buy a 24-port switch. For different reasons (well-known brand, affordable brand, German brand), I found the following manufacturers:
Netgear, TP-Link, ZyXEL, YuanLey
Next, I looked at the PoE ports and noticed they are either not included at all or come in large numbers depending on the model. The total PoE wattage varies from 130W to 400W. Some switches also have 1 or 2 uplink and/or SFP ports.
Before suggesting specific models, I would appreciate your help with the following questions:
1. Is any brand in my list generally recommended or to be avoided?
2. I understand that the total wattage of PoE switches is shared among connected devices. Is that correct? Is 130W sufficient, or is that a reason to exclude a switch?
3. Uplink/SFP ports: Are these faster ports mainly intended for the router and NAS? Should there be at least two of them, or are the “regular” ports enough for our setup?
4. Uplink/SFP ports: I don’t fully understand the difference. Could someone clarify this for me?
5. Managed/unmanaged: I understand the difference. Intuitively, I would prefer or find an unmanaged switch sufficient. But this limits my choices considerably. Is it a disadvantage to buy a managed switch and barely or never use its features?
Thank you for reading so far—I look forward to your feedback. 🙂
fromthisplace schrieb:
For various reasons (well-known brand, affordable brand, German brand), I came across the following manufacturers: Netgear, TP-Link, ZyXEL, YuanLeyThree of these are well-known, all are affordable, none of them is a German brand.fromthisplace schrieb:
1. Is there a brand that should generally be preferred or avoided in my selection?I would also consider which access points you want to use. Ubiquiti or TP-Link offer systems like Unifi or Omada, which are easy to install and manage as a whole. If that doesn’t matter to you, Netgear and TP-Link are safe choices. I lack experience with larger switches from Zyxel, and I have never heard of the last Chinese brand.fromthisplace schrieb:
2. I understand that the wattage of PoE switches is shared among all connected PoE devices. Is that correct? Would 130W be sufficient or a dealbreaker?That's correct. You can calculate this easily by checking the datasheets of the products you want. A current Wi-Fi 6 access point usually consumes about 10-15 watts, an IP camera possibly less.fromthisplace schrieb:
3. Uplink/SFP ports: These fast ports are mainly intended for the FritzBox and NAS, right? Should there be at least two or are the “regular” ports enough in our case?They are not actually faster. Speeds only increase with SFP+ ports, which can support 10 Gbit, for example. “Uplink” just means these ports are additional to the standard 24 ports (because patch panels often have 24 ports). There’s nothing special or faster about them unless they are SFP+. Regular SFP ports support 1 Gbit like the other ports and are usually used with fiber optics to cover longer distances between switches. That probably doesn’t matter in your case. So they’re not especially intended for FritzBox (especially since you probably don’t have internet above 1 Gbit/s) or NAS unless you run out of regular ports. As said, only from SFP+ onwards is there a speed advantage; otherwise, they are just 1 Gbit like the rest.fromthisplace schrieb:
4. Uplink/SFP ports: I don’t fully understand the difference. Could someone explain?See the previous answer. They are intended for fiber connections or if you have all other ports fully used.fromthisplace schrieb:
5. Managed/unmanaged: I understand the difference. My gut feeling says an unmanaged switch would be preferable/sufficient. But that limits the selection a lot. Is it a disadvantage to have a managed switch and barely use its features?If you rely on gut feeling here, you probably haven’t fully understood it. Do you want VLANs or routing between VLANs on the switch? Do you need STP, for example, for Sonos? A managed switch is definitely not a disadvantage even if you don’t need the features. It tends to be more expensive, though. Usually, they run by default just like unmanaged switches without additional configuration.For the switches, you just need to make sure that the PoE standard matches your access points, and yes, usually the ports share the available PoE power budget.
As an affordable 24-port option, I can only recommend the GS1900-24HP because I have the smaller version at home (8 HP), they are available used at a good price, and apart from the old interface, they run reliably for a very long time.
I have a Zyxel NWA50AX connected, and it runs perfectly on our property (500 sqm (5,382 sq ft))... according to the manager, they each require 8.5 W during operation.
It’s not mandatory, but was recommended by our technical team: it’s better to use switches and access points from the same brand, as sometimes there CAN be issues otherwise.
As an affordable 24-port option, I can only recommend the GS1900-24HP because I have the smaller version at home (8 HP), they are available used at a good price, and apart from the old interface, they run reliably for a very long time.
I have a Zyxel NWA50AX connected, and it runs perfectly on our property (500 sqm (5,382 sq ft))... according to the manager, they each require 8.5 W during operation.
It’s not mandatory, but was recommended by our technical team: it’s better to use switches and access points from the same brand, as sometimes there CAN be issues otherwise.
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