LarryFine
Master Electrician Electric Contractor Richmond VA
- Location
- Henrico County, VA
- Occupation
- Electrical Contractor
How about a bit of future-proofing: run a 3/4" or 1" PVC to each location from a central location.
Cable TV and Satellite
- Thread starter benmin
- Start date
- Status
stickboy1375
Senior Member
- Location
- Litchfield, CT
LarryFine said:
That works!
Sierrasparky
Senior Member
- Location
- USA
- Occupation
- Electrician ,contractor
stickboy1375
Nice job. Are you happy with the leviton Strucured media devices.
I 've been wondering about some of the others on the market?
How about a strap for that NM LT Flex
Glad to see you used the Leviton Power supply.
I had a Contractor buddy try to copy a installation from another job I had done for him. Used a Handy box and put is so close to the wall of the cabinet you could not plug in those bulky transfomer power supplies.
Nice job. Are you happy with the leviton Strucured media devices.
I 've been wondering about some of the others on the market?
How about a strap for that NM LT Flex
Glad to see you used the Leviton Power supply.
I had a Contractor buddy try to copy a installation from another job I had done for him. Used a Handy box and put is so close to the wall of the cabinet you could not plug in those bulky transfomer power supplies.
stickboy1375
Senior Member
- Location
- Litchfield, CT
Sierrasparky said:
:grin: Umm, I saw that myself after I poster the picture... Just didn't have a strap at time of install... :roll:
And yes I like Levitons products, I should have bought the SMC-420 cabinet... But I didn't know I was going to get Satellite, and an Off-Air Antenna, and etc, etc, etc...
Last edited:
- Location
- Windsor, CO NEC: 2017
- Occupation
- Service Manager
hbiss
EC, Westchester, New York NEC: 2014
- Location
- Hawthorne, New York NEC: 2014
- Occupation
- EC
Ok, we've seen the before picture. Now let's see what's left of that when the cable guy comes or the house is sold and the new owners can't find anybody that will deal with it so they rip it out.
-Hal
-Hal
stickboy1375
Senior Member
- Location
- Litchfield, CT
Can't deal with what? It's as simple as it gets... IMO, if you don't understand it, then don't touch it....:grin: But I do know where your coming from...
- Location
- Massachusetts
I was surprised Hal went so easy on it. :grin:
If I recall he is not a a fan of these types of systems.
If I recall he is not a a fan of these types of systems.
stickboy1375
Senior Member
- Location
- Litchfield, CT
What would Hal recommend? A splitter screwed to a piece of plywood? :grin:
hbiss
EC, Westchester, New York NEC: 2014
- Location
- Hawthorne, New York NEC: 2014
- Occupation
- EC
Yup, 4x8' would be nice, give it a paint job while you are at it- light gray or black. One area for CATV (yes, splitters and amp screwed to the board), one for telephone (66 block cross connect ONLY please) and another for the network.
That's the way it's always been done and that's for a reason. Three different systems, three different people with three completely different mindsets to service them. At the first sign of a problem as a telephone guy (and its going to be the same with the cable guy), I'm not going to deal with some 110 terminated printed circuit board assembly that won't allow easy test access or the flexibility to wire individual home runs as I need say if I'm installing a KSU. So guess what? Out it goes, I pull each home run out and cut them down on a 66 block screwed to the board next to that box. Now I can service it, the next guy can service it and the guy from the TELCO can service it. Why? Its not that we don't understand what you've done, we don't have the patience and time to deal with non-standard parts and the inflexibility.
And, I can tell you that when a computer geek gets his hands in there all bets are off.
So, if something like that makes you happy then I'm happy for ya. Just know that it's like owning a car that was made on Mars. It may be great to you but don't expect to get it serviced by anybody on this planet.
-Hal
That's the way it's always been done and that's for a reason. Three different systems, three different people with three completely different mindsets to service them. At the first sign of a problem as a telephone guy (and its going to be the same with the cable guy), I'm not going to deal with some 110 terminated printed circuit board assembly that won't allow easy test access or the flexibility to wire individual home runs as I need say if I'm installing a KSU. So guess what? Out it goes, I pull each home run out and cut them down on a 66 block screwed to the board next to that box. Now I can service it, the next guy can service it and the guy from the TELCO can service it. Why? Its not that we don't understand what you've done, we don't have the patience and time to deal with non-standard parts and the inflexibility.
And, I can tell you that when a computer geek gets his hands in there all bets are off.
So, if something like that makes you happy then I'm happy for ya. Just know that it's like owning a car that was made on Mars. It may be great to you but don't expect to get it serviced by anybody on this planet.
-Hal
stickboy1375
Senior Member
- Location
- Litchfield, CT
Heres the thing, I agree 100% with you, BUT, I find this very service friendly, easy to setup, and EASY to change without rewiring... why would I not want to just change a patch cord for my future demands? I don't use the local telephone company, and in the near future I doubt many will either... this is going in this direction whether you like it or not... as far as residential is concerned...
hbiss
EC, Westchester, New York NEC: 2014
- Location
- Hawthorne, New York NEC: 2014
- Occupation
- EC
Sorry, I don't agree. Like I said it may make perfect sense to you, you handle it and hey, it's your house.
But when you do this kind of installation for a customer you have to understand that you won't always be the one to handle the service and changes. You have to understand that this is not industry standard, does not use standard devices, offers little flexibility and that there are actually three very different technologies or trades all crammed into that little box. As a result the life span of structured wiring panels is usually very limited and there are several here including myself that can attest to that.
-Hal
But when you do this kind of installation for a customer you have to understand that you won't always be the one to handle the service and changes. You have to understand that this is not industry standard, does not use standard devices, offers little flexibility and that there are actually three very different technologies or trades all crammed into that little box. As a result the life span of structured wiring panels is usually very limited and there are several here including myself that can attest to that.
-Hal
stickboy1375
Senior Member
- Location
- Litchfield, CT
I accept your points... But I see many houses with nothing more than all the phone wires wire nutted together... I dont see that as a industry standard either...
Sierrasparky
Senior Member
- Location
- USA
- Occupation
- Electrician ,contractor
not all homes have a basement area to make this connections.
These structured media boxes allow for a neat tidy place for all the conections. Most telco guys know how to wire a 66 block better than most other diy.
We use a lot of these boxes and so do a lot of others in the area. There are cases when a component needs to be mounted out side the cabinet. In the longrun it makes a clean install
These structured media boxes allow for a neat tidy place for all the conections. Most telco guys know how to wire a 66 block better than most other diy.
We use a lot of these boxes and so do a lot of others in the area. There are cases when a component needs to be mounted out side the cabinet. In the longrun it makes a clean install
hbiss
EC, Westchester, New York NEC: 2014
- Location
- Hawthorne, New York NEC: 2014
- Occupation
- EC
But I see many houses with nothing more than all the phone wires wire nutted together...
That's no good either now is it?
Not all homes have a basement area to make this connections.
These structured media boxes allow for a neat tidy place for all the connections
Nothing wrong with using a cabinet in situations like that, matter of fact Hoffman and other manufacturers make them specifically for this with a plywood backboard that have been used forever. Heck, save some money and go ahead and use a structured wiring cabinet, just don't use the junk that fits into it. Use separate cabinets for telecom and CATV and use large ones. 66 blocks on 89 standoff brackets fit fine and will allow the door to close. You can make your own interior plywood backboard for the CATV cabinet and use standard components.
Network components are a problem because as can be seen with your cabinet, it can only contain the patch panel. The routers, hubs, switches or a modem have to be located externally with numbers of patch cords going into the cabinet. How do you handle that with a recessed cabinet unless you use a really large one? Better to do like a commercial installation. Forget the cabinet, locate the equipment in a closet or other accessable location on a shelf if needed and provide a patch panel on the wall with an electrical receptacle.
-Hal
That's no good either now is it?
Not all homes have a basement area to make this connections.
These structured media boxes allow for a neat tidy place for all the connections
Nothing wrong with using a cabinet in situations like that, matter of fact Hoffman and other manufacturers make them specifically for this with a plywood backboard that have been used forever. Heck, save some money and go ahead and use a structured wiring cabinet, just don't use the junk that fits into it. Use separate cabinets for telecom and CATV and use large ones. 66 blocks on 89 standoff brackets fit fine and will allow the door to close. You can make your own interior plywood backboard for the CATV cabinet and use standard components.
Network components are a problem because as can be seen with your cabinet, it can only contain the patch panel. The routers, hubs, switches or a modem have to be located externally with numbers of patch cords going into the cabinet. How do you handle that with a recessed cabinet unless you use a really large one? Better to do like a commercial installation. Forget the cabinet, locate the equipment in a closet or other accessable location on a shelf if needed and provide a patch panel on the wall with an electrical receptacle.
-Hal
mdshunk
Senior Member
- Location
- Right here.
There's at least one company that makes a "special" wire nut for that purpose. https://www.electricmotioncompany.com/emc.php?type=misc&sub=Home%20Run%20Connectors&PHPSESSID=914fa2d238f5090f629235a0f23ee1e7stickboy1375 said:
stickboy1375
Senior Member
- Location
- Litchfield, CT
hbiss said:
And why is that a problem? First off, My router supports wireless so it could never be installed in a cabinet.... 2nd I showed you my work, how bout some pictures of yours? Just because you've been doing something a certain way for a long time does not make it the smarter way to do it...
hbiss
EC, Westchester, New York NEC: 2014
- Location
- Hawthorne, New York NEC: 2014
- Occupation
- EC
... I showed you my work, how bout some pictures of yours? Just because you've been doing something a certain way for a long time does not make it the smarter way to do it...
I don't know why you are so defensive. It doesn't matter what your work looks like and quite frankly I don't care. I think I've stated my main point that it needs to be functional and the basis for that functionality as well as how to acheive it.
You need to understand that you are looking at this from your own personal point of view and your trade background. This looks good and makes sense to you. That doesn't mean that you have reinvented the wheel. Unfortunately the telecom and cable trades don't share your philosophy. Pictures and all the arguments you try to make aren't going to change that. And it ain't me, I'm just the messenger.
So if you want to do this in your own house fine, take pictures and be proud of your work. Just know that if you do an installation like that for a customer at some point it is going to be a problem for the other people who will have to deal with it and most likely it will be removed.
-Hal
I don't know why you are so defensive. It doesn't matter what your work looks like and quite frankly I don't care. I think I've stated my main point that it needs to be functional and the basis for that functionality as well as how to acheive it.
You need to understand that you are looking at this from your own personal point of view and your trade background. This looks good and makes sense to you. That doesn't mean that you have reinvented the wheel. Unfortunately the telecom and cable trades don't share your philosophy. Pictures and all the arguments you try to make aren't going to change that. And it ain't me, I'm just the messenger.
So if you want to do this in your own house fine, take pictures and be proud of your work. Just know that if you do an installation like that for a customer at some point it is going to be a problem for the other people who will have to deal with it and most likely it will be removed.
-Hal
stickboy1375
Senior Member
- Location
- Litchfield, CT
Sorry if you read me as defensive, I thought we were just having a debate, I just wanted to see pictures to see the difference.... to see why one is better than the other, Maybe your way is better, but I would never know... not by just believing you anyhow...
- Status