Help me buy supplies for wiring my house with Ethernet
July 31, 2022 12:13 PM Subscribe
I want to run Ethernet from my router/switch to some WiFi access points and computers in my house. I've never done this before, but I have a broad idea of what's involved. Normally at this point I would spend a bunch of research time deciding on the approach/supplies, but right now that honestly sounds tiring rather than fun and I'd appreciate any help MeFi can provide to get me most of the way there on a pretty good solution with less of an energy investment.
The modem, router, main switch, etc. will be located in a closet where the internet will come in. From there I would like to run Ethernet to 4-5 WiFi access points mounted in the walls and/or ceiling in other parts of the house and also to a wall jack in one room where a computer will be connected. All the runs will be under 75'. I will run the cables either down into the crawl space or up into the attic and over to their final locations. I also want to create one or two long (~50'-75') Ethernet cables for temporary connections.
My rough understanding of what I need is:
* Some sort of Ethernet wall plate with a keystone jack for each connection located on the closet wall.
* Another wall plate with keystone jack to place in the room with the computer I want to hard wire.
* Do I need some sort of tool for attaching the cables to the keystone jacks?
* Ethernet cable.
* Ethernet cable ends for cables not terminating at a keystone jack.
* Crimping tool for attaching cable ends.
* Cable staples and stapler for keeping the cable in place.
* Fish tape for getting the Ethernet cable into the ceiling and crawlspace.
* I have general purpose tools like a drill and drill bits, but if there are any other tools I should have please recommend them.
I'd love for somebody who does this regularly or who has already done the research to recommend specific products I can just go and buy for each part along with any general advice on how to approach this.
I'm willing to pay a bit extra if it means parts and tools that are easier/more pleasant to work with or are significantly more reliable. At the same time this is a home Ethernet network and I'm not planning on running cables anywhere I couldn't replace them later if necessary.
More details about the network topology in case it's relevant (but feel free to skip):
The internet connection will be 10 Gbps (for $40/mo, shout out to Sonic), but in the medium term it will be effectively limited to 1 Gbps because all my networking infrastructure and clients only support Gigabit Ethernet.
The networking infrastructure is Ubiquiti UniFi, with the internet coming into a USG 3P in the closet. From there it will go into a POE switch. Everything else will be connected to the switch. The devices not located in the closet that I want to run Ethernet to are one computer and 4-5 WiFi access points throughout the house. The access points will be a combination of nanoHDs in the ceiling (which I already have several of that are currently in a mesh) and UniFi6 In-Wall access points (which I will be buying).
Happy to provide more details if needed.
Thanks for any help!
The modem, router, main switch, etc. will be located in a closet where the internet will come in. From there I would like to run Ethernet to 4-5 WiFi access points mounted in the walls and/or ceiling in other parts of the house and also to a wall jack in one room where a computer will be connected. All the runs will be under 75'. I will run the cables either down into the crawl space or up into the attic and over to their final locations. I also want to create one or two long (~50'-75') Ethernet cables for temporary connections.
My rough understanding of what I need is:
* Some sort of Ethernet wall plate with a keystone jack for each connection located on the closet wall.
* Another wall plate with keystone jack to place in the room with the computer I want to hard wire.
* Do I need some sort of tool for attaching the cables to the keystone jacks?
* Ethernet cable.
* Ethernet cable ends for cables not terminating at a keystone jack.
* Crimping tool for attaching cable ends.
* Cable staples and stapler for keeping the cable in place.
* Fish tape for getting the Ethernet cable into the ceiling and crawlspace.
* I have general purpose tools like a drill and drill bits, but if there are any other tools I should have please recommend them.
I'd love for somebody who does this regularly or who has already done the research to recommend specific products I can just go and buy for each part along with any general advice on how to approach this.
I'm willing to pay a bit extra if it means parts and tools that are easier/more pleasant to work with or are significantly more reliable. At the same time this is a home Ethernet network and I'm not planning on running cables anywhere I couldn't replace them later if necessary.
More details about the network topology in case it's relevant (but feel free to skip):
The internet connection will be 10 Gbps (for $40/mo, shout out to Sonic), but in the medium term it will be effectively limited to 1 Gbps because all my networking infrastructure and clients only support Gigabit Ethernet.
The networking infrastructure is Ubiquiti UniFi, with the internet coming into a USG 3P in the closet. From there it will go into a POE switch. Everything else will be connected to the switch. The devices not located in the closet that I want to run Ethernet to are one computer and 4-5 WiFi access points throughout the house. The access points will be a combination of nanoHDs in the ceiling (which I already have several of that are currently in a mesh) and UniFi6 In-Wall access points (which I will be buying).
Happy to provide more details if needed.
Thanks for any help!
* Some sort of Ethernet wall plate with a keystone jack for each connection located on the closet wall.
Get an 8/10/12 slot mounting plate for keystone jacks. See below.
* Another wall plate with keystone jack to place in the room with the computer I want to hard wire.
Just put a double outlet there. It's minimal extra effort now, and you'll be kicking yourself if you ever want to install another wired device.
* Do I need some sort of tool for attaching the cables to the keystone jacks?
Depends, I've worked with toolless keystone jacks: strip the cable sheath, lay down the wires in a guidance block, press guidance block onto receiving part of the keystone, squeeze down with standard pliers, snip off the excess wire lengths. Rarely fails, and with a bit of dexterity you can wiggle the guidance block off the keystone, cut off the exposed part of the wires and start anew.
* Ethernet cable.
Cat6 or 7, one of the flexible variants.
* Ethernet cable ends for cables not terminating at a keystone jack.
Just put jacks everywhere, especially when you're using toolless ones, then a short (1..2ft or so) pre-made length.
* Crimping tool for attaching cable ends.
Not needed when you buy the both-ends-plugs lengths pre-made. Easiest, and DIY for just a few lengths makes no sense, especially since unless you're extremely gifted, you'll have a 50% failure rate on the first dozen or two plug crimps.
* Cable staples and stapler for keeping the cable in place.
Don't. Use those plastic clips that are fixed with one nail, and use them sparingly. For coming down from the ceiling to desk or floor level use some kind of tubing or channel in a size that can easily hold two or three cables (you don't want to have to use force to get the cables in).
* Fish tape for getting the Ethernet cable into the ceiling and crawlspace.
posted by Stoneshop at 1:37 PM on July 31, 2022 [3 favorites]
Get an 8/10/12 slot mounting plate for keystone jacks. See below.
* Another wall plate with keystone jack to place in the room with the computer I want to hard wire.
Just put a double outlet there. It's minimal extra effort now, and you'll be kicking yourself if you ever want to install another wired device.
* Do I need some sort of tool for attaching the cables to the keystone jacks?
Depends, I've worked with toolless keystone jacks: strip the cable sheath, lay down the wires in a guidance block, press guidance block onto receiving part of the keystone, squeeze down with standard pliers, snip off the excess wire lengths. Rarely fails, and with a bit of dexterity you can wiggle the guidance block off the keystone, cut off the exposed part of the wires and start anew.
* Ethernet cable.
Cat6 or 7, one of the flexible variants.
* Ethernet cable ends for cables not terminating at a keystone jack.
Just put jacks everywhere, especially when you're using toolless ones, then a short (1..2ft or so) pre-made length.
* Crimping tool for attaching cable ends.
Not needed when you buy the both-ends-plugs lengths pre-made. Easiest, and DIY for just a few lengths makes no sense, especially since unless you're extremely gifted, you'll have a 50% failure rate on the first dozen or two plug crimps.
* Cable staples and stapler for keeping the cable in place.
Don't. Use those plastic clips that are fixed with one nail, and use them sparingly. For coming down from the ceiling to desk or floor level use some kind of tubing or channel in a size that can easily hold two or three cables (you don't want to have to use force to get the cables in).
* Fish tape for getting the Ethernet cable into the ceiling and crawlspace.
posted by Stoneshop at 1:37 PM on July 31, 2022 [3 favorites]
The APs do not need keystone jacks, but instead you need to terminate the cable and attach it to the rear of the AP.
For the in-wall, you should get an old-work low voltage ring and install it, then the AP back plate attaches to the ring, and the AP attaches to its back plate. You could get away with just cutting a hole in the wall and feeding the cable through, and attaching the back plate directly to the wall, but a low voltage ring would allow you or a future owner to easily remove the AP and put a standard plate with keystone jacks. Use the same approach for the computer jack, unless it's where you have the in-wall AP, in which case you have 4 network ports on the bottom of the AP to use.
For the nanoHDs, the base plates don't appear to mount to a low voltage ring, so you'd skip that step, and just poke a terminated network cord out of the wall/ceiling next to the mounting plate.
You don't specify a location, but from your posting history, you seem to be in the US. For getting from the attic into the wall, be aware that standard timber frame wall construction has 2 2x4 (or 2x6) top plates, so you'll need to drill through 2 x 1.5" = 3" of wood at the top of the wall to access the stud cavity. At the floor, there's only 1 2x4 bottom plate, but you'll also have the subfloor to drill through. From the attic, you should be able to see the headers (perhaps under insulation) to identify where to drill, but for the crawl space, it's probably easiest to get a flexible drill bit kit similar to this one, cut your low-voltage ring, and drill down from the top. (That does take a bit of practice, and it's definitely possible to set it up at a bad angle and (for example) drill sideways out the side of your house rather than straight down. Not that I have any first-hand experience with that...) You can also just get a long thin drill bit (or even a cut off piece of metal coat hanger) to make a pilot hole from the inside, leave the bit in the hole, then go locate the bit on the other side. Easier to patch the small pilot hole than a large hole if you mistakenly drill in the wrong place from the other side.
posted by yuwtze at 2:03 PM on July 31, 2022 [2 favorites]
For the in-wall, you should get an old-work low voltage ring and install it, then the AP back plate attaches to the ring, and the AP attaches to its back plate. You could get away with just cutting a hole in the wall and feeding the cable through, and attaching the back plate directly to the wall, but a low voltage ring would allow you or a future owner to easily remove the AP and put a standard plate with keystone jacks. Use the same approach for the computer jack, unless it's where you have the in-wall AP, in which case you have 4 network ports on the bottom of the AP to use.
For the nanoHDs, the base plates don't appear to mount to a low voltage ring, so you'd skip that step, and just poke a terminated network cord out of the wall/ceiling next to the mounting plate.
You don't specify a location, but from your posting history, you seem to be in the US. For getting from the attic into the wall, be aware that standard timber frame wall construction has 2 2x4 (or 2x6) top plates, so you'll need to drill through 2 x 1.5" = 3" of wood at the top of the wall to access the stud cavity. At the floor, there's only 1 2x4 bottom plate, but you'll also have the subfloor to drill through. From the attic, you should be able to see the headers (perhaps under insulation) to identify where to drill, but for the crawl space, it's probably easiest to get a flexible drill bit kit similar to this one, cut your low-voltage ring, and drill down from the top. (That does take a bit of practice, and it's definitely possible to set it up at a bad angle and (for example) drill sideways out the side of your house rather than straight down. Not that I have any first-hand experience with that...) You can also just get a long thin drill bit (or even a cut off piece of metal coat hanger) to make a pilot hole from the inside, leave the bit in the hole, then go locate the bit on the other side. Easier to patch the small pilot hole than a large hole if you mistakenly drill in the wrong place from the other side.
posted by yuwtze at 2:03 PM on July 31, 2022 [2 favorites]
i do this for a living.
i never use RJ45 connectors, my company doesn't even keep them in stock. they're a pain in the ass to use, slow, and prone to failure both while terminating and over time from being plugged and unplugged. we use keystone jacks and premade patch cables. the patch cable machine in China can make patch cables way more efficiently than i can.
the jacks themselves we put in wall plates or if it can't go in the wall we stick 'em in surface-mount boxes.
i only use a fish tape if i'm trying to get down a conduit inside a wall that has a lot of bends in it. what i use ALL THE TIME pulling cable are what we call "glow rods" (because some brands and models glow in the dark) but i guess the sales term is a "fish pole". we use these literally 100% of the time pulling cable, taping the cable that's playing out of the box on the end of one glow rod and attaching zero to two (or more as application requires) glow rods on the front and pushing that rigid-yet-flexible pole forward through the space we're cabling. we also use glow rods to get down the wall, inside of standard double-sided sheetrock walls. unless you're running cables through conduit you probably don't need a fish tape.
since you're asking for specific tools, this is the set i'm currently using. they're a little stiffer than i'm used to but they're fine. this is the set i'm more used to. they're thinner and more flexible and thus tend to get broken by my overzealous coworkers more often.
posted by glonous keming at 2:10 PM on July 31, 2022 [9 favorites]
i never use RJ45 connectors, my company doesn't even keep them in stock. they're a pain in the ass to use, slow, and prone to failure both while terminating and over time from being plugged and unplugged. we use keystone jacks and premade patch cables. the patch cable machine in China can make patch cables way more efficiently than i can.
the jacks themselves we put in wall plates or if it can't go in the wall we stick 'em in surface-mount boxes.
i only use a fish tape if i'm trying to get down a conduit inside a wall that has a lot of bends in it. what i use ALL THE TIME pulling cable are what we call "glow rods" (because some brands and models glow in the dark) but i guess the sales term is a "fish pole". we use these literally 100% of the time pulling cable, taping the cable that's playing out of the box on the end of one glow rod and attaching zero to two (or more as application requires) glow rods on the front and pushing that rigid-yet-flexible pole forward through the space we're cabling. we also use glow rods to get down the wall, inside of standard double-sided sheetrock walls. unless you're running cables through conduit you probably don't need a fish tape.
since you're asking for specific tools, this is the set i'm currently using. they're a little stiffer than i'm used to but they're fine. this is the set i'm more used to. they're thinner and more flexible and thus tend to get broken by my overzealous coworkers more often.
posted by glonous keming at 2:10 PM on July 31, 2022 [9 favorites]
You may already know this, but instead of regular electrical junction boxes, for low-voltage wiring you can use a "backless" bracket that just gives you something to hold the wall plate to. There's also this weird combo platter for high- and low-voltage.
I recommend getting an RJ-45 tester so you know your keystones are wired up correctly.
posted by adamrice at 3:13 PM on July 31, 2022 [2 favorites]
I recommend getting an RJ-45 tester so you know your keystones are wired up correctly.
posted by adamrice at 3:13 PM on July 31, 2022 [2 favorites]
>There's also this weird combo platter for high- and low-voltage.
That specific one is for new work, where the wall is open enough to swing a hammer and attach the box to a stud. If you're not going to have the wall open to that extent, you want the old work equivalent, which inserts into a hole the exact size, and clamps to the drywall from the back.
This is the product I've been using to rewire my house, and I have two thoughts on it. One is that unless you are running to a completely new location, it requires you to remove the old junction box, and if you are not also planning on rewiring, there may not be enough slack in the wires to accomplish easily. You will probably need a reciprocating saw to cut the nails or other attachments to the stud, then work to remove the box from the wall while at the same time removing the wires from the box. The other issue is that this style is not compatible with the Ubiquity in-wall AP, because it's so wide it overlaps the AC outlets -- something I wish I had thought of before I started on the project.
posted by yuwtze at 4:53 PM on July 31, 2022 [1 favorite]
That specific one is for new work, where the wall is open enough to swing a hammer and attach the box to a stud. If you're not going to have the wall open to that extent, you want the old work equivalent, which inserts into a hole the exact size, and clamps to the drywall from the back.
This is the product I've been using to rewire my house, and I have two thoughts on it. One is that unless you are running to a completely new location, it requires you to remove the old junction box, and if you are not also planning on rewiring, there may not be enough slack in the wires to accomplish easily. You will probably need a reciprocating saw to cut the nails or other attachments to the stud, then work to remove the box from the wall while at the same time removing the wires from the box. The other issue is that this style is not compatible with the Ubiquity in-wall AP, because it's so wide it overlaps the AC outlets -- something I wish I had thought of before I started on the project.
posted by yuwtze at 4:53 PM on July 31, 2022 [1 favorite]
I ran a bit of ethernet in my house mostly like Stoneshop suggests. I especially recommend not messing around with crimping your own cables.
As for a parts list, Monoprice is a good place to pick up everything you might need:
posted by whatnotever at 5:56 PM on July 31, 2022 [2 favorites]
As for a parts list, Monoprice is a good place to pick up everything you might need:
- 500' CAT6 cable (CAT6A if you want to run your 10G ethernet more than 55 meters)
- Cable clips (single-nail)
- Old work low-voltage wall bracket
- Wall plate for one keystone jack
- Wall plate for 6x jacks (alternately, get a punch-down plate and a punch-down tool)
- Toolless keystone CAT6 jack
- CAT6 (or CAT6A) patch cables (choose-your-own lengths/colors)
posted by whatnotever at 5:56 PM on July 31, 2022 [2 favorites]
Response by poster: Thank you everybody, that’s all extremely helpful information.
(Feel free to keep it coming.)
posted by unus sum at 6:10 PM on July 31, 2022
(Feel free to keep it coming.)
posted by unus sum at 6:10 PM on July 31, 2022
I don't know the square footage or construction of your house but that may be an overkill number of access points and could result in difficulty with band selection or weird roaming behavior. I have one AP per floor in our rowhouse (three floors, 840 square feet per floor, a combination of brick, lath and plaster, and drywall that speaks to the house's age and renovations) and even that is kind of overkill. If I carry my laptop up or down stairs without putting it to sleep it will hold onto whichever access point it started with, and if I've only gone one floor it may take me a while to notice that my signal is degraded at all.
Recessed wall mount boxes exist that would allow you to hide the ethernet jack behind an AP. If you've got voids behind drywall it might be worth looking into getting recessed boxes like that and acquiring whatever sort of top plate you'd need to mount the AP onto the box. In our house recessed boxes were too many extra degrees of difficulty for multiple reasons so I didn't try, and just went with cheap low-voltage plates next to the AP.
Nth-ing the party line about just buying patch cables in whatever length(s) you need. I've terminated a bunch of cables over the years and I try to avoid it. Snag-free connectors with integrated strain relief and less fiddling are worth the minimal investment in patch cables. Also, all my patch cables are color coded by length, which makes them easy to pick out.
posted by fedward at 8:36 PM on July 31, 2022 [1 favorite]
Recessed wall mount boxes exist that would allow you to hide the ethernet jack behind an AP. If you've got voids behind drywall it might be worth looking into getting recessed boxes like that and acquiring whatever sort of top plate you'd need to mount the AP onto the box. In our house recessed boxes were too many extra degrees of difficulty for multiple reasons so I didn't try, and just went with cheap low-voltage plates next to the AP.
Nth-ing the party line about just buying patch cables in whatever length(s) you need. I've terminated a bunch of cables over the years and I try to avoid it. Snag-free connectors with integrated strain relief and less fiddling are worth the minimal investment in patch cables. Also, all my patch cables are color coded by length, which makes them easy to pick out.
posted by fedward at 8:36 PM on July 31, 2022 [1 favorite]
The APs do not need keystone jacks,
if you want to crimp the AP ends. Which you don't. Definitely. Trust me. So you end in a keystone, and use a short pre-made patch lead.
I've crimped more RJ45 plugs than I care for, using a professional crimper ( > USD100) and nearly fail-proof plugs, and still get about 10% failure.
posted by Stoneshop at 10:30 PM on July 31, 2022 [2 favorites]
if you want to crimp the AP ends. Which you don't. Definitely. Trust me. So you end in a keystone, and use a short pre-made patch lead.
I've crimped more RJ45 plugs than I care for, using a professional crimper ( > USD100) and nearly fail-proof plugs, and still get about 10% failure.
posted by Stoneshop at 10:30 PM on July 31, 2022 [2 favorites]
I am profoundly inexpert but if you get a crimper, I found passthrough connectors + crimper noticeably easier to use.
posted by GCU Sweet and Full of Grace at 4:25 AM on August 1, 2022 [3 favorites]
posted by GCU Sweet and Full of Grace at 4:25 AM on August 1, 2022 [3 favorites]
When you buy the big spool of ethernet cable, make sure you get "in-wall" rated (CM) cable.
posted by jpeacock at 9:45 AM on August 1, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by jpeacock at 9:45 AM on August 1, 2022 [1 favorite]
This thread is closed to new comments.
You'll want a 110 Punchdown Tool for the keystone jacks.
I like having like an 8 port punchdown cat 6 block for the closet side, instead of a wall plate, but that's mostly taste unless you're deploying a larger system.
posted by wotsac at 12:49 PM on July 31, 2022 [3 favorites]