Safeguarding radius when installing cables

[Paul_C]

I can recall repeatedly hearing that we were 'approaching the limit' of transmission speed that would possibly be achieved over the PSTN's twisted pairs.

Indeed, that's been an ongoing thing for a good few years now, then some new modulation technique is applied, or a new encoding method evolved due to faster processing etc. and a whole new land of faster speeds opens up again, until the next time we're "approaching the limit."

I'm sure that many youngsters wouldn't consider my 1.2Mbps DSL connection especially fast, but when I consider the transmission speeds available to me just 10 years, never mind 20 or 25 years, ago, I still find it amazing that technology has progressed to the point of allowing such a high data speed over 5 miles of varying quality cable, the bulk of which in my case is now almost 50 years old.

When I was using 110 and 300 Baud (bps) modems (I guess in the early 80s), the limit was said to be 1200 Baud. Then 2400 and, if I recall, a particularly strong belief that 9600 Baud (0.0096 mbps) was probably going to prove to be the 'ultimate barrier'! Admittedly, although it certainly wasn't the case when I was using 110/300 Baud modems

It was a common misuse at one time to hear and see baud and bps used interchangeably, but they're not actually the same thing. The baud rate is the number of discrete signals sent per second. It will correspond with the bit rate only if each signal carries a single bit, as is the case with the once-common 110 and 300 bps/baud modems.

The 1200 bps modems such as the Bell 212A or V.23 types are 600 baud, but 1200 bps since each signal carries two bits. The 2400 bps speed was achieved by keeping the 600 baud rate but encoding four bits per signal.

only 10 MB (i.e. 0.00001 GB for the benefit of the youngsters!).

I think you're getting a little carried away with the zeros there John!

10 MB = 0.01 GB

0.00001 GB is just 10 kilobytes.

 

[JohnW2]

only 10 MB (i.e. 0.00001 GB for the benefit of the youngsters!).

I think you're getting a little carried away with the zeros there John!
10 MB = 0.01 GB
0.00001 GB is just 10 kilobytes.

Whoops! I can tell you how that happened, though. In order to illustrate the dramatic advancement of technology, I was initially going to use RAM size. My first computer had 8 kilobytes (subsequently progressively updated to 16 and 32) of (static) RAM, eventually a whole 64 kb of (then 'dynamic') RAM. However, since powers of 2 were not very round numbers, I decided to switch to HDs, in the interest of 'tidier' figures, but forgot that I thereby had lost a factor of 1,000 of the drama!

So, to return to my Plan A, my first RAM was, indeed, 0.000008 GB!

Kind Regards, John.

 

[Geps]

One thing to watch with attempts at future-proofing is that the technology is changing so rapidly. In 10 years time,we might all be using optical cables rather than TP ones, so even cat8 might then be obsolete. ... and, of course, 'state of the art' things are often very expensive until 'the future' comes and they become the high-volume-sales norm. I once filled my house with 'thick ethernet' cables, at quite appreciable cost.

We already have if you Google 'MOST Bus'

 

[JohnW2]

only 10 MB (i.e. 0.00001 GB for the benefit of the youngsters!).

I think you're getting a little carried away with the zeros there John!
10 MB = 0.01 GB
0.00001 GB is just 10 kilobytes.

Whoops! I can tell you how that happened, though. In order to illustrate the dramatic advancement of technology, I was initially going to use RAM size. My first computer had 8 kilobytes (subsequently progressively updated to 16 and 32) of (static) RAM, eventually a whole 64 kb of (then 'dynamic') RAM. However, since powers of 2 were not very round numbers, I decided to switch to HDs, in the interest of 'tidier' figures, but forgot that I thereby had lost a factor of 1,000 of the drama!

Good grief - I am being slow/dim today When I changed my thinking from RAM to HDs, I should have simply moved up from GB to TB (which is close to becoming the ballpark of HDs) - in which case I would have got all my zeros back, since 10 MB (my first** HD) = 0.00001 TB

**on reflection, I've actually been fibbing. My first HD was actually 5 MB (aka 0.000005 TB !) but I susbsequently traded it in for a 10 MB one!

Kind Regards, John.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Whilst it may well be true that nothing is actually sold as 'exterior trunking', there is obviously any number of ways that one could cover/protect/'hide' cables on external walls.

Kind Regards, John.

It's not external trunking that they don't make.

It's external trunking that looks OK on residential brickwork....


IMO.

 

[JohnW2]

Whilst it may well be true that nothing is actually sold as 'exterior trunking', there is obviously any number of ways that one could cover/protect/'hide' cables on external walls.

It's not external trunking that they don't make.
It's external trunking that looks OK on residential brickwork....IMO.

Oh, fair enough; I misunderstood what you meant. However, I don't think it alters what I said. There are any number of ways of covering/protecting/hiding the cables, and the aesthetic acceptability is limited only by one's imagination (and what one regards as acceptable!).

Kind Regards, John.

 

[timbim]

It's not external trunking that they don't make.

It's external trunking that looks OK on residential brickwork....


IMO.

Hmm. Could always paint some galv trunking with a PVA/sand mix to give a brick texture, and then brick red. Once installed, touch up with some mortar coloured paint so it blends in better.

Not a quick or easy job however.

 

[Anthony-C]

Think I'll have to improvise some trunking out of self coloured mahogany UPVC sill profile or similar

 

[JohnW2]

Think I'll have to improvise some trunking out of self coloured mahogany UPVC sill profile or similar

You could - or you could even improvise something out of real mahogony (or, preferably, a more outdoors-friendly wood) if you wanted to go up market - and you could always grow something on/around it

Kind Regards, John.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Careful with those secateurs, Eugene

 

[JohnW2]

Careful with those secateurs, Eugene

Secateurs would not get through any hardwood structure I had constructed!

Kind Regards, John.

 

[jabuzzard]

One thing to watch with attempts at future-proofing is that the technology is changing so rapidly. In 10 years time,we might all be using optical cables rather than TP ones, so even cat8 might then be obsolete. ... and, of course, 'state of the art' things are often very expensive until 'the future' comes and they become the high-volume-sales norm. I once filled my house with 'thick ethernet' cables, at quite appreciable cost.

If you where to run Cat6a cables you are good for 10Gbps Ethernet in 100m lengths. That is more than good enough to stream a couple of uncompressed a 30" LCD screens at a frame rate of 60Hz. I don't see that being outdated in 10 years or even 20 years. Nobody is going to be using fibre in a domestic enviroment any time soon other than to deliver a broadband to the property. I would note that I still have some 10Mbps equipment that is perfectly usable, 10BaseT is over 20 years old now and 10Mbps Ethernet is now pushing 30.

Bend radius for an install is 50mm, but generally it will not be an issue if you exceed this in a domestic install, because you are never going to aproach the limit of 100m for a segment unless you happen to live in a mansion. From a central location you can reach just about anywhere in a four bedroom detached with under 30m runs.

I would however strongly argue that running Cat5e is a dum idea. The cost of Cat6a over Cat5e is small in comparison to the hassle of running the cable in the first place, and provided you keep the bends over 50mm then you are good for a very long time. I would also point out that you can get gel filled UV stabalised external rated Cat5e and Cat6 if you are for some reason running the cable outside. Normal Cat5e/Cat6 is not suitable.

That said all my Cat6a came free from work as in a comercial setting 20m barely gets you out the patch room and the contractors are lazy so just dump their nearly empty cable boxes in our patch rooms. I even got a couple of BrandRex Cat6Plus 24 port patch panels for free when a floor was refurbished that ment a patch room was moved. They wont reuse the old panels in a warranted install!!!

 

[JohnW2]

jabuzzard, I generally agree with everything you say, other than that our experiences over the past 30 years or so are such that I would be very nervous about saying:

I don't see that being outdated in 10 years or even 20 years.

in relation to anything to do with IT!

Kind Regards, John.

 

[echoes]

Careful with those secateurs, Eugene

Secateurs would not get through any hardwood structure I had constructed!

Kind Regards, John.

The original "Careful with that axe, Eugene" round your place then John!

 

[JohnW2]

Secateurs would not get through any hardwood structure I had constructed!

The original "Careful with that axe, Eugene" round your place then John!

Hopefully not, otherwise I might have to change from hardwood to armour plate

Kind Regards, John.