[ecarlino016]

Hello all,

I'm having a new home built and the builder has asked me to place all cable and telephone locations. I've read through other threads in this area and was unable to find anything that fits this basic premise....I apologize if it appears elsewhere.

Im only really interested in telephone (maybe network) and cable. He told me there is no limitation to the number of outlets but I dont think I need to go overboard.

My existing home has the following factors:
-TV in the family room
-TV in the master bedroom
-TV in the office
-TV in the children's playroom
-TV in the rec. room
-Telephone in the master bedroom
-Telephone in the kitchen
-Telephone in the family room
-Telephone in the rec. room

Do people have outlets in the kitchen any more? (with so many wireless phones).
Should I simply add a coax/cat5 combo to every room?

Im not really into automation just a simple computer network + telephone jacks + cable outlets.

Im feeling overwhelmed and I need some advice to keep it simple.

Thank you,

 

[Tunksy31]

Think of phone/network/cable outlets as electrical outlets. By electrical building code you need so many outlets within each room (12ft apart, 6ft from any doorway), whether you use them or not doesn't matter. For the cost of running phone/pc/coax to at least one wall in every room you are not limiting yourself as to where you can and can't locate wired phones/computers. Yes wireless is nice for phones but one still needs to be hard wired to an outlet.

For the cost of running the wires now compared to getting the house done and wishing you had placed outlets somewhere you didn't I would say wire each room (bathrooms included). Wire is cheap and the labour would be 1/4 of the cost to do it while the walls are open.

I would also ask your builder to pull 5 coax into the attic and ensure they are long enough to get outside the south side of the house. You never know one day you may switch to Sat. I usually run a couple extra wires into the attic as well, 2coax, 2phone, 2PC in case one day you want an outlet on another side of the room, at least the wires are in place for it.

ALSO with my experience with networking in residential DON'T locate your wireless router in the basement or second floor. Keep it somewhere on the main floor as it will allow for maximum coverage throughout the house. Usually people put it in the basement b/c it is easier and they don't want to see it but find they never get a strong enough signal when on the top floor of the house and it has to get moved. I have found that the Kitchen is usually the best location as they are usually a central area of the house. On top of a cabinet works the best.

Hope that helps,

Tunksy

 

[stampeder]

Combo Cables might help too

Nowadays there are some good options for stringing using a combination-cable product like the Channel Master A2C5X1Q variety (a centre RG-6 Quad Shield Coax cable with 2 Cat5E cables bound to the outer sheath) as well as combination LAN/Phone/Alarm combo cable products.

Single wall boxes can be strung with a variety of outlets using modular products like Leviton's QuickPort line.

 

[ecarlino016]

Thank you so much for the quick replies......
Great replies.

I also need to setup the main entertainment TV. Should I consider the same plan using HDMI and composite/component combos?

EC

 

[stampeder]

Wrong forum for that part. Try asking about that in here:

Home Theatre Design, Construction and Setup

 

[pvrfan]

I agree with most everything that Tunksy31 said but have a couple of alternatives...

As mentioned, run wire wherever you think you might need it in the future. To keep the cost down, though, you don't need to terminate it all right now! You can leave the wire in the wall with a blank face plate over the low voltage box and terminate when you have the need.

For the attic, you might want to run a large conduit so that you can pull whatever might be needed in the future.

I'm a strong believer in wired networking for the greater speed and security. We did our basement a few years ago and I wish I'd pulled more wire at the time. In our office, we have a shared laser printer and two computers attached to the network; three computers when I bring one home from work.

In your home theatre area, a conduit may give you flexibility in the future. At very least, pull several runs of coax (RG-6) and several network lines. My TV is connected to both an antenna and cable system via coax. I have a HTPC with a dual-tuner box (HDHomerun) that requires two coax and connects to the HTPC via ethernet. The PS/3, PS/2 and Wii all have network connections as well.

Finally, think about any other wiring you might want in the future. In-wall/ceiling speakers for whole-house audio? Security system? Garage door indicator light? Weather station or even just an outdoor temperature probe?

Craig