| Introduction to Structured Wiring |
From "Home Tech"
episode HTC-104 |
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The Hard-Wired Home The ultimate in smart-home installation -- and the ideal situation from the standpoint of integration, flexibility and sophistication -- is structured wiring. This involves building a technology infrastructure into the home -- ideally, at the time the home is being built -- and preinstalling wiring for data transmission and audio/video throughout the home. A structured-wire home is equipped with an integrated service unit (ISU) that serves as a sort of junction box where all the cables meet. The ISU ties into the phone, data and audio/video cable lines where they come into your home. The ISU, once installed and connected to a wired network, allows communication among all rooms in the house via the network. If you have the luxury of installing structured wiring in a house that you're building, or if you opt to hire professionals to install structured wiring on an existing home, you'll want to talk to a contractor, and perhaps a specialized subcontractor, about your plans and needs for smart-home technology and prewiring. This will allow for preinstallation of such things as wiring and jacks for data transmission, cable lines, phone lines, extra electrical outlets, electrical-surge protection and wiring for stereo speakers in all applicable rooms throughout the house. With a professional installation by competent specialists, you should be assured of a thorough and comprehensive preinstallation that's system-ready and expandable. When talking to a contractor about structured wiring, be sure to do the following: - Ask how long the job will take.
- If the installation is on an existing home, ask how extensive the construction will be, how much of a mess it will make, and how much it's likely to disrupt life in your home.
- Get a written cost-estimate.
Installing Cable For do-it-yourselfers, it's important to know that one of the most difficult parts of the job is snaking cable through the walls so that the wiring is concealed. Be aware that electrical and phone lines, as well as plumbing and other fixtures, are already installed within walls. Cutting into walls without proper expertise could be dangerous and could cause some costly damage. If you have any doubts about your do-it-yourself skills for a project of this magnitude, the best advice is to hire a professional. If you do take on a wiring installation yourself, following are some tips: - Use a stud-finder (figure A) to locate wall studs as well as preexisting wiring and plumbing lines. A stud-finder locates structures behind drywall by measuring density in walls. It also detects metal.
- Using the stud-finder, plot the route to run your cables inside the walls. Look for common cavities within your walls and centralized areas where you might be able to string cable between rooms and from floor to floor without a lot of turns or twists.
- Once you've plotted your path, you'll need to cut some holes into the drywall to snake the cable. Look for locations that are out of the way and less visible so any patchwork will be less conspicuous.
- Use specialized, extra-long drill bits (figure B) to drill straight paths for running cable through floors and walls.
- Insert cable through the hole in the drywall, and begin threading it through toward the next opening (figure C). Repeat this process until you have cable running to each room that you want wired.
- Terminate cables using the appropriate jacks and wall-mounting faceplates (figure D). Once attached, the jack assembly and faceplate can simply be installed into the wall as a unit.
All of the wiring connects, ultimately, to the integrated service unit (ISU), a junction box and control center for the whole system (figure E). The ISU is equipped with numerous ports to accommodate phone lines, data lines and audio/video lines. Most ISUs are expandable, so that more ports can be added later to accommodate more lines. Once fully connected and integrated, a sophisticated system made possible by structured wiring can be adapted for a number of uses.
RESOURCES :
Home Sync
Home Sync
Greenwood Village, CO 80111
Phone: 303-406-6906
Website: www.gohomesync.com
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