Stringing CAT5 cable through a false ceiling.

Hi there,

I'm normally a software guy - setting up file- & print-sharing, ADSL
routers, a bit of mail-servers & Windows SQL & domain servers, bugs in
Internet Exploder & what-have-you - but much to my chagrin I have taken on
a job CAT5 cabling a small office.

There's already conduit in place, so on first sight the job looks as easy as
running the network cables down that and clicking additional patresses into
place. I've wired CAT5 cable to faceplates before, so that's no problem.

However, there are a couple of doors in the way where there's no conduit and
the CAT5 cables all have to lead back into a partitioned room, so there's
obviously a little more to it than such a naive approach.

If we're lucky we can run cables vertically downwards through the walls -
which are clearly hollow, and the cavity of which can be accessed from
above the false ceiling. A spanner or other small weight will hopefully
allow us to lower a length of fishing line through the cavity and meet up
with a hole drilled through the back of the existing conduit and through
the plasterboard. We can then pull the CAT5 cable through with the fishing
line. The electrician has already run his 240v mains cable through the
cavity walls, although it's not apparent if he put the cables in place
before the walls were erected, or used a similar method to that I outline.

However in order to come across from the partitioned storage space to the
correct position above the conduit, we have to run through the false
ceiling, and I thought I'd ask here for any pointers from people who have
already done this sort of thing - there must be lots of you!!

My original idea was to stand on a step-ladder, lift one of the ceiling
panels and pass the bundles of network cables from one side to the other.
Rinse & repeat with the adjacent ceiling panel all the way across the room.
This seems a bit arduous and it occurred to me to do the same with a
length of fishing line and then use this to pull the bundle of cables all
the way across the room.

Finally, from a high vantage point with my head and shoulders all the way
through the false ceiling, I realised that there's a lot of free space up
there, so one could potentially tie one's fishing line to a rubber dog-bone
and throw that at least halfway across the attic space. An acquaintance is
a mechanic, much handier with drilling and cutting holes in things than I
am and he has agreed to help me with this job - he suggests threading the
fishing line through a pencil rubber and using a catapult to fire that
across the ceiling space. Fishing catapults are designed to accurately drop
tempting samples of fishing bait around a baited hook some 20 metres away,
so should have sufficient range.

Laid across the top of the false ceiling is some quite modern insulation -
the office is a very recent conversion of an agricultural building - which
has a "duvet cover" of thin fabric, so I don't think there'd be any problem
with the bundle of CAT5 cables catching on it when pulled across it with
the fishing line.

How do other people do this? I assume people must run network cable through
false ceilings all the time. Do you just laboriously lift one tile at a
time, or is there a "trick" to it? I would imagine that those who have
undertaken jobs like this many more times than I have will have discovered
some shortcuts and some gotyas.

The office is 9 metres by 13 metres in size. There's already some electrical
cables strung up there. My acquaintance asks if the false ceiling is strong
enough to take the weight of a bundle of a dozen or two network cables
strung across them? Should we stick to the edges of the ceiling instead,
and secure our cables to the walls? I have no idea. "What about mice?" he
asks - I don't know that there's much we can do about that - surely no-one
uses conduit in attic spaces?

Many thanks in advance for any pointers or suggestions,

Stroller.

On 20 Feb, 15:30, Stroller <strol...@bigfoot.com> wrote:
> Hi there,
>
> I'm normally a software guy - setting up file- & print-sharing, ADSL
> routers, a bit of mail-servers & Windows SQL & domain servers, bugs in
> Internet Exploder & what-have-you - but much to my chagrin I have taken on
> a job CAT5 cabling a small office.
>
> There's already conduit in place, so on first sight the job looks as easy as
> running the network cables down that and clicking additional patresses into
> place. I've wired CAT5 cable to faceplates before, so that's no problem.
>
> However, there are a couple of doors in the way where there's no conduit and
> the CAT5 cables all have to lead back into a partitioned room, so there's
> obviously a little more to it than such a naive approach.
>
> If we're lucky we can run cables vertically downwards through the walls -
> which are clearly hollow, and the cavity of which can be accessed from
> above the false ceiling. A spanner or other small weight will hopefully
> allow us to lower a length of fishing line through the cavity and meet up
> with a hole drilled through the back of *the existing conduit and through
> the plasterboard. We can then pull the CAT5 cable through with the fishing
> line. The electrician has already run his 240v mains cable through the
> cavity walls, although it's not apparent if he put the cables in place
> before the walls were erected, or used a similar method to that I outline.
>
> However in order to come across from the partitioned storage space to the
> correct position above the conduit, we have to run through the false
> ceiling, and I thought I'd ask here for any pointers from people who have
> already done this sort of thing - there must be lots of you!!
>
> My original idea was to stand on a step-ladder, lift one of the ceiling
> panels and pass the bundles of network cables from one side to the other.
> Rinse & repeat with the adjacent ceiling panel all the way across the room..
> This seems a bit arduous and it occurred to me to do the *same with a
> length of fishing line and then use this to pull the bundle of cables all
> the way across the room.
>
> Finally, from a high vantage point with my head and shoulders all the way
> through the false ceiling, I realised that there's a lot of free space up
> there, so one could potentially tie one's fishing line to a rubber dog-bone
> and throw that at least halfway across the attic space. An acquaintance is
> a mechanic, much handier with drilling and cutting holes in things than I
> am and he has agreed to help me with this job - he suggests threading the
> fishing line through a pencil rubber and using a catapult to fire that
> across the ceiling space. Fishing catapults are designed to accurately drop
> tempting samples of fishing bait around a baited hook some 20 metres away,
> so should have sufficient range.
>
> Laid across the top of the false ceiling is some quite modern insulation -
> the office is a very recent conversion of an agricultural building - which
> has a "duvet cover" of thin fabric, so I don't think there'd be any problem
> with the bundle of CAT5 cables catching on it when pulled across it with
> the fishing line.
>
> How do other people do this? I assume people must run network cable through
> false ceilings all the time. Do you just laboriously lift one tile at a
> time, or is there a "trick" to it? I would imagine that those who have
> undertaken jobs like this many more times than I have will have discovered
> some shortcuts and some gotyas.
>
> The office is 9 metres by 13 metres in size. There's already some electrical
> cables strung up there. My acquaintance asks if the false ceiling is strong
> enough to take the weight of a bundle of a dozen or two network cables
> strung across them? Should we stick to the edges of the ceiling instead,
> and secure our cables to the walls? I have no idea. "What about mice?" he
> asks - I don't know that there's much we can do about that - surely no-one
> uses conduit in attic spaces?
>
> Many thanks in advance for any pointers or suggestions,
>
> Stroller.

it's not entirely normal* to have long lengths of cable strung across
areas unsupported. normally you'd get or fabricate a cable tray and
bolt it to something firm and run the cables along that, with cable
ties keeping them attached and tidied down every few meters.
you should also bear in mind good practice for network cables - don't
run them parallel to mains power cables to avoid interference, cross
power cables at 90 degrees if possible, and try and avoid extremely
tight-radius bends in the cable. obviously it's probably going to
work even if you avoid this, but this is good practice.
you should also bear in mind that fire regs may get upset if you
string cable that isn't flame-retardant (plenum) cable that could
potentially cause fire in one area to be carried through the ceiling
cavity to another area of the building. your clients' building
insurance may specify this...

i don't claim to stick to any of this in my own house, mind.
ric

* that is, it's common, but not particularly good practice!

In message <(E-Mail Removed) >, Stroller
<(E-Mail Removed)> writes
>Hi there,
>
>I'm normally a software guy - s

My deepest condolences!! You need cable rods and tape. They're a bit
like the drain rods used by plumbers. You'll get them at electrical
suppliers. The roof will easily tale the weight of the cables. Dog bones
and catapults and many other ingenious methods will work but won't be as
efficient. I used to use an old telescope fibreglass fishing rod with
some success!
It is unlikely that you'll get cables down the walls, however. There
will be noggins in the way unless they are lathe and plaster (old
buildings only). You'll most likely have to run some surface trunking up
to the ceiling or make a mess in the plaster board and repair later.
--
Devs
"Punchdown Pete the old Kroner"
Un autre 4 ans!

In message <(E-Mail Removed)>, Devs
<(E-Mail Removed)> writes
>In message <(E-Mail Removed) >, Stroller
><(E-Mail Removed)> writes
>>Hi there,
>>
>>I'm normally a software guy - s
>
>My deepest condolences!!
Cruel. Funny, but cruel.

I hate to see software guys suffer, unless it's by my hand of course.

>You need cable rods and tape. They're a bit like the drain rods used by
>plumbers. You'll get them at electrical suppliers. The roof will easily
>tale the weight of the cables. Dog bones and catapults and many other
>ingenious methods will work but won't be as efficient. I used to use an
>old telescope fibreglass fishing rod with some success!
Seconded on this one. If you have an old fishing rod.

You can buy cheap 5Mtr+ telescopic rods for under a tenner. Decathlon if
you have one near you, sell some cheap five, six and seven metre poles
that are ideal.

The whip section from an old CB/Taxi antenna is quite useful for cavity
walls.

Be aware, carbon fibre fishing rods and whip antennae will conduct
electricity so be *very* careful not to find any bare wires.

As someone else mentioned you may need to be mindful of fire barriers
if you are putting cables through solid walls or fire resistant
ceilings.

>It is unlikely that you'll get cables down the walls, however. There
>will be noggins in the way unless they are lathe and plaster (old
>buildings only).

Never seen a building that had lathes in the walls, laths often ;-)

> You'll most likely have to run some surface trunking up to the ceiling
>or make a mess in the plaster board and repair later.


--
Clint Sharp

In article <(E-Mail Removed) >,
(E-Mail Removed) says...
> Hi there,
>
> I'm normally a software guy - setting up file- & print-sharing, ADSL
> routers, a bit of mail-servers & Windows SQL & domain servers, bugs in
> Internet Exploder & what-have-you - but much to my chagrin I have taken on
> a job CAT5 cabling a small office.
>
> There's already conduit in place, so on first sight the job looks as easy as
> running the network cables down that and clicking additional patresses into
> place. I've wired CAT5 cable to faceplates before, so that's no problem.
>
> However, there are a couple of doors in the way where there's no conduit and
> the CAT5 cables all have to lead back into a partitioned room, so there's
> obviously a little more to it than such a naive approach.
>
> If we're lucky we can run cables vertically downwards through the walls -
> which are clearly hollow, and the cavity of which can be accessed from
> above the false ceiling. A spanner or other small weight will hopefully
> allow us to lower a length of fishing line through the cavity and meet up
> with a hole drilled through the back of the existing conduit and through
> the plasterboard. We can then pull the CAT5 cable through with the fishing
> line. The electrician has already run his 240v mains cable through the
> cavity walls, although it's not apparent if he put the cables in place
> before the walls were erected, or used a similar method to that I outline.
>
> However in order to come across from the partitioned storage space to the
> correct position above the conduit, we have to run through the false
> ceiling, and I thought I'd ask here for any pointers from people who have
> already done this sort of thing - there must be lots of you!!
>
> My original idea was to stand on a step-ladder, lift one of the ceiling
> panels and pass the bundles of network cables from one side to the other.
> Rinse & repeat with the adjacent ceiling panel all the way across the room.
> This seems a bit arduous and it occurred to me to do the same with a
> length of fishing line and then use this to pull the bundle of cables all
> the way across the room.
>
> Finally, from a high vantage point with my head and shoulders all the way
> through the false ceiling, I realised that there's a lot of free space up
> there, so one could potentially tie one's fishing line to a rubber dog-bone
> and throw that at least halfway across the attic space. An acquaintance is
> a mechanic, much handier with drilling and cutting holes in things than I
> am and he has agreed to help me with this job - he suggests threading the
> fishing line through a pencil rubber and using a catapult to fire that
> across the ceiling space. Fishing catapults are designed to accurately drop
> tempting samples of fishing bait around a baited hook some 20 metres away,
> so should have sufficient range.
>
> Laid across the top of the false ceiling is some quite modern insulation -
> the office is a very recent conversion of an agricultural building - which
> has a "duvet cover" of thin fabric, so I don't think there'd be any problem
> with the bundle of CAT5 cables catching on it when pulled across it with
> the fishing line.
>
> How do other people do this? I assume people must run network cable through
> false ceilings all the time. Do you just laboriously lift one tile at a
> time, or is there a "trick" to it? I would imagine that those who have
> undertaken jobs like this many more times than I have will have discovered
> some shortcuts and some gotyas.

I'd go with the first method, just move the tiles one at a time and
allow the cable to rest on the upside of the suspended cieling.

> The office is 9 metres by 13 metres in size. There's already some electrical
> cables strung up there. My acquaintance asks if the false ceiling is strong
> enough to take the weight of a bundle of a dozen or two network cables
> strung across them? Should we stick to the edges of the ceiling instead,
> and secure our cables to the walls? I have no idea.

Should be fine, the cieling will be suspended with strong "fishing
line" or metal wires.
--
Regards
Jon