Need advice for a wall-mounted patch panel for home network

I am finishing my basement and need some advice about terminating the network
feeds from around the house.

I initially was going to bring them all into a square wiring box, but realized
that since I would be actually making the connections via switches and routers
that are outside the box (on shelves) the square panel is not really needed.

What I am looking for is some sort of rack mountable patch panel that is 16"
wide so it will go between the studs in the wall. The panel itself would
slide/disconnect from the rack for wiring, but the rack itself mounts
permanently between the studs so the drywall can be cut around it.

Does something like this exist?

 

Not sure if I understand... you want a "rack" that mounts between
studs, and a panel that mounts to the rack? Is there a reason you can't
just surface-mount a panel?

Perhaps you're talking about something like the FutureSmart panels?
(see http://www.hometech.com/techwire/finpro.html#PANELS)

- Mark.

 

Cheap way would be to use a standard 19" patch panel and stand it on
end--run some blocking to support it.

 

Standard racks are 19" but you dont need one. Bring the cable into the
stud bay and mount a piece of 3/4" plywood to one side of the studs
using hinges. Cut out a 2 inch opening in the plywood and mount your
110 block over it. Bring the cables in from the hole under the block
and punch them down. You don't have to use a hinge - you could just
mount the plywood with screws on both sides - but it makes it easy to
get inside to access new runs.
You can see how I did this using a door height peice of plywood at:
http://community.webshots.com/user/brobin111


From:BIOSMonkey

 

Yes, this is exactly what I mean. The futuresmart panels, though, are very
expensive and a little overkill. I just want something with 24 cat5e/6 jacks to
connect from the wall to the switches.

The only reason I wanted a rack is so that there is a box in the wall for the
drywallers to cut around. I guess if I have to I'll just drywall it myself or
build a wooden box. That would certainly be the most cost-effective.

 

Check out www.pimfg.com. They have some plain vanilla boxes that are
priced a little better.

From:BIOSMonkey

 

The standard EIA rack sizes are 19" and 23". There has never been
a 16" size that I know of.

HOWEVER -- I faced this same issue at one time. I solved it by
obtaining, through Graybar Electric, a wall-mounted mini-rack made by
Homaco. It mounted neatly on 16" center studs, and provided a standard
19" space to accommodate network wiring panels (and a small hub for a
time).

Look here for the Homaco wall racks.

http://www.homaco.com/equipwallracks/swingez.htm

Happy hunting.


--
Dr. Anton T. Squeegee, Director, Dutch Surrealist Plumbing Institute.
(Known to some as Bruce Lane, ARS KC7GR,
kyrrin (a/t) bluefeathertech[d=o=t]calm -- www.bluefeathertech.com
"If Salvador Dali had owned a computer, would it have been equipped
with surreal ports?"

 

If it were me, I'd probably wait until the drywall's in, then put in
6x4-way low voltage wall plates with appropriate wiring. Total cost
would be about a hundred bucks, almost all of it for the keystones.
That is, assuming I understand what you're trying to accomplish.

 

These come in 8, 12, and 24 port sized. They surface mount, with 100
punchdowns on the backside and RJ45 on the front. They would be easy
to hang between studs. I've seen similar items at Home Depot.

http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/default.aspx?EDC=500004