markharro

Hi @Triassic your photo mirrors my situation right now. Lots of CAT6 cable in the plant room waiting to be connected up. For me its for internet to rooms/TV/wifi points/doorbell and some PoE cameras and lots of other misc stuff. I have bought a wall mounted 12U rack and am now trying to work out what to buy to fit in the rack and connect everything to. I have decided to use Ubiquiti kit so atm I am thinking do I use there (cheapish) Dream Router and try and deal with the compromises or pay more for the Dream machine pro (the video recording on this being useful). So far so good. Whichever of these I go for I need another device(s) to connect all the CAT6 cables to to distribute the signal to the network. I think I need the "switch" @joth mentions with enough capacity for all the wiring and PoE (with enough total wattage to power all the PoE things to be connected). If so I think I then connect RJ45 plugs to the CAT6 and basically plug these in the front of the switch and then plug the CAT6 from the router to the switch as @joth sets out? What I don't really understand though @joth is where the "pntch panel" fits into the equation? What is its function and how does it integrate with the router and switch? Finally the Ubiquiti switches seem to cost a fortune. Am I correct in thinking that any switch will work in a Ubiquiti system......it would just mean that you would lose the fancy functionality you get with the Ubiquiti interface?

Hi no we didnt in the end - just too much hassle trying to organise. Luckily we have no issues on the 150mm slab. It may have helped that we covered it with sheeting for a few weeks after the pour.

Hi do you mean by "socket" the female housing that you would normally fit to the wall box? The thing you push the wires into with the push down tool? Do that on each end then plug in 2 ready made cables and test each end of those? If so that's maybe an idea. How easy is it to pull out the wires though from these sockets without damaging them? I know the plugs are cheap but I dislike wasting things.

I am installing CAT5e and CAT6 in the house now and want to make sure I have kinked the cable/broken any connectors etc before the walls are boarded. I have a testing gadget but this requires you to terminate the cable at each end with a plug which is tediously slow and also means that I probably waste 2 plugs as I won't know the exact lengths of cable required at each end until the 2nd fix. How do people do this? thanks

Thanks @Gus Potter I appreciate your advice. I have spoken to the spark today and all is ok. I have concluded that its better not to bother insulating these shallow voids - there is more than enough stuff to do to last a lifetime in any event. Thanks @Kelvin for the article link- useful conclusion appears to be to route cabling above any thermal insulation. I suppose in walls that means just on the outside of the insulation layer rather than buried in the middle.

Hi @ToughButterCup did you proceed with your ply walls? Any update on how it went; details on how you installed etc? thanks

Hi @Russell griffiths can you send me a link to this as we are hoping to "ply" our utility room leaving the ply as the final finish and I am searching for options to fit it neatly etc.

Ah thanks.....so on another topic why only 50mm of insulation? I have been reading about sound insulation and there appears to be a school of thought that says you don't completely fill the void? More good news if correct as it will save on rockwool costs! And another tricky issue is trying to work out how much soundproofing is needed between rooms/floors. I see you can get carried away with double/acoustic plasterboard; resilient bars etc and then even more specialist products. But how do you make a sensible decision on what to use where when you won't know if its enough until the whole interior is constructed and you are living in the house?

Thanks @Thorfun thats the sort of answer I like. It was actually our architect who suggested doing this but of course he's not the one doing the work. You point about cabling is interesting. Last week the electrician started on this and we now have a lot of cables in these void but also in the 90mm voids between rooms and in the ceiling voids. I will be putting insulation in these latter two areas for acoustic reasons. I assume that this should be obvious to the electrician and whatever cabling he has installed will cope with it?!

We don't strictly need to insulate this as the main wall void is pumped with cellulose but if I were to what would be the best product to use?

Hi @soapstar I have just bought this system - the sidemount kit that screws into the window reveal. How did you find installation and the instructions are a bit vague. Are any tools needed to fit the rubber beads for example? thanks

Hi @joth and @Kelvin any views on these points as I need to make a decision pronto. thanks

HI @joth why do you suggest 4 x CAT cables to TV?

A question on my external data cables.....is it important to get outdoor rated CAT5/6 cable? Or if you run the cables in ducts do you not need to bother? And my intention is to run up to 3 cables per wall duct - any need to use shielded cables? thanks

Thanks - I have started cutting now - pre cellulose....I am starting internally with the correct size hole cutter. Once the internal hole is cut I am using a 450mm long 10mm spade but from the inside to make a pilot hole externally. If I rest this on the bottom of the internal hole and keep it level it gives a fall from inside to out without having to think about it. I think use the hole cutter from the outside. Next thread the duct and cut to size with a flexible saw and then tape to board at each end. Its been added to my "pleasant" job list and is quite satisfying.

I had not been aware of this Rise sealant kit. Can anyone recommend a place to buy online?

thanks @Nickfromwales so you are saying fit https://www.screwfix.com/p/double-check-valve-15mm/96336?tc=RT5&ds_rl=1249404&gclid=Cj0KCQjwz8emBhDrARIsANNJjS786F2p-nDwkca2mK19l9MeyD-BzcY6oaRzmxrcnsNSY_TP4tId0hMaApbpEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds this type of thing between the tap and the pressure gauge? What do you mean survey for an accumulator?

HI @Kelvin we do have quite a few ducts in the slab - is it not the same issue though - you still have to tape where they enter the building? I was wondering how to insulate the ducts......wont using foam mean that it would be extremely difficult to remove the cables if you needed to? I was contemplating stuffing in some sheepswool insulation.

That's a wide duct. I was planning on using some ducting I have which is about maybe 30mm. So what you're saying is that you can run power and data together in one duct but only if each is within their own flexible duct? So ducts within a duct? What about taking multiple data cables through a single duct - I assume that wont be a safety issue and if I use shielded cables?

Another point - someone else has mentioned that for microbore radial you need sufficient mains water pressure. What is sufficient and how do I measure our water pressure?

Thanks for further advice. Still not clear what to do if you need a 10mm feed to a basin and 15mm (or larger) to shower in same room? Looks to me that you really need two separate pipes feeding that room to provide for this? Ah since writing this I have just read @Nickfromwales answer to this very question. Ok so this accumulator tank - this would need to be located in the shower-room would it? Don't fully understand the need for it...why just cold for example? would there not also be an issue if someone used a hot tap at the same time? Also would running 22mm hot and cold to the shower - its not a long pipe run for us - avoid the need for a tank like this?

I need to start drilling holes through our 330mm timberframe walls for ducts for cables before they are filled with cellulose insulation. Its a passive house so I want to reduce the number of holes to a minimum. I know that power and data should be keep apart ideally but would it be an issue if I used a shielded data cable in the following instances - 1 PV panels - these have the power cables coming from the roof but also a data cable from a special monitoring box. Any issue if I brought both through the same duct. 2 ASHP - again it need a power and data 3 EV charger - power and data needed for this I think also 4 What about power for an outdoor socket and data (poe) for external security cam 5 Power for automated sliding gate and data (if at any point in the future we can afford to instal this!) 6 power for outdoor light and data for a security cam Thanks

Hi @DamonHD yes apparently Miele ones do or at least some of them - their website states it can save up to 50% in energy costs....as we are installing PV and an ASHP it seems a good option albeit I expect its not going to be £££ savings.

Thanks for the various answers so far....this has helped a lot to focus my plans. So from what everyone has said so far I am convinced by the radial system. There are some finer tuning points I don't quite have my head around yet though. 1 In the kitchen we will have a sink and dishwasher. If we wanted to feed the DW with hot water from the hot water cylinder does that mean we need a separate pipe to it? If so would a 10mm do? 2 Back to the shower-room. My better half has her heart set on what will be a shower capable of a very high flow rate. More than I think 15mm will service. If she persists with this would this need its own radial supply or higher bore than 15mm with another 10mm for the basin? 3 In our utility room we will have a sink and washing machine. First of all are WMs connected to a hot feed? If so, will one pipe with a T serve sink and WM? Will 10mm suffice? thanks

So for the typical bath/showerroom with hot water needed for both basin and shower/bath how would you run 10mm to basin on this radial solution? 15mm to the room then split with 10mm to basin and 15mm to shower/bath? Or do you have 2 radial feeds to the single room - 1 at 10mm for the basin and the other 15mm for shower/bath?