what do you do with 17 cat 6a cables to get past building control?

[CalvinHobbes]

Hello, we have 17 cat 6a electrical cables coming down into the room where our fuse boxes etc are. We would like to put that on ice for now but to get past building control if we velcro tied them into a figure of 8 (or three) with the ends electrical taped - would that do? Or do we need to trunk them and put them into a box or something?

 

[Mr Punter]

If they are not carrying current I don't see what this would have to do with BC.

 

If they are compromising a fire rated ceiling or floor you would need to fire stop them.

[Alan Ambrose]

BC won't care a bit about them and no need to tape the ends. At some point you'll want to terminate them and plug them into a big hub/switch. But until then, yeah maybe some fire stopping implications for the penetrations(s).

 

[CalvinHobbes]

Thank you!

[Nickfromwales]

Too small a diameter for b regs to moan about fire breach. 
 

And don’t fold them, turn them in a loop to not damage the cores!

[Temp]

They don't didnt care about mine or the TV coax.

[Spinny]

BC have shown no interest in my Cat6.

I'm expecting to give them an electrical certification from my sparky when all is done- I can't see them second guessing that really.

As far as I am aware there is no network certification required for domestic networks.

Low voltage cables like Cat6, speaker cable, HDMI etc not supposed to share ducting with high voltage.

 

There are some nice semi-autistic videos of tidy cabling into patch panels and racks on youtube.

[Firstfix Networks]

Building control generally won't blink at Cat6a — it's not part of the notifiable electrical work, so as above, your sparky's certs cover the install. The bit worth getting right is the bundling itself: use velcro/hook-and-loop, not zip ties — zip ties cinched tight enough to tidy 17 cables will crush the twisted pairs underneath and can knock out your Cat6a headroom. Loose figure-8 bundles, supported every 30-40cm, with a bit of service loop left at the cabinet end so you're not re-terminating if anything needs moving later.

 

Worth labelling each run at both ends before it disappears into the wall too — it's the single biggest time-saver when you're patching it all in months later and can't remember which bedroom is which.

 

(Disclosure: I run Firstfix Networks, fixed-fee remote planning for exactly this stage — not pitching it here, just flagging in case it's relevant to anyone reading this later.)