Ethernet Wiring

Author
Discussion

Chrisgr31

Original Poster:

13,672 posts

261 months

Friday 28th October 2022
quotequote all
Under orders of she who must be obeyed we are decorating our lounge.

It occurs to me this would be a good time to put in an either et cable between the router and the TV rather than relying on Wi-Fi (even if they are just on opposite sides of the room).

Initial thought was just chase the cable in to the wall down to the floor so all it needs is plugging in. However this will be untidy.

So instead I am thinking I have about Ethernet sockets. Is it as simple as plugging a cable from the router into one socket and a cable from the socket at the other end into the TV?

droopsnoot

12,507 posts

248 months

Friday 28th October 2022
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Yes. As long as the two sockets are joined, of course. I'd run two cables at the same time, though, if it was me.

The teacher

120 posts

109 months

Friday 28th October 2022
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When we had a rewire as part of a renovation, we put network sockets in. The electrician ran the cable but didn't terminate anything (seemed odd at the time!)

A £10 Amazon terminating tool and a quick YouTube video was enough to figure out what to do. My kit cache with a tester as well. Very straightforward to do.

Mr Pointy

11,692 posts

165 months

Friday 28th October 2022
quotequote all
Yes that is the best way of doing it. Just cut a hole for a standard single socket at the bottom of your cable drop & put in a deep back box. A deep one gives you a bit more room to play with.

Captain_Morgan

1,243 posts

65 months

Friday 28th October 2022
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For that kind of use/distance I’d use cat5e it’s easier to work with than cat6/6a.

Also if you have any dead wifi areas in the home it might be worth running a cable to them decorating permitting or even run part way if there’s a floor/ceiling void the cable can live in until you decorate the rest.

loudlashadjuster

5,420 posts

190 months

Saturday 29th October 2022
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And run at least two cables, a backup in case of any connection issues down the line.

Alsmot free to do when you’re running it anyway, expensive to do later on.

wombleh

1,885 posts

128 months

Saturday 29th October 2022
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I used the keystone toolless jacks for the cables in our new place, was very simple, worth a look. Cat6 only due to cable core diameter

Chrisgr31

Original Poster:

13,672 posts

261 months

Saturday 29th October 2022
quotequote all
Thinking about this idea of running additional “spare” cables.

Can you ultimately split Ethernet cables? So 1 becomes 2? It makes sense to run a spare cable under the lounge floor to the hallway as the carpet is being replaced, but ultimately in future years I might want to run it from there to the kitchen or upstairs. So can I in future years split it?

loudlashadjuster

5,420 posts

190 months

Saturday 29th October 2022
quotequote all
No, you can’t split it. But you can alway add a switch at one end to put in an additional run to somewhere else.

If you plan that now you can add power-over-ethernet (PoE) so you don’t need to worry about finding power for it at some point in the future

Digger

15,106 posts

197 months

Saturday 29th October 2022
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Personally I'd run / install a minimum of 2 ethernet cables / sockets to the TV, maybe even 3! You never know what you might be connecting to the TV in the future be it game consoles, smart streamers etc.

clived

577 posts

246 months

Saturday 29th October 2022
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loudlashadjuster said:
No, you can’t split it. But you can alway add a switch at one end to put in an additional run to somewhere else.

If you plan that now you can add power-over-ethernet (PoE) so you don’t need to worry about finding power for it at some point in the future
Doesn't it just need one twisted pair, so you definitely can create two connections from one cable. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGvhW-qOqAk

Mr Pointy

11,692 posts

165 months

Saturday 29th October 2022
quotequote all
Chrisgr31 said:
Thinking about this idea of running additional “spare” cables.

Can you ultimately split Ethernet cables? So 1 becomes 2? It makes sense to run a spare cable under the lounge floor to the hallway as the carpet is being replaced, but ultimately in future years I might want to run it from there to the kitchen or upstairs. So can I in future years split it?
You can't split it but you can extend it. If you run in say three cables then in the future you can extend one of them upstairs. I'd put in a double pattress & back box to give you more room.

loudlashadjuster

5,420 posts

190 months

Saturday 29th October 2022
quotequote all
OK, well *technically* you can if all you care about is getting some sort of connection. But you’ll not get decent speeds, 100mbps max, but depending on cable and termination quality negotiation may drop it down to 10mbps which would be much worse than wifi

Chrisgr31

Original Poster:

13,672 posts

261 months

Sunday 30th October 2022
quotequote all
With any luck my last question on this topic!

I am going to run 2 cables from the router to the TV and possibly a 3rd to somewhere that in future I can extend it from, however won’t wire it in at either end.

When wiring the sockets is it like a telephone socket that needs a special tool to push the wire down into the retainer? If so does the tool come with the socket or what’s it called?

I ask as no local shop sells the sockets, even Screwdix is next door delivery to store, so I need to order them. Don’t want to order them and then find a need a tool!

ArsE82

21,049 posts

193 months

Sunday 30th October 2022
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Chrisgr31 said:
With any luck my last question on this topic!

I am going to run 2 cables from the router to the TV and possibly a 3rd to somewhere that in future I can extend it from, however won’t wire it in at either end.

When wiring the sockets is it like a telephone socket that needs a special tool to push the wire down into the retainer? If so does the tool come with the socket or what’s it called?

I ask as no local shop sells the sockets, even Screwdix is next door delivery to store, so I need to order them. Don’t want to order them and then find a need a tool!
Yes you'll need an RJ45 push down tool. Loads on Amazon.

Mr Pointy

11,692 posts

165 months

Sunday 30th October 2022
quotequote all
Chrisgr31 said:
With any luck my last question on this topic!

I am going to run 2 cables from the router to the TV and possibly a 3rd to somewhere that in future I can extend it from, however won’t wire it in at either end.

When wiring the sockets is it like a telephone socket that needs a special tool to push the wire down into the retainer? If so does the tool come with the socket or what’s it called?

I ask as no local shop sells the sockets, even Screwdix is next door delivery to store, so I need to order them. Don’t want to order them and then find a need a tool!
This is the tool you need:
https://www.screwfix.com/p/philex-punch-down-tool/...

If you are making your own connections then consider a tester as well:
https://www.screwfix.com/p/philex-network-cable-te...

There are probably cheaper ones on Amazon:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=network+tester+rj45&a...

You'll see on that Amazon link that there are some tool kits with both items for not much money. They aren't high quality but might be ok for a few connections.

Captain_Morgan

1,243 posts

65 months

Sunday 30th October 2022
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If you Google toolless cat5e (assuming you are using 5e) keystone sockets & face plates you’ll not need the punch down sockets & tool but saying that you’ll likely still want the tester so the costs might not be much different

Chrisgr31

Original Poster:

13,672 posts

261 months

Sunday 30th October 2022
quotequote all
Thanks all.

Off to do some ordering of bits!