My house remodel

[Robert_in_NY]

The last investment property we rehabbed, I pulled coax from the attic to the living room, and bedrooms. I also pulled a phone wire into the rooms for the satellite dish receiver. There are three coax cables pulled to the rooms where the receiver would be. Two incoming cables and one outgoing. I just labelled and looped the coax in bundles at a common accessible point in the attic. I would also pull a dedicated phone wire from the telephone junction box on the outside to an office area where the router would located if you are going to use DSL for internet.

I used this style of wall plate with snap in connectors for the coax jacks and phone/cat5 jacks. The supply house didn't have another way of a combination Cat5 and Coax jack.

Amazon.com: Leviton 41642-B QuickPort Decora Wall Plate Insert, 2-Port, Brown: Home Improvement

Amazon.com: Leviton QuickPort F-Type Bulkhead module Nickel Plated: Home Improvement

Amazon.com: Leviton 5G108-RW5 Gigamax 5E Quickport Connector, Cat 5E, White: Home Improvement

The main reason I did this was I didn't want the dish installers to run coax all over the siding and drill through the walls as they will do, if the owner is not there.

I am not sure how to run the coax. Should there be a distribution block in the basement for the cable that comes from the road to the house?

 

[inveresk]

Ethernet is a lot faster than wireless for data transfer but for general internet browsing you probably won't notice the difference. The speed of your dsl or cable connection more often than not will be the driving factor. Where you will notice the difference is when you transfer large files between computers. Ethernet will be many times quicker.

I have my office computer hard wired (100 base T ethernet) into my wireless router. From the same router I wirelessly serve the house which is about 80 feet away. I have another wireless router in the house to boost the signal which is strong everywhere within the dwelling. The house computers are maybe a tad slower for internet access but not much.

 

[Robert_in_NY]

Ethernet is a lot faster than wireless for data transfer but for general internet browsing you probably won't notice the difference. The speed of your dsl or cable connection more often than not will be the driving factor. Where you will notice the difference is when you transfer large files between computers. Ethernet will be many times quicker.

I have my office computer hard wired (100 base T ethernet) into my wireless router. From the same router I wirelessly serve the house which is about 80 feet away. I have another wireless router in the house to boost the signal which is strong everywhere within the dwelling. The house computers are maybe a tad slower for internet access but not much.

I understand ethernet is considerably faster but the limiting factor is the cable internet feed slowing things down. I would love to set up a home network as it seems now I am constantly transferring files between computers but once the new house is set up I am not sure how often that will happen.

What I am curious about is if it is worth it to run ethernet cable to the rooms. I would imagine the internet is going to keep getting faster and faster and now that TV's, game systems and blu-ray players also have ethernet connections for internet access I am wondering if it would make sense to consider it. I am hesitant in that I fear once I run the current standard then there will be a new standard when they upgrade everything.

I may look into the cost of running a custom system. My friend has the tools to run cable and ethernet so all I need to do is figure out if I want to or if there is any reason to anymore and buy the material.

 

[inveresk]

I understand ethernet is considerably faster but the limiting factor is the cable internet feed slowing things down. I would love to set up a home network as it seems now I am constantly transferring files between computers but once the new house is set up I am not sure how often that will happen.

What I am curious about is if it is worth it to run ethernet cable to the rooms. I would imagine the internet is going to keep getting faster and faster and now that TV's, game systems and blu-ray players also have ethernet connections for internet access I am wondering if it would make sense to consider it. I am hesitant in that I fear once I run the current standard then there will be a new standard when they upgrade everything.

I may look into the cost of running a custom system. My friend has the tools to run cable and ethernet so all I need to do is figure out if I want to or if there is any reason to anymore and buy the material.

I had an ethernet system in my last house but went wireless in this one. With ethernet or any hard wired system, you have to make sure you have the outlets in the correct location. No use installing them then deciding when it comes to furniture layout that you'd prefer to have your desk on a different wall, otherwise you'll have trailing cables. If that's a risk, install more than one ethernet outlet in each room.

That's what I did in my last place which was my home and my office. I'd two ethernet outlets and two coax outlets per room. The CAT 5A cables were all taken back to a closet just off the hall where they were wired into a patch panel. This is where the dsl line came into the building. The dsl line connected to the modem, then to a 24 port ethernet switch and all I had to do was patch between the ethernet switch and the patch panel. For that kind of system, instead of CAT 5A, I'd wire in CAT 6 now.

It's a trade off. Wireless is cheaper and easier and you take it with you if you sell. However, you loose speed if you need fast data transfer between computers. Wireless overcomes the problem about outlet location. As long as you have somewhere central for your wireless router, you're likely to get a good signal everywhere in the dwelling and, if not, it's easy to boost with another wireless router.

I'd try to ascertain whether you need fast data transfer between computers. If not, wireless is easier and cheaper and seems pretty much the industry standard now. Most internet providers are providing wireless modems when they lay in a service.

Wireless doesn't prevent you from having computer to computer networks. From my office, where I'm typing this, I can access both computers in the house. However, transferring data is slower. Mostly for large files, I just use a memory stick.

 

[bdeboer]

I am not sure how to run the coax. Should there be a distribution block in the basement for the cable that comes from the road to the house?

For coax the distribution box would be called a splitter. From what I understand it is best to try and run everything to a common point and not have a series of splitters as you will lose signal strength.

 

[gwjd]

i would set up wireless and run a wire to say the office space mabey to each room for data wireless is great but wired is some times preferred.... its over kill to have both but it is easy to do and if there was a reveloution that put wireless and todays data cables out of date you could just pull new ones with the old ones

 

[Robert_in_NY]

For coax the distribution box would be called a splitter. From what I understand it is best to try and run everything to a common point and not have a series of splitters as you will lose signal strength.

Thats what I thought, I just wasn't sure if digital cable required any special box compared to the old splitters that you can find at almost any store. I plan to run 10 lines. One to each of the 4 bed rooms, one to each of the two living rooms, one each to the office, kitchen and basement and attic. I doubt I will ever have 10 TV's in this house but I want to be able to set a TV anywhere I may want in the future.

 

[Robert_in_NY]

i would set up wireless and run a wire to say the office space mabey to each room for data wireless is great but wired is some times preferred.... its over kill to have both but it is easy to do and if there was a reveloution that put wireless and todays data cables out of date you could just pull new ones with the old ones

Unfortunately, if I run Ethernet I will not be able to pull them out very easily while pulling the new standard (when it happens) through at the same time. The walls will be spray foamed and when done will be sealed solid. So I am hoping to wire the house up to meet any future needs while the walls are open and accessible still.

 

[PA hayseed]

Who is your cable provider? I have comacast. Up until a couple of months ago, everything was fine but expensive. Now comcast decided to make me install boxes for each TV. They provide the main box and two additional boxes, everything else would require additional boxes at cost plus a monthly fee. I ran my cable all over the house. I made sure every room had cable (except the bathrooms). Now, if I want to use another location, I have to move a box or pay the cable co.

I had one problem with my cable after I did all of my runs. I ran it underground from the pole to the house (they supplied the cable and the sheathing for it). It seems as thought their signal was dropping on the run into the house, so they supplied a booster (amplifier) inside the house but I have to pay for the power to run it. I would make sure you have an outlet near where your main cable enters your home. I had to run wire to that area to make and outlet for the amplifier. I have several splitter installed. The cable company provided me with a ton of splitters and the end for the cable wire. Might be that I pulled the comcast van out of the snow before (seen him spinning in someone's driveway), or it might be that they do that for everyone. I get really good HD pictures and my internet connection is fine. I also have a home network in the home for other things.

Good luck to you. I keep checking on your progress. Having done it on this house, I know how long it can take. Keep up the good work, and please post some pics of the finished woodwork, I love old woodwork - those old timers took pride in their work. Forgot to say that I love that stepped back chimney. Masons today don't want to be bothered with that stuff, at least the ones in my area. They want simple square jobs to do.

 

[Robert_in_NY]

Who is your cable provider? I have comacast. Up until a couple of months ago, everything was fine but expensive. Now comcast decided to make me install boxes for each TV. They provide the main box and two additional boxes, everything else would require additional boxes at cost plus a monthly fee. I ran my cable all over the house. I made sure every room had cable (except the bathrooms). Now, if I want to use another location, I have to move a box or pay the cable co.

I had one problem with my cable after I did all of my runs. I ran it underground from the pole to the house (they supplied the cable and the sheathing for it). It seems as thought their signal was dropping on the run into the house, so they supplied a booster (amplifier) inside the house but I have to pay for the power to run it. I would make sure you have an outlet near where your main cable enters your home. I had to run wire to that area to make and outlet for the amplifier. I have several splitter installed. The cable company provided me with a ton of splitters and the end for the cable wire. Might be that I pulled the comcast van out of the snow before (seen him spinning in someone's driveway), or it might be that they do that for everyone. I get really good HD pictures and my internet connection is fine. I also have a home network in the home for other things.

Good luck to you. I keep checking on your progress. Having done it on this house, I know how long it can take. Keep up the good work, and please post some pics of the finished woodwork, I love old woodwork - those old timers took pride in their work. Forgot to say that I love that stepped back chimney. Masons today don't want to be bothered with that stuff, at least the ones in my area. They want simple square jobs to do.

Time Warner is the cable provider here. I don't plan to have a TV or computer at the end of every line but I want to run the lines while I have the walls open in case I ever do want to set a TV in that room. My house is only 30 yards from the pole so I am not worried about the signal coming in. I just don't want to have to split the line too often.

I doubt I will be able to get any materials from Time Warner because I do not have their service at this house yet and do not know when I will be able to move in just yet.

I have decided to redo all the wood work down stairs except for the stair case. The trim looks nice in pictures and from a distance but it has been taken off and put back on before, it really doesn't look as nice as the pictures show it. I plan to redo all the trim to look like it originally did as I love that look and I enjoy trimming windows and doors like that. Right now I am stripping the last full room that needs to be done then I have three ceilings to tear down and then its time to put it all back together. I am hoping for a very productive winter.

 

[aczlan]

While you have the walls open, I would run your low voltage wires up or down in 3/4" conduit. Then you can change it out later if you want to.

I would also run a couple of 3 or 4 inch conduits from the basement to the attic for future expansion.

Aaron Z

 

[OKnewguy]

If I was building a house with foam walls, every spray foamed wall would have at least one "smurf tube" per 8' or so. This stuff is the flexible conduit that is either orange or blue, you terminate it to a wall box, and take it down to the basement (first floor) or up to the attic (2nd floor). This will not cost much and will really ease things as technology changes.
I would run a cat 6 and rg6 quad to each wall in each room. It might seem excessive, but it really does not cost that much if you buy the big pull boxes from electrical supply or electronic supply houses, or maybe even amazon. Also both of these are easily terminated yourself if you invest in the right tools. Both the network and rg6quad, should then run to a distribution center. I would put a large panel in a central closet or utility room. All of these feeds to not need to be active, but you can patch them in as needed.
BTW, now you can use cat5/6 to distribute a/v, usb, vga, etc, etc.
Good luck, Dave

 

[Eyeshade]

Cat 6 wiring is the probably what you need for Internet and phone. Personally, I'd go with a wireless phone and skip the phone wiring. You will need coax for the tv. Make sure you run 2 coax to the tv so you can use DVR and watch tv at the same time (direct tv requires this). I think you need 2 coax for picture in picture too. I ran a conduit from behind the tv mounted to the wall to the baseboard so speaker wire, hdmi, coax could be fished up the wall. Make sure you wire for 5.1/6.1 speakers ( speakers behind the couch). When I put in conduit I left in some string so I could attach a wire to it later and pull the wire ( and replacement string) through after the wall is sealed up. Since the walls are open put in electrical for the wall hanging tv. My wife hates to see the wires running up the wall.

 

[Eyeshade]

As to speeds, I think cat 5 wire supports T100 transfers. This is getting slow by today's standards so they are moving to cat 6 . I think this supports T1000 transfers. Go with a main distribution box. Bring in the tv coax to the main and then distribute it to the rooms. A lot of companies make the in wall distribution boxes. Allow room for a 120v plug in the dist. box so you can plug in a signal booster if the tv signal gets weak.

 

[Robert_in_NY]

Thanks guys, this will give me some ideas for planning the layout.

 

[buck12]

I have not read the entire thread. I recently visited a friends new house. One neat thing he did was run conduit in the walls from each of the locations he thought he may have a wall hung TV to the location he thought he may have a DVD, video game system, etc. so all cables will be hidden.

 

[Robert_in_NY]

Well now that winter is here and work is slowing down I have been able to work more on my house. The one living room is almost completely stripped of lath and plaster on the ceilings and walls. After that I have three more ceilings to drop down then I can start installing the radiant pex tubing. I did buy the new boiler and boilermate hot water tank.

The boiler is the ECR International 97GB which is a 100k btu unit and 97% efficient. ECR 97gb It is a very slick unit and can be hung on the wall if you want. To me it looks basically like a instant hot water heater but about twice the size. It weighs just over 100 pounds and even with my bad back I was able to unload it from my truck and bring it in the basement by myself. Its amazing how small these things are getting but this one has a cover that when removed opens up most of the boiler parts making it easy to access and maintain/repair in the future.

The hot water tank will run off a seperate zone from the boiler. It is a BoilerMate WH41 by Amtrol Amtrol - BOILERMATE . I had this unit in my house I had in town and it was very nice. No need for two seperate units, just one unit (the boiler) to worry about maintaining.

I need to check but I know the boiler will qualify for the tax rebate and I think the hot water tank will qualify as well. The boiler was just over $4k and the boiler mate was around $900. So they will max out the tax rebate which is good as that helps pay for the radiant system.

I will add pics once I get the system set where I want it. If anyone has any questions feel free to ask and I will do my best to answer them.

 

[Robert_in_NY]

I was wondering what you guys would suggest for a simple 4 camera security system. I have all the first floor gutted and am working on wiring before I run my radiant heat lines and started thinking about what else I should put in the walls before the foam insulation is applied and thought about cameras. I want to put two in back, one pointing towards the barn and the other towards the basement/back entrance. The other two cameras would be on the front porch and side porch gunned towards the entry so I can see who is coming or if someone has been up messing around. I plan to have them all wired to a first floor office which is set close to center of the four locations and would like to have them tie into the computer there to record to a hard drive and allow remote monitoring. I am not so much worried about the house as I am the barn as my dog is a great watch dog and she alerts everyone if someone is near but I would still like to have some method of catching people snooping or stealing or just plain being stupid around my house. Last year the neighbor who I let use my side driveway to the barn had a party and the people with the tent and chairs showed up and instead of turning around in the large flat area of all driveway in front of my barn (which is designed to be able to pull trucks, tractors and what ever else with trailers attached around easily) they decided it would be better to turn around in my back yard in early spring when it was saturated and spongy. They didn't just back up on it, they drove completely on it and just looped around leaving large ruts for me to fix. Called the company and they refused to do anything about it and I had no proof so I just used the tamper and fixed it myself before it dried out and made it that much harder to fix It would have been great to have a video of their truck/trailer with name plastered on the side making ruts in my back yard (which would have been visible from the camera aimed at the back entrance).

 

[Fixemall]

I am going on my fourth year with the lorex wireless system, has infrared for night vision and two way audio/ motion detection. I also went with extra monitors next to my bed so I don't have to get out of bed at night to have a look around. Events are stored on an SD card and it is essentially plug and play.

 

[Robert_in_NY]

Well its been a long wait as I have been waiting to have enough time and money to work on my house properly. I don't want to do something and not be happy with it so I am lucky in that I have no time table to be done by and can work slowly.

What I am doing now is trying to layout the kitchen. I am trying to attach a floor plan showing the kitchen and dining room areas. The long 20' 10" wall is the back wall of the house overlooking the orchard and barn. I want to have a little nook area at the left of that wall where Ava can do homework or just have a little spot to eat breakfast or what ever. The reason I am showing this to you guys is that I need ideas. I am going to have a dishwasher under the counter as well as a double basin deep sink. I have installed basic kitchens on jobsites and such but never been involved in designing them. The stove is just a basic stove/oven unit I bought at the local appliance store as well as the fridge. So can any of you guys (or gals) help me figure out a good way to lay this out? Anything I should consider or stay away from as far as islands or cabinets or ???

I am not sure the type wood I am going to go with for the cabinets yet but I don't think that matters. The floor will be a tile of some sort but again, I have not got to that stage to really need to worry about it yet. I am just trying to get this figured out so I can do the electrical and plumbing rough in and be ready for the foam installers to do the walls.

I really am at a loss as to designing kitchens and bathrooms. I appreciate any help you guys can give me and hopefully I will be ready to start hanging drywall this spring.