Cat5e, Weather resistent?

[BassWriters]

I'm in the process of talking my dad into creating a home network. The @home cable connection enters my room, where I'd like to send it to an SMC Barricade router/switch/print server. When it comes to running all the Cat5e cable, the cleanest option is to run it out the wall and around the house and into the various rooms. Running under the carpet isn't an option. Is it safe to run the cable outside? Is there a special type of cable to get, or will standard cheap stuff work safely given the potential rain and sun and wind.

If it is possible, one other question. How do I set it up so that I run the cable out side and then into the office for example. Instead of leaving 15 feet of cable in the office to connect to the office computer, I'd like to put a jack right on the wall. That way we can take a cable of any length and plug it into the wall, and from there it connects to the router in my room. This is like the setup at school where there are all sorts of jacks to plug computers into. Is there some website that shows how to go about setting this up?

TIA,
Cameron

 

[Mday]

well, run a conduit outside to enclose the cable itself. and get some weather resistent cabling. that's it. from there, you connect the cable to an rj45 jack.

 

[jacobnero6918]

Cat5e should do just fine outside. Most of the jackets that come with them are usually pretty rugged. I've had wires running outside for years and no problems. Just remember that your phone wire could be 100 years old. I just had a new line dropped to my house because we were getting noise and the tech said the wire had to be 75 years old at least.

 

[dukenukem]

Ditto on the fine outside, if you can tuck it under siding or something to keep it from being exposed to the sun. Depending on the quality of the cable it will probably crack in a couple years if exposed to too much UV.

Typically the white cable does worse, the grey PVC cable seems to do better. Amazingly the cable that absorbs the most light seems to do better, the darker the color the more is absorbd. The lighter cable that reflects all the energy seems to break down quicker.

 

[blstriker]

You could try the newer phone line networking kits which max at 10MBps which is fast enough for internet. You need a PNA bridge to your router though.

A really cheap option is to get the older phone line kits that run at 1 MBps. Compgeeks has two cards for 12.50 which is dirt cheap. If you don't like it, then toss it.

2 for $12.50

You're parents will probably like this idea better.

 

[CTR]

I post this warning every time this subject comes up:

If you are running network cable outside your house, you are opening yourself up to transients (lightning strike). Most common way for transients to kill your computer is the modem (usually phone lines run from outside and not protected), and an ethernet cable run outside your house would be just as susceptible. If I was running cat5 from outside my house, I would make sure to invest in some kind of surge protection or grounding device somewhere along the line.

 

[dukenukem]

Reasonable answer if the line was run in the air between buildings. If the wire is run against the house, then it would take a direct strike to get the cable. I can tell you from experience that not much is going to survive if your house is struck directly. UPS, Surge protector, or not. You better have good home owners insurance.

That being said the reminder about transients is warranted and should be considered.

 

[CTR]

<< Reasonable answer if the line was run in the air between buildings >>



Correct -- in the air...or against some exterior plumbing fixtures, or across a phone line, or maybe some other things I can't think of right now.