Options to network two buildings together?

[edmicman]

My dad *finally* just got DSL, and wants to know if he can share that connection with my sister, who lives in a house just behind my parents' house. The two are maybe 100 yards apart, just across a shared yard.

I know about using an antenna to bridge a wireless signal from one building to another, but that's more work and money than I think my dad would like to put in, if possible.

They actually share a phone line - the 2nd line in my parents' house is my sister's main line in her house - I believe they said there's 4 wires running between the two houses. Is there a way I could share a network connection on the phone line somehow? Or, is there a way to share the DSL somehow without having a direct ethernet connection between the two houses?

Or, is there a way to run an ethernet connection between the two? How many wires would need to be run between the two to get it?

Any other ideas or pointers? Thanks!

 

[bruceb]

If you want to do it without going Wireless, then you must:

Put a conduit in the ground .. either pvc or emt
Run Shielded CAT 5 cable thru the conduit
Install a CAT 5 Surge Arrestor at both ends ... this must be grounded at both ends also

You may need a permit from your town / city /.village since you want to dig and put in pipe
You will also need to call for a markout of all underground utilites before you dig
This number will usually be on your electric, gas or phone bill

 

[kevnich2]

Originally posted by: bruceb
If you want to do it without going Wireless, then you must:

Put a conduit in the ground .. either pvc or emt
Run Shielded CAT 5 cable thru the conduit
Install a CAT 5 Surge Arrestor at both ends ... this must be grounded at both ends also

You may need a permit from your town / city /.village since you want to dig and put in pipe
You will also need to call for a markout of all underground utilites before you dig
This number will usually be on your electric, gas or phone bill

No No No, do not run cat5 outdoors. Put the conduit in the ground (after checking into permitting and utility checks) and run fiber optic in the conduit, after the fiber is in, put two fiber to ethernet media converters on each end and voila. Cat5 is far too risky and fiber optics is actually cheaper to run and much safer than cat5.

Although if this is just a yard away, to save costs I'd just put up two wireless access points and point them towards each other. It'd be easier and cheaper than running wiring in the ground between but that is a faster option if your looking for maximum speed.

 

[edmicman]

Do you think the two access points would be able to see each other? I.e. without going with external antennas? hmmmm, I guess I might still look into that option. I'd have to check and see what trees are in the way, too, though.

Didn't there used to be some home networking devices that would work through your phone lines or something? Would there be a way to use the existing phone lines at all?

 

[edmicman]

Originally posted by: kevnich2
No No No, do not run cat5 outdoors. Put the conduit in the ground (after checking into permitting and utility checks) and run fiber optic in the conduit, after the fiber is in, put two fiber to ethernet media converters on each end and voila.

Interesting, I'll check into this. Are the converters something like on this page?

 

[bruceb]

you could do fiber .. but if you use the CAT5 surge arrestors and ground them
properly it is very safe .. Cell Sites use CAT 5 Shielded outdoors all the time
to feed the radio equipment from a Telco T1 circuit ... and they install the Surge
Arrestor at the end of the CAT 5 on the roof in a NEMA box .. another cable
then goes from that into the BTS Transmiiter / Receiver cabinet ... works well
and I have installed this for them many times (as do a lot of other workers)
The cell site companies spec out what they want and how .. they provide the
eq and we install it for them

 

[cmetz]

edmicman, the best thing to do would be to run a fiber line. You can get what's called "direct burial" fiber, which has a wire-mesh jacket covered with a hard rubber, and needs no conduit. That's the best bet. Or you could run low-voltage PVC conduit and run normal fiber inside. You just have to make sure it's really securely assembled.

You can use media converters on each end to go from copper to fiber, they're not expensive.

Fiber and wireless are both ways to interconnect buildings that are always safe. Fiber is more expensive, but faster and more reliable. Wireless is cheap and easy, but slower and potentially less reliable.

 

[Kelemvor]

If there's a clear Line of Sight ou can just setup a direction antenna thing and connect that way. But that might get really expensive. Or jsut set your sister up with a pringles can and tell her to figure it out...

 

[littlejim68]

I currently have Cat5e between my house and office. Its just under the 100m mark so works fair. PVC buried, cheep Cat5e inside that, tried to keep the wire as loose as I could to help with shrinkage in the winter (putting that to the test now with -4F temperatures).

Question 1, where can I get a CAT 5 Surge Arrestor for both ends? Not finding them on NewEgg.

Question 2, will the CAT 5 Surge Arrestor weaken my chances of going to a Gigabit Switch effectively?

Thanks Jim

 

[cmetz]

littlejim68, there are devices and installation techniques that can make a low-voltage cable installation between buildings safe per electrical codes, but it is not as simple as just sticking a surge protector on the cable. The consequences for an improper installation can range from blowing up your switches to fire and electrocution. That's why clueful folks around here will simply tell you to never do it that way - if you have to ask, odds are you're not going to get it right, and the downside risk is too high.

In contrast, running fiber or wireless, you're inherently safe. Fiber cannot support an electrical potential (though obviously if you hit something while digging you can have problems). And the wireless that we're talking about also can't really support an electrical potential. So installed right or wrong, and with cheap equipment or the best, once installed the technology presents no immediate threat to your life safety.

Also, in some jurisdictions, even low voltage cables between structures require electrical permitting/inspection to be legal.

 

[camara120]

If you JUST want to use your phoneline to do it all...

An HPNA Router and an HPNA Adapter might do the trick.

Those links are just for an example. I'm sure there is a lot of other hardware out there to choose from.

 

[edmicman]

Originally posted by: camara120
If you JUST want to use your phoneline to do it all...

An HPNA Router and an HPNA Adapter might do the trick.

Those links are just for an example. I'm sure there is a lot of other hardware out there to choose from.

Thanks, I was wondering if there was something like that out there that might easily do it.

Although, I'm intrigued about running fiber. I think it'd be a cool learning experience, would probably be more reliable, and could have other applications, too. We wouldn't be able to do anything until the spring/summer, though, and it looks like spools of fiber optic cable aren't exactly cheap. I'll have to do some reading!

 

[littlejim68]

cmetz, thanks for the input. I have Cat5e between the two places now running well for two years. Was looking for a way to make the setup safer.

This is a farm out in the middle of nowhere, yes we strangely have very good cable internet here but pay very little attention to building codes. Now fire hazards every farm pays extra attention too. I understand where the wire between two buildings works well but presents an extra fire hazard, ie lighting strikes one both burn down.

So my question is still where can I find a CAT 5 Surge Arrestor to make my current setup safer?

 

[kevnich2]

Originally posted by: edmicman

Originally posted by: kevnich2
No No No, do not run cat5 outdoors. Put the conduit in the ground (after checking into permitting and utility checks) and run fiber optic in the conduit, after the fiber is in, put two fiber to ethernet media converters on each end and voila.

Interesting, I'll check into this. Are the converters something like on this page?

Yes, those are the fiber to ethernet convertors. Not too expensive at all. Just get two of them, put on either sides of the fiber and voila. If your talking that short of a distance, you don't need a spool of fiber. You could easily get away with just getting a pre-terminated patch cable in your desired length from www.deepsurplus.com. Install that in a PVC conduit between the two places, slap in those fiber to ethernet convertors and you have an ethernet link between the two running on fiber optic (great for future speeds in gigE

 

[bruceb]

This is very good

http://www.hyperlinktech.com/web/hgln_cat5_hp.php

About $45 each ... make sure you have a Good Ground
connection at both ends