Mounting patch panels ...

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  • toscal
    Moderator
    • Oct 2005
    • 2061

    #16
    Originally posted by TimH View Post
    FWIW I've bought a reasonable amount (when in a previous job) from the Cablenet guys and have always found their service very good.

    Having done a lot of retrofit wiring in my own house, it's *much much* easier threading reeled cable, rather than pre-made patch leads through holes in joists and in conduit etc. The connectors end surprisingly large when you try to feed them, plus 4 other cables, through a 25-40mm diameter hole...

    The downside is the time taken to terminate the bare cables, but you do get the option to trim minor excess lengths to keep wiring tidy rather than trying to "lose" a spare meter or more of cable in the rack somewhere.

    HTH,

    Tim.
    Agree totally here.
    I modified one of those wheel around clothes racks to take cable reels. I ended up with 2 modified clothes racks, one had a 500m wooden cable drum the other had 2 300m drums. The two lots of 300m cable was originally packed without a drum so I put it on a couple of spare drums I had lying about. I did take some photos, but can't find them at the moment.
    IF YOU CAN'T FIX IT WITH A HAMMER, YOU'VE GOT AN ELECTRICAL PROBLEM.
    Renovation Spain Blog

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    • MrFluffy
      Automated Home Sr Member
      • Aug 2005
      • 79

      #17
      You can get the 10" mini patch panels to suit the 10" racks at reasonable cost.
      Ive got 5 of them mounted in my wiring closet and I think I paid 18e per panel which is ok considering theyre shielded to boot. Also you can mount with screws if you have no rail etc so you can screw them to a flat surface, krone the cables in and bing instant patching area.
      Ive put distributed tv, data, audio etc through mine already and all is fine, I cabled up with cat6 sftp cable and made all my own patch interconnects from the same with shielded plugs.

      I formed my wiring closet from some plastic ducting and the patch panels and a mini 100base 16 port own brand switch from ebuyer (about the most reliable switch Ive ever bought, and it replaced a cisco 2950 and 2800XL, although to be fair its not managed) , the adsl router lives in there etc etc , and managed it for a price well under 200e the lot.

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      • jondye
        Automated Home Lurker
        • Jun 2010
        • 1

        #18
        Originally posted by MrFluffy View Post
        You can get the 10" mini patch panels to suit the 10" racks at reasonable cost.
        Any suggestions as to suppliers (both for panels and racks)? I had a look around for them a few weeks ago and didn't find many suppliers and those I found were quite expensive.

        JD

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        • toscal
          Moderator
          • Oct 2005
          • 2061

          #19
          Try here. Don't know if they are cheap or expensive.
          IF YOU CAN'T FIX IT WITH A HAMMER, YOU'VE GOT AN ELECTRICAL PROBLEM.
          Renovation Spain Blog

          Comment

          • MrFluffy
            Automated Home Sr Member
            • Aug 2005
            • 79

            #20
            Originally posted by jondye View Post
            Any suggestions as to suppliers (both for panels and racks)? I had a look around for them a few weeks ago and didn't find many suppliers and those I found were quite expensive.

            JD
            Theyre a generic part, I found 3 different brands which all came out the factory by the looks of it. Ive seen the same patch panels for sale for nearer 100e, and 18e from where I bought them depending on what whoever set the price point thought they could charge I guess, but the cheap price was a enterprise in France which is no use to you as shipping here is expensive. You'll just have to keep a eye out Im afraid.

            Comment

            • toscal
              Moderator
              • Oct 2005
              • 2061

              #21
              Try Ebay for rack equipment, though most will probably be pick up only. Or if you know where to look maybe a second hand office suppliers.
              IF YOU CAN'T FIX IT WITH A HAMMER, YOU'VE GOT AN ELECTRICAL PROBLEM.
              Renovation Spain Blog

              Comment

              • network video systems
                Automated Home Lurker
                • Sep 2010
                • 6

                #22
                HI people, hope all is well, interseting post, i saw somewhere about the mini5 range, which is ideal for the home, small compact wall cabs,

                For a really low cost, you can get a 12 way patch panel, with the 89 brackets that mount to the wall,

                Last edited by network video systems; 26 September 2010, 03:42 PM.
                Manchester store -Branded High End IP cameras

                http://www.networkvideosystems.co.uk


                http://www.networkvideosystems.com/

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                • MrFluffy
                  Automated Home Sr Member
                  • Aug 2005
                  • 79

                  #23
                  Just on a practical note, I mounted my mini patch panels flat facing upwards, so a) they didnt require as deep a cavity as theyre only about a inch deep, and b) the cat5 could just come down the cable trunk they're on the front of and curve gently into the sockets, rather than coming down the trunk and having to waterfall 90deg into the kroning area.
                  Just a small point, but makes it lots visually neater than even the usual work of art on commercial patch panels in racking systems imho...

                  Comment

                  • TimH
                    Automated Home Legend
                    • Feb 2004
                    • 509

                    #24
                    Originally posted by MrFluffy View Post
                    Just on a practical note, I mounted my mini patch panels flat facing upwards,
                    I can't quite picture whether your sockets are now facing upwards or downwards, but if facing upwards you may want to consider covering the unused ports to prevent dust / dirt ingress.

                    HTH,

                    Tim.
                    My Flickr Photos

                    Comment

                    • MrFluffy
                      Automated Home Sr Member
                      • Aug 2005
                      • 79

                      #25
                      Originally posted by TimH View Post
                      I can't quite picture whether your sockets are now facing upwards or downwards, but if facing upwards you may want to consider covering the unused ports to prevent dust / dirt ingress.

                      HTH,

                      Tim.
                      They face down as it goes, because the whole structured cabling comes from upstairs in the closed off closet proper, so the cables run straight into the krone area on the top of the panels, and the patch cables plug in from underneath. Patch cable runs are intra cabinet and so short that gravity pulling the cables out the plugs isn't a issue.

                      Comment

                      • chris_j_hunter
                        Automated Home Legend
                        • Dec 2007
                        • 1713

                        #26
                        wonder if setting them a bit off flat (at 30deg, say) would work a touch better - as easy to krone, but a bit easier to see which is which when plugging-in ?
                        Our self-build - going further with HA...

                        Comment

                        • TimH
                          Automated Home Legend
                          • Feb 2004
                          • 509

                          #27
                          Originally posted by MrFluffy View Post
                          They face down as it goes, because the whole structured cabling comes from upstairs in the closed off closet proper, so the cables run straight into the krone area on the top of the panels, and the patch cables plug in from underneath. Patch cable runs are intra cabinet and so short that gravity pulling the cables out the plugs isn't a issue.
                          Cool, glad you've got it covered (excuse the pun... )

                          Tim.
                          My Flickr Photos

                          Comment

                          • TimH
                            Automated Home Legend
                            • Feb 2004
                            • 509

                            #28
                            Originally posted by chris_j_hunter View Post
                            wonder if setting them a bit off flat (at 30deg, say) would work a touch better - as easy to krone, but a bit easier to see which is which when plugging-in ?
                            I've always punched-down with the panel out of the rack. It's a bit cramped and fiddly to get the cable presented properly and punchdown with the patch panel already installed.

                            I watched a pro do it where he prep'd the cables for all 24 ports first, then went over and punched them down very quickly - I've never been able to keep one cable in place long enough, never mind all 24 !

                            Cheers,

                            Tim.
                            My Flickr Photos

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