Home Renovation/Extension - Wifi Network

antseanoifig · 07-01-2022 4:53pm #1

We are a couple of weeks away from going to tender on a complete renovation and extension of our home. Going from say 95sqm to approx 140sqm.

With that we have been finalising our electrical plan. Any suggestions on how best to utilise our FTTH? Currently it's just a router at one gable end of the house and doesn't quite reach the entire home, partly due to it's 1920 structure. This is obviously now the time to rectify that as we rewire and plan for the future. The plan now just shows cat6 with network points in key locations.

In the past I considered myself au fait with what is needed and best practice but a little less so these days as the years go by. Mesh system the best option here?

Any advice or guidance appreciated!

MarkR · 07-01-2022 5:04pm

If you have cat6 cable run through to the main points of the house, you're pretty much covered. FTTH comes in at one place, connect that to your router, and router into cat6. The cat6, does it go straight from an ethernet port to an ethernet port, or does it all meet up in a cabinet somewhere?

Anyway, mesh routers connected by a wired backbone would be best.

antseanoifig · 07-01-2022 5:10pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118434340#Comment_118434340

Right now it's just port to port as per the spec we went with on the draft. I wasn't too sure of benefits of it meeting back in a cabinet at relatively small scale?

MarkR · 07-01-2022 5:17pm

Cabinet can be a tidy place to house a modem, networked hard drive, CCTV etc, but those are only "nice to haves". Point to point would do fine for most usage. Wherever wires are run, it would be useful to have them in a channel so that they could be replaced if required. I've an antennae cable in a wall here next to me that was put in with the house about 30 years ago. Slim chance of getting anything else in there though!

heavydawson · 07-01-2022 5:30pm

Put Cat6 to the ceiling and/or a conveniently high wall location. I have Cat6 in every room in the house (built 7 years ago), but hadn't considered the use of PoE access points , which are more conveniently placed away from electrical outlets. If you can get your hands on Cat8 cable (https://www.cablesandkits.com/learning-center/what-are-cat8-ethernet-cables) use that instead. Will future-proof you up to 40gbps (and beyond if the runs are short)

antseanoifig · 07-01-2022 5:30pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118434419#Comment_118434419

I get you yes. I think it'll probably stay as a would be nice to have 😃

Good shout on the access. We've planned service channels throughout so shouldn't be too big a job in the future to pull out anything we need to!

Now to get a look at suitable mesh routers. Thanks for the help!

dam099 · 07-01-2022 5:40pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118434419#Comment_118434419

If by point to point the OP means a ring configuration where one point goes from the back of it onto the next then that is not a good idea at all.

Bring all points back to a central location, it doesn't need to be a fancy cabinet but a central point where all points can be plugged into a cheap switch or patch panel & switch combination is much more desirable.

Having conduit to future proof is a good idea however if it can be facilitated.

babelfish1990 · 07-01-2022 6:36pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118434500#Comment_118434500

You only should have one router in your network. The other WiFi devices should be configured as passive Access Points. You don't actually need "Mesh" devices if you have Cat 6, since "mesh" refers to use of WiFi for backhaul - but mesh devices also allow wired backhaul, so if you buy mesh devices you should still be able to wire them. I would strongly recommend going with POE access points (eg Ubiquiti), as it avoids the need for providing power at each access point, and you can conceal the Access Points neatly in the optimum positions for coverage. You really should try to get all your cables back to a hub - as you can power everything from there, and add a small UPS to keep everything going during power cuts (more likely to be an issue if in a rural area). Remember to include some Ethernet cabling for POE CCTV cameras, and possibly an outdoor WiFi access point or two, if you want coverage in the garden. If you are not going for POE, your ISP may offer mesh devices that work in tandem with your ISP router (eg Eir offer Smart WiFi Hubs). This avoids the need to provide an additional access point covering the area near your hub. You are likely to need a small Ethernet Switch at your hub to feed all the cables. If you go with a 3rd party mesh or POE, remember to switch off the WiFi in your ISP router, and add another node to cover the area near your hub.

antseanoifig · 10-01-2022 3:49pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118434910#Comment_118434910

Okay thanks. Think I have an understanding of this. Access points that are POE rather than mesh hubs.

Where our central point is might prove a challenge. We currently have the ONT at our gable which is obviously at the end of the house. Would there be any loss if we ran cable from this up into the attic and down into a cabinet as a central location?