How to Install Cat6 Cable
One reason why so many homes have gone to Wi-Fi is that its easier than running wired Ethernet. The trade-off for not having wall plates is that you lose some degree of performance and stability, which is why Category 6 is still popular.
Whats Different About Cat6 Cable?
Every grade of Ethernet has brought with it more stringent requirements for cabling, and Category 6 is no exception to the rule. Ethernet networks are designed around the use of twisted pair copper wiring that terminates in an RJ45 modular jack. The original Cat 3 implementation was designed around unshielded twisted pair and rated for 10 Mbps at 16 MHz; Cat 6 can be either shielded or unshielded and can support up to 10 Gbps at 250 MHz for short runs. In order to deal with this thousandfold increase in speed, there were some internal changes as well.
- Active Pairs: Unlike the earliest generations, Category 6 uses all four pairs to transmit data instead of just two.
- Spline: Many Category 6 cables feature a plastic spline down the middle, separating the pairs and reducing crosstalk.
Installing Category 6
When youre setting up your runs you need to do somewhat more than just drop a wall jack every few feet. There are a number of decisions you need to make before installing keystone jacks, including how many ports and plugs you want. You also want to know how often you intend to change your network before selecting the right Commscope outlets and wall plates. Some of the features you need to consider are:
- Ports: Each wall plate can support a number of ports, up to eight on many products. You also dont have to limit yourself to the same keystones in each port, so you can easily mix RJ45 with RJ11 and other types of port in the same plate.
- Cable Type: When doing in-wall, under floor, or in-ceiling installations you want to mount plenum-grade cable in all your runs so as to reduce the chance of fire.
Using Ethernet
Do be aware that with some plugs there are limits to how many times you can safely insert them in the jack, but this number is usually high enough that its rarely an issue. You may also want to set up a series of Commscope wall plates in different colors for different grades, such as white for Category 6 and ivory for Cat6E as they support different speeds at different lengths. Its always easier to set up your network with higher grade cable from the beginning than to rip out Category 3 so that you can get the network speed you need.
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