Building a new home in 2013. The future is WiFi, right?

[powers]

I'm in the process of buying a new home that has yet to be constructed, and I'm trying to figure out what makes sense in today's world in terms of making sure my home is properly wired and setup for the next 20 years. I have looked at the Wiring Your Home series, and it feels a little outdated to me, with todays wireless advances and technology improvements.

I'm of the belief that connecting (most) everything over WiFi is the future, and that it will all be controllable through devices like the iPhone. We already see the beginnings of that with the Nest thermostat, Sonos for audio, and the Philips Hue for lighting. I'm also of the belief that complex systems that need special installers (Lutron, Crestron, etc.) will be destroyed as this new ecosystem that is significantly cheaper, easier-to-use, and has a deeper feature set that also looks current (and can easily be switched out when the next big thing comes) begins to take hold.

With that said, I still believe that there is some critical wiring infrastructure that I still need. Specifically, I don't see a good way to get around coax for basic cable/satellite TV services, wired Cat5e to at least the most important locations of the house (the Entertainment center, anywhere a desktop computer might go, although part of me just wants to have all systems on WiFI), and speaker wire (maybe) for surround sound in the living room for surround sound (and even this, I wish I could have a great wireless solution, but we're probably still a ways out from this).

Anyone else with me on this? Is there anything critical I'm missing (security system wiring?) that I really need to make sure I have?

 

[apostolakisl]

It may be that everything will be wif in the future, but I doubt it. It is my belief that there will always be a wired solution that is 10x (or more) faster than the fastest wifi of the day. And I also believe that there will always be the next generation of technology that needs that extra bandwidth. While you can wifi your HD movies with todays technology, can you do the new super HD with 4x the bandwidth on wifi? When wifi can handle the new 4x format, will there be a newer format that is 4 or 10x that? Who knows.

As I always say. Run conduit. It is future proof and it is cheap. The worst that happens is that you have a few hundred dollars of conduit and a days work wasted.

 

[JonW]

Ditto what Lou says. Hardwire anything you can and then use wireless for the mobile devices.

I couldn't imagine all my AV items trying to utilize the available WiFi bandwidth simultaneously.

All the devices in my AV rack below have hardwired ethernet on them:
- Tivo Premiere
- Tivo HD
- Tivo Stream
- VZ DVR
- Popcorn Hour
- Apple TV
- PS3
- Wii
- Pronto RFX9600 serial/IR extender

This list doesn't include the server, IP cameras or any automation controllers that are also hardwired.

I keep WiFi limited the the laptops, iPads and iPhones. Everything else is hardwired. If it's not mobile, why not have it hardwired?

 

[HardAuto]

You are correct about control going wifi being the future. However, sending video and audio signals is always best to be hard wired. You can send virtually anything with a CAT6 cable or multiple CAT6 in conjuction with hardware that goes on both ends. Run speaker cable anywhere you think you'll want speakers. Coax cables are still needed where you're going to have cable/sat boxes unless you have the option whereby your provider like Uverse offers wireless boxes. Planning is key, layout your house in something like MS Visio. Bulk CAT6 spools aren't that expensive, I'd run several lines to each zone to keep it future proof. Yes as Lou as mentioned, conduit is highly recommended.

If you'd like to see some examples, check out http://hardauto.com/learn.aspx

Thanks.

 

[HardAuto]

You are correct about control going wifi being the future. However, sending video and audio signals is always best to be hard wired. You can send virtually anything with a CAT6 cable or multiple CAT6 in conjuction with hardware that goes on both ends. Run speaker cable anywhere you think you'll want speakers. Coax cables are still needed where you're going to have cable/sat boxes unless you have the option whereby your provider like Uverse offers wireless boxes. Planning is key, layout your house in something like MS Visio. Bulk CAT6 spools aren't that expensive, I'd run several lines to each zone to keep it future proof. Yes as Lou as mentioned, conduit is highly recommended.

If you'd like to see some examples, check out http://hardauto.com/learn.aspx

Thanks.

 

[Del91574]

You're not going to get away from copper, period. Wifi has it's place, however it's never going to fit the bill compared to a full hardwired solution. Wifi is only going to be the solution where hardwired isn't practical or the item is likely to require portability.

While you can do a lot with category cable, it's not a perfect solution for some specific applications, no matter what hardware you put on each end.

The fact of the matter is as more hardware becomes "networked" it's going to become more and more like an enterprise style network to get the sort of performance that'll work in an acceptable manner for most people. There's only so much bandwidth and frequencies available for use.

 

[linuxha]

I agree with Cocoonut, my experience as a network engineer is that it's wired to the 'last mile' then you can have WiFi but if the device is stationary and depends on bandwidth (such as the DVR or server) then wire it. With my all neighbors using the same frequencies and all the WiFi devices (tablets, laptops, phones, cameras, printers, etc.) there ends up being very little usable bandwidth (also 802.11b stomps on 802.11g unless you lock the g devices to g). I tend toward stationary devices getting wired and mobile devices being WiFi.

 

[wuench]

WiFi for Network is fine, WiMAX will be here soon. You may be able to run things like video over it with hit or miss results. There is also WirelessHD in some devices today, which is made for running video.

Some things you mention like the Phillips bulbs are ok for lamps, but you have to power them for them to receive a signal which means you are going to have to leave your switches on. So if some guest or one of your kids, comes along and turns the switch off, it stops working. So it is really a niche product and too far removed from the norm to take off. Someone would need to create a wifi switch and the fact that someone hasn't at this point may be a patent issue. The Nest thermostats look great, but they are cloud based and do not have an open API. If they would open it and start working with some vendors on integration it would probably gain wider acceptance in the HA industry as well.

So yes, wireless is the future, but we aren't quite there yet with availability and stability, but maybe in 3-5 years our jacks will be collecting dust...IMHO (And then in 10-15 years we can talk about wireless power distribution and losing our outlets... No more plugging in your vacuum )

I would say if you intend to rely on Wifi for everything that you put a little more engineering effort into it than just standing up an access point purchased from best buy. Depending on the size of your house and floorplan you may want to look at something more along the lines of the Ubiquity Unifi solution.

 

[wkearney99]

Wire will always work, barring physical damage. And there's so much CAT5 or 6 installed that it's pretty much guaranteed to be part of whatever develops in the future. Even coax refuses to die, what with MOCA adapters.

Don't forget, wireless is also at the mercy of potential interference, deliberate or accidental. You don't always know what might get installed later, or what someone might do maliciously. That and the potential security and/or privacy risks. What might be secure today is one hacker's-ingenuity-with-a-GPU step away from being wide-open.

So, no, I would never build any new space without pulling wire. We're building a new house and I plan on having at least three CAT6 and 1 coax drop in every place likely to ever need connectivity. That along with wiring for audio distribution (control and speakers), security system and automated window shades. Better to have it in there, where it can be fished out later, instead of later having to do the home-run pulls all the way back.

We'll use wifi for portable devices, but anything that can be hard wired, will be.

Wire is cheap, especially when the walls are already open. Pulling it later adds a lot of cost.

 

[JimS]

Wkearney99 brings up a good point - don't forget about security wiring and wiring for blinds, etc. I have a couple blinds that are battery powered. It works ok and I only have to replace batteries about once a year but I wish I had run wire for them. As I get older getting a ladder out to get to them will be less and less attractive.

I agree with all the comments about wire being the best, being easy to put in when the walls are open, and conduits being a good idea to allow adding wire later if (when) it is needed.

 

[Del91574]

In addition to copper, honestly the best way to go is to pull a single structured cable to each location. 2 RG6 QS, 2 Category cables and 2 fiber....the point being is while some of the other copper cables may become less than desirable, you're never going to exceed the abilities of the fiber in your lifetime by most likelyhoods.

While the cost outlay for components stings a little upfront, the performance of a fiber based setup far exceeds the capabilites of most hardware that is available on the consumer market and gives enough headroom to add future technologies onto it, not to mention if done properly, helps to mitigate another source for ground loops and surges.

 

[tmbrown97]

Wire will always work, barring physical damage. And there's so much CAT5 or 6 installed that it's pretty much guaranteed to be part of whatever develops in the future. Even coax refuses to die, what with MOCA adapters.

This is something I always like to point out - the market will follow the largest opportunity, which is turning to Cat5/6 everywhere.

Wireless is great, and it's good to consider the fact that it's getting more popular. That said, if I were building a new house, I'd plan for 2-4 ceiling mounted WAP's distributed through the home with the power turned down a little bit - that way device density is lower and coverage can be greater. That said, I'd never rely on it for any large movement of data. And honestly, I only use it where portability matters - on the laptops and tablets and sony-dash-type devices. Even for the laptops, if I need to do a large backup or file transer, I'll still seek out a wire.

And as others have said, wired for security is the best way to go; quality contacts are hassle free and will last for decades without a second thought about interference, battery life, etc.

 

[apostolakisl]

I would not pull structured wire to all your locations.

Reasons:
1) Cost is quite high
2) You are likely to use very little of it
3) You still may not end up with what you need.
4) You have a massive bundle of wire/fiber to deal with at your central location
5) No allowance for future technology

Conduit:
1) Cheap
2) Future proof (there is the small chance that some future technology doesn't fit in the conduit, but unlikely)
3) You only pull what you need when you need it means no extra wires to terminate and a whole lot less money.
4) Only slightly harder to pull than structured wiring, and in some instances easier.

 

[Del91574]

The price of structured cabling compared to conduit is very competitive in an academic sense, many times cheaper when you consider labor and time involved and if you're pulling multiple runs of Cat X to a location. Price out a composite cable with fiber vs. the individual cables...pretty much the same cost overall. When you price out installing conduit only from a central location to your individual areas while maintaining the number of bends or bend radius, it's just not feizable for construction. Point to point wiring or utility space to utility space, sure, but from a central location to every location you could foresee needing a cable, it's not a practical solution, not to mention, going to take longer and cost more than pulling in appropriate cabling to begin with in 90% of the applications out there.

For networking applications, you can't beat it and it's doubtful you'd ever see a return on conduit, let alone use it. In the case of audio and video, that's a different animal altogether and what gets pulled to it is far different. Distribuing video and the ever changing methods and standards, not to mention hardware, different ballgame.

As far as dealing with a large bundle of cable, it's no different than the trough or enclosures that would be needed to terminate all the conduit runs. If you're prewiring, the cost and amount of cable you're pulling is really insignificant compared to each stick of conduit or reel of ENT and fittings you'd have to purchase. I'm not going to factor in EMT, since that's usually out of the realm of DIY. If your AHJs allow for unsealed, unterminated conduits in new construction, between floors and locations, more power to you, but it's contrary to every building code and fire code out there for the spread of smoke and flame.

The issue with conduit in residential is always going to be the bends, as you're limited to 4 maximum, unless you do sweeps, Other than that, you're running innerduct or ENT, you stil need a place to terminate the runs, otherwise you're going to have as big of, if not worse, a mess compared to the cabling itself.

You don't need to terminate what's not connected. Leave it in a rack, can, trough or what have you until you need it.

 

[apostolakisl]

The price of structured cabling compared to conduit is very competitive in an academic sense, many times cheaper when you consider labor and time involved and if you're pulling multiple runs of Cat X to a location. Price out a composite cable with fiber vs. the individual cables...pretty much the same cost overall. When you price out installing conduit only from a central location to your individual areas while maintaining the number of bends or bend radius, it's just not feizable for construction. Point to point wiring or utility space to utility space, sure, but from a central location to every location you could foresee needing a cable, it's not a practical solution, not to mention, going to take longer and cost more than pulling in appropriate cabling to begin with in 90% of the applications out there.

For networking applications, you can't beat it and it's doubtful you'd ever see a return on conduit, let alone use it. In the case of audio and video, that's a different animal altogether and what gets pulled to it is far different. Distribuing video and the ever changing methods and standards, not to mention hardware, different ballgame.

As far as dealing with a large bundle of cable, it's no different than the trough or enclosures that would be needed to terminate all the conduit runs. If you're prewiring, the cost and amount of cable you're pulling is really insignificant compared to each stick of conduit or reel of ENT and fittings you'd have to purchase. I'm not going to factor in EMT, since that's usually out of the realm of DIY. If your AHJs allow for unsealed, unterminated conduits in new construction, between floors and locations, more power to you, but it's contrary to every building code and fire code out there for the spread of smoke and flame.

The issue with conduit in residential is always going to be the bends, as you're limited to 4 maximum, unless you do sweeps, Other than that, you're running innerduct or ENT, you stil need a place to terminate the runs, otherwise you're going to have as big of, if not worse, a mess compared to the cabling itself.

You don't need to terminate what's not connected. Leave it in a rack, can, trough or what have you until you need it.

- Minimum $1 per foot of the double cat/double fiber/double coax.
- Conduit is 20 cents per foot

You do not home run the conduit. You run conduit from your point of use to an accessible space (i.e. attic/crawl space). So, not only is it 1/5 the price (or less), but you use about 1/5 as much of it. There generally is only one 90 sweep needed to transition at the top/bottom of the wall into the attic/crawl space. Rarely you may need two or three to get some of the more tricky spots into attic/crawl space. It is rare that a 90 sweep doesn't fit.

Conduit is the standard in office settings to the point where it is probably 99.99%. The conduit runs up the wall into the ceiling space where a single sweep 90 turns it horizontal above the drop ceiling. This is exactly how you do it in the home except you have an attic above or crawl space/open basement below. I think you will find that in most rooms of your house this is available. Even in a 2 story home built on slab, typically walls are stacked so you can keep going straight up. Or you can sweep 90 into the joist space. This is particularly easy to do in homes built with truss style joists since you can go at most any angle across the ceiling.

It is very easy to do. It does not take more time. It likely will take less time since you quit as soon as you get to your accessible space rather than having to keep pulling to the home location. In my home, I still have about 1/2 of my conduits empty. If I had home runned the structured wires to all of those locations that would have been thousands of dollars worth of wire sitting unused as compared to like $100 of conduit.

Then consider that the vast majority of the conduit I am using has 1 or 2 cat5's in them. That is about 12-25 cents per foot as compared to over $1 for the other wire.

Check out your house. Think of every location you might ever want a wire for anything low voltage. Make sure to include all the possible furniture locations and what not. In my house I ran a conduit for low voltage stuff to at least 2 locations in each room. Figure that each drop costs you between $2 and $5 worth of conduit. Now figure that homerunning structured wire to each of those locations. I think you will find that each drop costs you at least $40.