Mass Labeling techniques

BaduFamily

BaduFamily

Active Member
We're in a remodel ( big remodel, one of those where the whole house is re-framed and 1/2 the foundation is replaced ) and I'm at the point of translating all my sketches and spreadsheets into a mass LV cable pulling festival.

I am wondering two things -

1) how folks have mass printed cable labels? For my offices I've always used a Brother labeler with flexible ID tape... but that's always been rather onesy-eighty. in this case I will have dozens and dozens of cables... and I don't want to be dorking around typing them into a labeler and running around. Also for 'quality control' I would rather have a good naming organization reflected from paper to labels to wall plates.

2) what kind of labels have served well for cable left in-wall. I don't want to use labels only to have them dry out in a couple of years.

this is for cat5, cat6, bonded coax, security and speaker runs


Thanks in advance!
 
You can buy labels designed for wires that are heatshrinkable. Me... I used what was accessible, but wrapped them with a small strip of clear packing tape. It protects the print and prevents the labels from falling off the cable. Started doing it on my A/V stuff years ago and everything is still like new.
 
Honestly, at the rough-in stage, I would just write on the cable jackets with a permanent marker. When you go to do your terminations you can do nice and pretty at that time.
 
I've seen Sharpie markings last 25 years and still be legible.

For me, when pulling wire, I often label the wires as I start to pull the bundle - and keep track of which number came from each box - I mark on them with a sharpie. After the pull is done, I mark the corresponding marks on the spool ends as I cut them. You can write on the box to keep track and cross off previous numbers as you go.

I don't worry about permanent labeling until I'm done and terminating - and then the labeling is done not on the cables, but on the patch panel and wall plate - and done to match a floorplan. As you're pulling you should be marking up a floorplan with what jacks go where - that's your master.

That's for large-scale cable runs - for a small residential, sharpie, wrapped vinyl labels from a Rhino labeler, or even shrink wrap - take way longer, but fit the more a****-retentive bunch as they're very permanent.
 
For smaller, I've seen and done sharpie for medium residential, if done neatly, they'll work fine. The fine point ones work even better.

I've never been a fan of number labelling, mainly because I've had to inherit jobs with number labelling and no rhyme or reason for the labels.

I would avoid the pre-printed label books. They work fine for a short period of time, but as they age, they either dry out or make a gummy mess over the cabling if any rework is done.

In a large scale wiring job, the labelling should be done throughout, if doing voice/data, each end of the cabling at terminations and honestly at the plate as well. We've use the heat shrink that fits in the Rhinos from Dymo to do mass labellings, but that is on very large scale jobs. Color coding is also a nice way to run, and we've tried to avoid the standard colors in our security side, such as avoid blue and white on category cables and even color code basic security such as doors/windows vs. powered devices. While not an option for most, Windy City Wire offers what they call "smartwire" which is color coding via jacket and striping/chaser colors, but usually won't come into play until an install reaches a certain size.

Tape, of any type would be on my "avoid" list because of the gummy factor over time, same with the write on/self-laminating mess stuff.
 
Go to an electrical wholesaler, and buy wire tags, I use heat shrinkable tags. If you dont have a printer (i assume you dont), you can buy an acid pen, which will etch the tags, and it will last for years. For single wires up to #10, use 187 tags, for cat5 etc, use 250 tags (thats the sizes of my tags), I use a Brady BMP71 printer. Though the tags are not really friendly for use as its a cartage. Id get tags for the TLS2200, they come on a roll.
 
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