Wiring Analysis Paralysis

Ok gents / experts....
 
I need someone to hold my hand....because im getting blind reviewing wire types....
 
Here is the deal...New Home Wiring the House...
 
Here is what ive done... 
1) Cat 6 - Everywhere (Cable Matters - 4000') 
2) Speaker Wire 14/2 (Monster 1500') 
 
Here is where my challenges are 
1) 22/4 Cable - (For Security / Alarm) -
a) Can someone tell me what's better? Stranded vs. Solid 
b) unshielded vs. shielded
c) CMR/CMP/CMX/FPLR? Im assuming these are certification codes. Do they all matter? 
 
 
2) Why type of RG6 cable?  What does all this crap mean? and does it matter? The price differences on some of this stuff is 5x difference. 
a) Impedence level
b) Outside diameter
c) Capacitance (pF/Ft)
d) Flexfoil Shield (1 vs.2) 
 
 

Example: 
Coaxial Cable, Cable Type RG6/U, Conductor Size 18 AWG, Impedance 75 Ohms, Spool/Coil Length 500 Ft, Nominal Outside Dia 0.275 In, Capacitance 16 pF/Ft, Jacket Type PVC, Color Black, Shielding 100% Flexfoil Shield, 60% Aluminum Braid
Shielding : 100% Flexfoil, 60% Aluminum Braid

 
 
3) CL2 Thermostat Cable?
a) Does this have to be a specific type of cable?  or can we just use the 22/4 referenced above? 
 
and can someone just please tell me to buy X brand thats high quality/wont break... at a reasonable price... that the electrician wont say that doesn't meet code, i wont get pissed off and we all live happily ever after... :)
 
...  My theory is it goes in once (behind the walls) make it last a while....
 
All help appreciated... 
And a bonus question...(btw, all of this gets tied back to a HAI OmniPro2 and i live in SC if anyone knows about the LV code here)
 
1) Somfy Shades... 22/4? Cat6? AC or DC Power? or a combination of both? 
 
You guys are great!  Thanks! 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
For security you will want 22/2 for non powered devices (door/window sensors, etc) and 22/4 for powered devices (motions, glass breaks, etc).  Stranded vs. solid is a matter of personal preference.  Stranded is more flexible, but harder to terminate.  Typically CMR is riser (walls) CMP is Plenum (ducts, etc).  You do not need CMP for residential, which is usually more expensive.  I am not sure about the others.  I would say buy the least expensive rated.
 
I think, typically for RG6 the thing that matters most is the core, solid copper core or not.  
 
And I think thermostat wire is 18ga, like 18-4,5,6 depending on how man wires you need.
 
I installed fire alarm, sound, and security systems for a few years, as well as satellite systems...
 
 
Stranded wire is more flexible but solid wire is easier to get into those tiny contacts, especially when trying to put multiple wires into the same contact.  We always used solid for security and fire alarm systems.  If I recall correctly, the wire we used for audio was always stranded wire.
 
Shielded wires have a foil wrapper that prevents interference; we used shielded wire for audio related stuff like microphones and speakers.  This prevents interference or 'crosstalk' from other power and audio cables from distorting the audio signals.  In CAT5, CAT5e, and CAT6, the pairs of wires are 'twisted' together to prevent crosstalk between the pairs within the jacket. The twists in CAT6 are tighter which is one of the reasons that it is rated for higher speeds.
 
75-Ohm Shielded RG6 Coax with a Copper Core rated for 2GHz+ is pretty standard in the satellite industry, should work fine for anything you are doing.  Unless you are running your RG6 next to high voltage stuff, I see no reason why you would need 'Quad-Shielded' cable, and its a 'pain' to put connectors on.
 
I don't know anything about HVAC systems but it seems like if you pulled a wire with 8 conductors and only needed 4 or 6 conductors, you'd be fine.  If you pull a wire with 4 conductors and you need 6, then you'll be pulling more cable.
 
...v
 
For Somfy you'll need to decide if you want HV or LV and how you want to control it.  They offer serial, wireless, and contact control options.  You'll need to check their manual but I think the LV wire for them is also 18ga for power.
 
For HVAC you need to put it what it your system needs.  Never hurts to put in 8 conductors however.  I just had one of my rental properties AC go dead.  Turns out somehow one of the leads from the air handler to the compressor shorted.  I had 6 more strands to pick from and thus was able to fix the unit for zero cost and very minimal labor.
 
You'll need a minimum of 2 conductors for a simple outside compressor.  It is either on or off.  If it is a multi stage compress and/or heat pump, you need more.
 
For the inside unit, you'll want a minum of 4.  24vac, cool, heat, fan.  This is for a basic system.  Again, if you have multi stages, and other accessories, you need more.
 
Unless, you have a newer fancier system like a carrier infinity.  They use a data signal (rs-485 I think) for comm.  So you need 2 conductors for power and 2 for data, end of story.
 
But, frankly, I would just put in 8 conductors and be done with it probably forever.
 
And as far as coax, what are you using it for?  Coax is a dying wire in my opinion.  Cable system uses it to bring the main feed in, but once it hits the modem, after that you may be able to go IP to each TV (even wireless).  Not sure about Dish and DTV, I suppose they still are going with coax from the dish to each receiver.
 
For the thermostat, also run a Cat5 back to your OP2; it'll allow you to hook a serial tstat to your OP2 on top of the normal connections.
 
If you haven't purchased the wire yet.... http://www.monoprice.com   BEST place to buy wires, cables, TV mounts, etc.  It's all very high quality stuff at a fraction of the price you'd pay elsewhere.  I paid $72 each for 1000' spools of 23 gauge cat6, and all of it tested to spec after being punched down.  
 
Also, for audio, do some reading on using CAT6 for it.  The twisted pairs act as shielding.  I'm using it for Elk speakers right now.  Somewhere out there a guy has a site where he used a bunch of expensive test equipment to determine if it was usable for powering larger ceiling/wall speakers and long runs of line level audio, and it did better than the actual audio cable he tested in terms of interference/crosstalk.  
 
I also used CAT6 for all of my security sensors.  My reasoning was that I got it cheap (it's gone up in price a bit), and that I wanted to have the capability for ethernet to every location just in case security systems ever start using IP based sensors.  It gives me a lot of flexibility down the road also since I have 4 pair running to each location instead of just one. My city has NO code for low voltage wiring, and do not require inspections for it. So I can do this here. Your locality may be different.
 
Solid vs. stranded for security is subjective. Generally, if the cabling is permanent installed, it's of no consequence. The largest problem with solid is many don't know how to properly work with it, they nick it or crimp it under terminals that cause it to break. Many picked stranded because it's easier to solder, however I don't see too many pros out there still soldering and maintaining high productivity, let alone increasing the possibility for a cold solder joint. Shielded generally is not needed, and in many cases isn't desired.
 
As stated, the listing is somewhat important, but plenum is not necessary in residential. The item is they need to be inwall rated and if fire alarm/CO is involved, then fire rated jackets are needed.
 
In the case of coax, QS vs. standard does make a difference, contrary to what was said, irregardless of the difficulty in installing connectors, which is generally alleviated by getting ones specifically for QS. The largest item is what the braid is made out of, overall shield and if the center conductor is copper or CCS. The next item is if the cable is swept for testing or not.

T-stat is always going to be recommended to have 18 AWG installed. Additional conductors for communications don't need to be that heavy, but the consideration of the controllable t-stat's technology will dictate what cabling is installed.
 
Category cable for alarm purposes is wasteful and it's very doubtful the devices will be IP enabled in our lifetime (less keypads). For contacts and other devices, it's 10X harder to work with and also more fragile than standard alarm cabling. A category cable will typically cost more than proper alarm cabling. Pay attention to how you pull the cable, that's the largest item that is forgotten, people don't home run rooms or individual doors on a lot of installs....I've made plenty of money partially rewiring houses that only had 5-6 zones when installing more robust equipment.
 
 
 
I don't know if I agree that it's wasteful.  I paid $72 per 1000ft for 23AWG CAT6.  It's up to $105 now.  But, at $72, it was way cheaper than I could get actual alarm wiring for.  
 
signal15 said:
I don't know if I agree that it's wasteful.  I paid $72 per 1000ft for 23AWG CAT6.  It's up to $105 now.  But, at $72, it was way cheaper than I could get actual alarm wiring for.  
 
Seeing as cat6 has 4 pair, depending on how you do it, it could be far cheaper than alarm cable, even if alarm wire were half the price.  4 pair means you can daisy chain around the house as many as 7 zones instead of running independent home runs.  Of course this means sharing the ground which you may not care to do, if so, you still get 4 zones out of one cable.  You would also save a lot of labor as it would almost certainly be less work to daisy chain the wire as opposed to pulling multiple separate wires.
 
I'm a big believer in stranded 22 gauge for security doors/windows and sensors. I'm also a big believer in ringing out your cable runs BEFORE drywall goes up, just in case you pulled a section a bit hard, or a staple/nail/whatever nicked a cable during the installation process.
 
My builder (track home) ran 22 gauge solid for security pre-wiring (could not run wire myself and this was standard to pre-wire for basic security) and literally pulled the cable apart somewhere during one run, managed to short two conductors in a second run, and forgot to drill through the door jambs in two runs.
 
Needless to say, I've become an expert at drywall repairs! ;)
 
The good news is none of my Cat5e runs were damaged!
 
Somfy shades: unless the shade is very large, DC power. 16/2 plus 22/4 to each shade will cover all control options.
 
CAT6 is available in 23 or 24AWG.  I bought the 23.  If I'm hooking up something that I think needs thicker wire, I just tie together multiple pairs.  One of the nice things about it is the fact that you can terminate it all on a 110 block.  All of my CAT6 is terminated at a 110 block, and from there it either goes to my Elk or to the back of a patch panel for ethernet jacks.  There are no stray wires just hanging there, because it's all punched down to the 110 block, even if it's not currently in use.
 
signal15 said:
CAT6 is available in 23 or 24AWG.  I bought the 23.  If I'm hooking up something that I think needs thicker wire, I just tie together multiple pairs.  One of the nice things about it is the fact that you can terminate it all on a 110 block.  All of my CAT6 is terminated at a 110 block, and from there it either goes to my Elk or to the back of a patch panel for ethernet jacks.  There are no stray wires just hanging there, because it's all punched down to the 110 block, even if it's not currently in use.
 
It's a little dicey splicing two wires together in parallel for higher amp needs.  The trouble is, if one wire looses connection, you wouldn't know it until the other wire failed, perhaps as a result of overheating and thus presenting a danger.
 
Lou Apo said:
It's a little dicey splicing two wires together in parallel for higher amp needs.  The trouble is, if one wire looses connection, you wouldn't know it until the other wire failed, perhaps as a result of overheating and thus presenting a danger.
The only thing I do it for is audio.  Thing like door strikes have thicker wires.
 
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