Running Cat 7 on Flat Roof

[faucetguru]

Looking for the right ethernet cord to run on top of roof. I plan on putting it in 1/2 or 1" pvc pipe to protect from weather/heat. Can you recommend a proper cable, I don't think I need direct burial since its not going under ground. Also, there are so many choices, I bought some cheap stuff on Amazon before and having to replace it now since my speeds have dropped in half due to bad cable. The run is about 300 ft. Should I get one long cord or hook a couple shorter ones together using a coupler? I have 200mbps internet speeds.

 

[bill001g]

You want one long continuous run. A coupler will add just a little resistance and reduce the distance you can go just a bit. At 300ft you are close to the 100 meter limit.

Pretty much any cable will work since you are going to run it inside PVC pipe. I would go with cat5e unless you just want cat7. Cat7 is used for 10g connections it provides no benefit for most home users who only have 1g ports. Since you are running it in conduit if you ever needed 10g in the future you could pull out the 5e and run cat7. The price is likely to come down along with the cost of 10g ports in equipment.

Mostly buy your cable from a known reputable vendor. The big one to watch out for is CCA cable that you find on amazon and ebay ...especially the stuff directly shipped from china. This cable is not certified but they get around this by saying cat5e or cat7 without saying eia/tia which is the indicator they paid for certified cable. Most good cables say they eia/tia certified and are solid copper.

If you want a brand of cable you can look for belden it is some of the best on the market but it is hard to find unless you are going to buy a whole box of it.

When you get the cable test is in the same room before you install it. That way you can easily return it without the hassle of pulling in out of the conduit.

 

[kanewolf]

Leave a pull string in the conduit also. You never know when you may want another cable. If you use the pull string (I like mason's line) then pull the cable and a new pull string through the conduit. Use pulling elbows on the ends if you can.

 

[boosted1g]

I would go ahead and use outdoor/burial grade cable as it is not that much more expensive, this will add that extra layer of protection against heat or if you don't have your conduit completely sealed. Monoprice.com sells some eia certified cable at good prices.

As others have pointed out, use a pull string in the conduit and there is zero reason to spend the money on cat7 when cat5e is more then sufficient for most home owners. If you really really want to go future proof for 10gbps connection then get Cat6a.

Also make sure your run is at 300ft or less because that is the limit of Ethernet cable and you start having degraded signal after that point

 

[Walker_1]

I would go ahead and use outdoor/burial grade cable as it is not that much more expensive, this will add that extra layer of protection against heat or if you don't have your conduit completely sealed. Monoprice.com sells some eia certified cable at good prices.

As others have pointed out, use a pull string in the conduit and there is zero reason to spend the money on cat7 when cat5e is more then sufficient for most home owners. If you really really want to go future proof for 10gbps connection then get Cat6a.

Also make sure your run is at 300ft or less because that is the limit of Ethernet cable and you start having degraded signal after that point

Not only make sure that it can withstand heat but also solar radiation. That could be a big factor. of course you could just run it through attic space and then you would also travel a shorter distance, unless of course you are on the roof. Also if you run it inside you could create an outlet off of power cables and add a signal strengthener if you go over the limit.