TV Coax Sharing Conduit: AC or EtherNet?

Got two conduits going out to the garden shed: one for AC, the other for Ethernet.

Now I want to run coax for a TV antenna out there so that I can mount the antenna on the wall of the garden shed and route the signal back to the house (making it basically trivial to make adjustments to the antenna - as opposed to having to climb up on to the roof of the house).

Which conduit would you choose to share the coax with: AC or Ethernet?

FWIW, it is not out of the question to retire the Ethernet and dedicate the conduit to the coax - because I put that conduit in before discovering radio links like Ubiquiti's NanoStation Loco M5

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which I now have some experience with in another application.

I'd just do that - except it involves laying out $150 for a set of those devices.

Reply to
(PeteCresswell)
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IIRC, AC and COAX are supposed to be separated by 2 inches.

Ethernet is also a potential problem due to exposure to lightning strikes. Consider running optical fiber to bridge buildings. Or, protect the ethernet drop accordingly.

Reply to
Don Y

Per Bob F:

Oops.... So much for my plan to put a grounding rod in at the shed.

But it seems like there has to be a ground somewhere for something metal sticking up into the air, right?

Reply to
(PeteCresswell)

Per Don Y:

OK, now MakOlber's comment is starting to soak in.

Since I know nothing about fiber - but have experience with those $150 radio links described previously - it sounds like I am going to retire the Ethernet and dedicate that conduit to coax.

The remaining question seems to be grounding.

Reply to
(PeteCresswell)

I doubt the code would allow the AC line to share a conduit wih anything. If that was not the probelm, I would not have any problem with the coax and AC in the same coax as far as the signals go.

Run it with the ethernet. Ground the antenna coax where it comes down to the ground. Unless the TV antenna is over 30 feet or so you probably will not have any lightning problems , especially if it is shadowed by trees or electrical lines.

Reply to
Ralph Mowery

I would keep the low voltage stuff together (ethernet and coax).

Steve

Reply to
Steve Stone

Run the coax with the ethernet. It may be possible to put it in a "duct" with AC "cables" but not with "conductors" in a "conduit". I doubt interference would ever be a problem but you would have code issues. As for your lightning protection, you do want an electrode at the shed/antenna and that should be bonded to the electrode at the house. Driving 2 isolated rods is just asking for trouble. Use a ground block on the coax at the entrance to the house and surge protection at the TVs. It is best if this entrance is at the same place where the power comes into the house so you can use short conductors to the ground electrode. In Florida it is not unusual to see "drain" wires connecting the frames of ethernet equipment on both ends of the ethernet cable along with ferrite beads on the ethernet cables when you are going to another building.

You quickly find out "ground voltage" is not the same everywhere. Ground shift in a lightning event can be very large, You want to mitigate that with bonding.

Reply to
gfretwell

What sort of "content" are you relying on the coax to deliver? Can you, instead, use a digital link and push "data" and media (for which you were hoping to use the coax) down the same "data link"? I've wired the house so I can deliver all "services" (phone, video, audio, data) down one set of "network" cables instead of relying on a specific cable for a specific use.

Reply to
Don Y

Per Don Y:

OTA digital television.

Now that you have said it, I *could* move my SiliconDust HD Homerun tuners out to the shed and let Ethernet do the rest - since I almost never watch television in realtime; almost always watch the recording even it it's only a couple minutes behind.

We already have an antenna on the house roof - it's just that it does not do channel 6 very well.

The plan was to replace that antenna with one that is up to the task. TV Fool said to use a "Small" antenna. I disregarded that and got "Medium".... worked OK for a couple weeks, but then channel 12 started dropping out and I ordered a "Large" antenna.

Little did I know.... "Large" turned out to be more like "Humongous" - as in 32# and 11 x 7 feet.

My thinking is that such a large antenna is better left on the shed because it's size/weight/wind resistance seem to ask for aiming issues after a good storm and I can handle that myself with it on the side of the garden shed - just walk out and twiddle it until my tablet shows the right numbers - whereas I'd have to hire somebody to climb up on the roof of the house (money and turnaround time...Not to mention the communication issues while they're up on the roof and I'm down on the ground looking at the numbers....).

Leave the big boy on the shed, let the rooftop feed the TVs directly and live with channel 6 not being that wonderful.... Definitely possibility there.

Only thing left to obsess about is how the HD Homerun tuners will tolerate single digit temps in the dead of winter.

Reply to
(PeteCresswell)

In my case, I ran two "feeds" for everything:

- two POTS lines

- two CATV

- two "rooftop" antenna (TV and radio)

- two broadband into the "equipment closet". There, located "converters" to get everything to a digital form that could be "served" wherever needed. For TV, a pair of (dual tuner) HD HomeRun's.

Network switch is also located in that "closet" so each "converter" can have a dedicated line into the switch -- no foreseeable bandwidth issues AND keeps all that kit hidden so it's not cluttering up the place.

Reply to
Don Y

Per Don Y:

I am warming up to this idea.

The one loose end is the HD HomeRun's tolerance for single-digit temperatures.

Just posted to Silicon Dust's forum, so I should have an answer within a day or two max.

Reply to
(PeteCresswell)

I got tired of seeing all sorts of "bits of kit" around the house: DVD players, cordless phones, STB's, mini-stereos, bookshelf speakers, etc. Move all of the things that are "user interfaces" (e.g., a DVD player needs to present the user with a TRAY into which to place the DVD plus a *remote* with which to control the player) out of the way and just concentrate on "content".

Dunno. In my case, it's in "living space". And, single digits are pretty rare, here -- more like *triple* digits! :-/

Please post back their response!

Reply to
Don Y

Your decision seems premature. Why not run the new line in your conduit with the ethernet and see how they both work at the same time.

I predict they will both work fine and spending 150 will be a waste of

150. In addition wired connections are more reliable and often faster than wireless, even when the wireless specs allow for a maximum that is just as fast as wired. Maximum is not always (rarely?) achieved.
Reply to
micky

Worst case, put the HDHomeRun in an insulated picnic cooler...maybe throw in a small night light for added heat.

Reply to
Jack

From what I see, it depends on what you mean by working fine. The focus is on the negative possibilities from using Ethernet due to a 5 sigma event, not everyday operation. In that case, you wouldn't see that it's not fine until it's too late. But if it were me, I agree I'd just use a wired connection and properly protect it from lightning. That is assuming it can be easily pulled. If you had to run new conduit, then it would be a different story. There are already cables running into the typical house, eg AC, phone, cable, and we live with that.

Reply to
trader_4

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