Conduit / trunking for outside use

[JoeJoe]

Looking for a visually pleasing solution for running several Cat5e cables (say 5) from downstairs (below ground floor) to the attic so that they can then be dropped to the upstairs rooms.

Problem is that all external walls have cavity insulation, so can't run the cables there, and also hate internal trunking...

Gable end is well hidden from view, so thinking about perhaps attaching some trunking/conduit to the outside wall to run them inside - something in the order of 4 metres or so.

I want to keep the cables as protected from the elements as possible. Any suggestion as to what to use? How would I cap the top/bottom for example?

Online supplier preferred (screwfix/Toolstation/TLC/etc).

many thanks.

[Jeremy Nicoll - news posts]

You could possibly cable-tie the cables to drainpipes.

Is there any real need? It might be cheaper just to plan on replacing them if & when it's necessary. Or use cat5e that's meant for outside use.

You could mount plastic downpipes on the outside of the building?

[fred]

In article , JoeJoe writes

Pls excuse a lateral solution, consider running a single Cat5e internally instead and put a gigabit switch in the loft to do the fanning out to the bedrooms. You can hide a single vertical cable behind curtains, in a corner or in a shallow groove cut in plaster (fill and paper over for an invisible repair).

Gigabit as it will stop the single line being a congestion point. You'll need another gigabit switch at the source too but as shown in a recent thread they're cheap as chips, about 15quid a pop atm (my local chippie's quite steep).

[Dave Liquorice]

Sounds like a modern house with internal soil stack, which is probably boxed in...

A bit of 25mm sq trunking in a corner painted/papered the same as the walls "disappears". You may even be able to find a position where it is hidden by drapes or doors most of the time. Remember you have a floor void as well so don't have to go from floor slab to roof space in one single vertical run.

If you don't like internal trunking how are you going to do the drops into the upstairs rooms?

[Andrew Gabriel]

That does limit you to running ethernet across the interconnect. I also run the phone lines and house temperature monitoring over the Cat5e cabling.

[JoeJoe]

Had a big extension done several years ago, so internal stack runs from ground to 1st floor where it terminates under the floor tiles... ;-(

Honestly, I thought about every possible solution, and this is the best I could come up with. Building is very much non-standard, so no obvious and simple solution - plenty solid floors/tiled-floor, etc.

Ceiling to floor wardrobes, so will run it down inside and then crawl along the eaves and run it to the exact location ...