What happens when we want to use corrugated tubing conduits to run internet cables?
Ideally, we would have empty corrugated tubes to run the internet cable, but the usual reality is different.
The typical case is a house built 15, 20, or more years ago with an electrical installation from that era. You might find empty conduits or conduits dedicated only to the antenna and telephone, but that's usually not the case.
Typically, channels were made to run corrugated tubes containing electrical cables. If done correctly, there should be enough space in those tubes to run another cable (with a bit of skill and lubricant).
Corrugated tubing, electrical cables, and ethernet cable together? Penny wise, pound foolish.
Unfortunately, every day we are surprised by the amount of work carried out by "professionals" who, out of ignorance or not, casually disregarded regulations and ran cables in ways they shouldn't have.
Regulations explicitly prohibit electrical wiring and Ethernet cables from sharing conduits. Why is this? Because it is very inefficient and can create enough interference to disrupt connectivity. In addition to these problems, there are:
- Low network performance; contact oxidation and/or connection failure. Poorer conductivity, leading to transmission failure at Gb/s.
- Safety issues for people; due to overheating in the power supply.
- Legal liabilities for the installation of fraudulent cables. In the event of an accident, an insurance company would not approve it.
Electrical cables can only share conduits with fiber optic cables, as these are not made of conductive material and are immune to electromagnetism.
How to run cable through corrugated tubes?
If you've never run a cable through a conduit or corrugated tube, it might seem a bit complicated at first. This is something electricians are very practiced at.
To insert the cables, it's almost essential to get a cable pulling fish tape.
- a) Cable pulling fish tape
This tool consists of a long tube made of plastic or even fiberglass, with a loop at one end and a spring or similar with a small ball at the other end.
The procedure for inserting the fish tape is simple: open the junction box or switch, disconnect the cables, and tape the live ends to prevent accidents.
Simply turn off the house's electricity for a minute to perform this process.
- b) Insert the fish tape through the tube
Next, we insert the tip with the spring and ball and push firmly.
It's better to push as close to the tube's entrance as possible to gradually insert the fish tape with each push without bending it too much.
If you push too much, it might go in a bit further, but if you encounter an obstacle, it can bend, and then you'll have more trouble inserting it.
When the tip of the fish tape reaches a bend, you may notice it stops moving forward. Then you need to pull back a little, rotate the fish tape, and push again.
Repeat the process until you feel it start to go in again.
Now it will be a little harder to continue inserting the fish tape. If there's another bend, repeat the process...
In difficult cases, it is advisable to moisten the tip of the fish tape with dishwashing detergent, although specialized lubricating products also exist.
Once the fish tape has emerged from the other end of the tube, we will pass it almost entirely, leaving a good length at the opposite end, from which we were inserting it.
- b) Pull the cable from the other end
Now that the fish tape is through, it's time to tape the cable to the fish tape.
The tape should be tight enough to secure and join the connections and the cable, preventing it from coming loose when pulled. Don't skimp on electrical tape for this.
Pull carefully until it comes out the other side.
The cable is now through. It is advisable to leave some slack at each end, ensuring it doesn't bend or create excessive curves.
From here, we can reassemble the outlet plate and proceed to connect our POF devices.
Check the Plastic Optical Fiber Installation Options
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