Cat5 Voltage

jdeihs

I just wanted to see if anyone can tell me if there is a tester that can be used to determine if the voltage in cat 5/6 wiring is being affected by high voltage lines. I have a customer that has some issues and I think that the people that wired his home may have ran the low voltage lines a little to close to the romex. There are numerous testers available but I am not sure which one would be the best. I really do not want to cut a bunch of holes in the walls to determine if the lines are to close to romex and causing an issue. If anyone can offer any help it would be greatly apperciated. Thanks

mdshunk

Cat5e UTP is almost 100% resistant to voltages that exist in the home. There are BICSI standards on the distance, but there's no evidence anywhere on this planet that any coupling occurs at dwelling voltages. In a commercial occupancy, the possibility might exist.

Lift the connection at both ends and listen with your butt set.

alaska8515

What is the Cat5 being used for, phone, computer, video with boulans?

jdeihs

The Cat5 is being used for phones, data IR and volume controls.

GregS

I had faint hum on cat5 line that was run right parallel with an electrical line for about 12 metres through a basement. (no I didn't do the install)

I moved the cable over about 30cm and the hum on the line was gone.

There's other stupid things that _may_ affect it such as flourencent lights. Any low voltage line should avoid those.

ABLE1

Depending upon exactly what the problem is it may be an issue that the installer DID NOT use the pairs for wiring. Meaning that instead of using the BW/WB - OW/WO pairs etc. they used BW/OW - WB/WO as pairs for connections. This will effectively cause the wiring to be parallel thus allowing the induction of voltage on the cable or cables.

If this is the problem it is much easier to fix than ripping holes the wall.

Good luck.

Les

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ABLE1

Rugger

Are you still having trouble? Try turning off the mains, then see if there is still noise. Make sure you have a test set or at least not electronic handsets. Then test one line at a time. It takes time but sometimes you just gotta go 1 step at a time. Good luck.

w6ire

I know this thread is pretty old but here is my 2 cents. First off BICSI is not a standards organization, secondly, inductive coupling can and does occur between adjacent cables and it most definitely is susceptible to magnetic fields that can be found in homes. It has nothing to do with voltage.

Testing Cat 5 installations with a butt set is a technique I'm unfamiliar with, no wonder believe there's no proof of inductive coupling on Cat 5, you've been using a butt set as your testing device.

Anyway, the statement that Cat 5 UTP is almost 100% resistant to voltages found in the home is not supported by any facts.