NEED TO KNOW: CABLING INFRASTRUCTURE

A typical smart home setup will use the bus topology. This involves daisy chaining all the products you’re using – from switches and sockets to controls and motion detectors. The bus will connect back to a hub in your plant room, which acts as the brain and tells each device what to do based on what’s going on in the house. Reserve enough space in your layout to fit all your smart home equipment – ours at the Build It House is about the size of a boiler. A media cabinet may be that large on its own, so have that discussion early.

On top of Cat6 network cables, your install will comprise of a variety of wires for different purposes – COAX for satellite television and speaker cables for audio, to name a few. So, it’s a good idea to get your electrician to colour code and label these, depending on the device that connects on the other end. Even though Cat6 cabling is highly resistant to electrical interference, it’s good practice to keep the cables separate from mains power and any heating or hot water pipes. Your electrician will take care of placement. Ideally this will be nailed down at the early design stage, so that your builder can prepare any ducting that might be required.