How to Properly Pre-Wire a Large Home for Smart Home Automation

This house is set up with shielded cat6, cat5 and RG6 wire for Video distribution and 16-4 speaker wire for multi zone audio distribution. When the home is completed there will be a total of three 12 channel, two 2 channel amplifiers and a subwoofer amplifier. We are using control for home automation to control a Atlona video matrix 6x6, the cable boxes, the amplifiers and a 16 channel audio matrix. We will be using Luxul router, Luxul controller, 26 port managed switch and a small 10 port switch for the study and office.

[@murderforprofit1]

I do installs on massive custom projects in SW Fl and I also design systems for homes (automation, access control, netoworking, cctv, A/V, etc...) and the guys who did the work did an excellent job. Its always nice seeing other techs work when they take pride in their work and the job has adequate planning. Well done.

[@Lupestang1]

murderforprofit1 thanks

[@bfourney]

I was gonna say this almost looks like construction in Mexico with all the concrete. For the WAPs you just used scraps of cardboard staples to the ceiling joists to put the CAT wire thru or is that a product you can buy somewhere? What is all the yellow wire on the ceiling connected thru similar cardboard strips? Is that how they wire lighting cans in Texas?

[@Lupestang1]

Yeah it's scrap cardboard, I'm sure there's a product somewhere that's designed specifically for in ceiling terminations but cardboard will suffice. Not sure what yellow cables your referring to, it's probably for can lights. And funny you say it looks like construction from Mexico, we are located near the Mexican border in Texas a lot of construction habits are sometimes used here, I'm no 100% sure what the cinder block is made with but i remember the owners paying a bit extra for it. Its not your typical construction style down here.

[@bfourney]

@@Lupestang1 Yeah real close! It looks almost tropical there! I thought it might be Puerto Rico or something at first. I've seen other guys use a 1 gang low voltage bracket on the ceiling for WAPs, I guess they just leave it untrimmed and cover the open box with the WAP so it can sit flush with no wire visible. When you leave the wire for your WAPs bare like that do you find the drywallers either don't poke the wire through or mangle them? You don't put a nail or anything? Yeah the yellow is definitely romex. Can't figure out why they didn't use cans, maybe they're going to do surface mount lights or something.

[@xj1716]

Why not cat6 / POE for the cameras ? why coax?

[@victorsedano1411]

Lupe, that you use carboard to center the speakers?

[@paulfoster6891]

Analog cameras? IP cameras have been around for 15 years. You already have cat6 why not just do all Cat5 for analog so they don’t have to rewire?

[@stephenboateng7307]

does every speaker need their home run back to communication room and 16/2 or 16/4

[@Lupestang1]

Yes, into a multi channel amp

[@ignacioalmazan]

Did yall cut the walls or did someone else?

[@Lupestang1]

Someone else

[@fruvita67]

all that money and people still make houses out of touthpicks

[@eyehear10]

Fred acting sus recording with his phone

[@Lupestang1]

Lol, ( Hank Hill voice) that boy ain't right

[@SPR1326]

I'm probably a little late to the party for Q and A, I watched this the first time right after you posted it. Thanks for sharing it, don't listen to the haters. Bottom line is your're making it happen and they are just making noise. My question is this: when you rough in cables hanging from the ceiling like for APs and speakers are you using cardboard to center them between the studs? Does this pose any issues with the drywall guys?

[@Mattesglobaltrading]

What a massive project. WOW! Would love to shadow you and learn the ways! Super cool!

[@ispeakmymind247]

Alex is a Spider-Man! Great pre wire! Massive casa!

[@lelandclayton5462]

Gave me a good laugh, all of those cables dangling would get destroyed. Granted the cable with the celophane would be protected from drywall mud and paint. The head end with just double gang boxes wouldn't cut it. I would use a panel, coil the wire then pass it through into the Double gang boxes and leave about 6 to 12 inches or even better use patch panels. This would make trimming much easier, faster and lot less of a chance for some tradesmen to not screw up the wire. Also use Mud rings for the camera ends so it doesn't get covered by the siding, we use to just have the wires sticking out but they would get clipped off or smashed. Not to mention this will give you room for the balun if you use Cat5E or Cat6. I've been doing this stuff for a while. Drywall, siding, window installers and sometimes framers will screw you each time.

[@GladYouMissed]

Great house, Cant wait to see finished product. (if customer allows you to film)

[@Lupestang1]

Thank you, I'll try to post updates. I've posted other videos with other projects feel free to critique them?

[@GladYouMissed]

sorry dude, great job.

[@tomaszkozien5596]

Nice video and not criticising, But absolutly no excuse for not using IP cameras

[@redwardr.l5734]

Excelente trabajo de instalación, solo una duda cuál es el precio total de este tipo de instalación y cuánto tiempo se lleva? Saludos desde Durango MX.

[@im_sarge_bro4542]

Please do more of these videos!

[@Lupestang1]

I posted an update check it out. kzbin.info/www/bejne/bHWne5J-r8iteJY

[@jayshh5138]

If you're using Shielded CAT 6 you should also show the proper grounding of the shield once the terminations are completed. I also agree with the others I would have used IP Cameras or pre-wired along with the Siamese cable.

[@Lupestang1]

Jay Shh I'll do a follow up video once the house is done should be done by January February of 2018.

[@quacktony]

Why still use analog? I don't get it...

[@Lupestang1]

tony pham read the other comments.

[@quacktony]

K, I've reviewed the difference between analog 4mp vs IP 4mp and there is a difference. Oh well. It is a good thing you future proofed it though.

[@CrimLawGeek]

Why not go IP for the cameras instead of analog?

[@Lupestang1]

Andres Bermudez Hallstrom analog cameras are less expensive than IP cameras, I'm going to use 4mp savvy tech camera's with starlight function

[@FedericoVillaChicco]

Thank you for the reply! I was asking my self the same thing and found your fast reply. From the video it appears you are doing a great job!

[@DmitriyKhazansky]

Lupe Perez that’s surprising that the ~150 bucks per IP cam was out of budget on this job...nice work nonetheless! Love to see the closet and rack walk through as you get closer to finishing up...

[@johnbecich9540]

There's a general buzz that "newer is better" and so IP cams must be better than analog. There's another reason (for their superiority) and its essence lies in Ohm's Law: IP cams run on 48 volts and so the ohmic (voltage drop) loss is roughly 1/4 that of similar analog camera wattage load (assuming same wire gauge... which is not true; still, this matters!) This really matters on long cable runs; although I must praise the OP for his use of siamese cable, which is optimal for this need. Analog cameras therefore tend to brown out during night operation, when their inboard IR emitters are in operation, when served by long cables. For a colossal home like the one in the video, that's a worry. I hope the OP tested, on his lab bench, his proposed analog system, the way I've done... to predict a margin of safe operation. It's not too late to change all that wiring... as it seems the walls are not sealed up yet. The high price of IP cameras is nothing compared to the potential threat here.

[@Lupestang1]

John Becich thanks for the insight, I've stoped responding to the comments they seem repetitive. I'm planing on posting an update video soon. Also I've got a new project that's even bigger that I'll be posting too, feel free to check them out and ask any questions about them. 👍👍👍

[@adamanddog]

Thanks for the video. Weird they are not using IP camera setup. I understand the expense but this looks to be a multi million dollar home, why cheep out?

[@jbirdie3196]

I deal with the same situations every day. Most wealthy customers are super tight when it comes to decisions like that. They figure cameras are all good enough, why spend twice the money? Its much less common to find the guys who only want the best regardless of cost, especially when its things you dont get to enjoy looking at every day.. They dont understand the importance of something that just sits there and watches over the house 24/7 and that the picture quality and recording capacity can make or break a case where they are actually needed..

[@matthewmckinney2709]

Very nice work, sir!

[@Lupestang1]

Matthew McKinney thank you, check out the other videos I made. It's been a few months already the contractor is working fast.

[@matthewmckinney2709]

You should post another video of this home once it is sheetrocked and finished and link it here.

[@Lupestang1]

Matthew McKinney kzbin.info/www/bejne/bHWne5J-r8iteJY

[@kbabioch]

Nice job, great tour.

[@Lupestang1]

Karol Babioch thanks I'll post a new one soon

[@Lupestang1]

I posted an update check it out. kzbin.info/www/bejne/bHWne5J-r8iteJY

[@notta3d]

Great video!! Nice job.

[@Moderntechsvs]

Great video Lupe, we too are Control4 dealers and follow very similar process here in Florida. Are you doing any LED lighting? Would love to talk some shop with you sometime.

[@Lupestang1]

Tony L thank you, any time you'd like I get in touch with me email address is [e-mail].

[@Lupestang1]

Were not doing any control4 lightning system, instead we chose to go with lutron for the lights and Hunter Douglas for shades.

[@taylorburne9513]

Hey awesome video! What is being used to hold the wires in place for the access points, cameras, and speakers? Is that just cardboard? Does it get removed before the drywall goes up? Thank you so much!

[@Lupestang1]

Taylor Burne just strip of cardboard, they'll be covered with drywall. The cables will be behind the drywall and my techs will use a line toner to find them. The reason they're hidden behind dry wall is if the contractor paints and does his texture on the walls I can always reposition speakers or cameras or access points if needed. I can center them with the room or with furniture so I don't have cables poking out of the wall and I'm forced to wire them in the specific location or the cables are poking out of the ceiling.

[@wdiddy1]

Lupe Perez how can you reposition speaker wires after completion?

[@Lupestang1]

Wdiddy D if the wire slack is enough yes.

[@sedali5882]

7000 sq ft, shielded cat6, and ANOLOG camera? Specially with C4

[@bfourney]

Probably HD-TVI cameras, but yeah still. I've done the hikvision ones before and they're actually shockingly good.

[@sedali5882]

@@bfourney trust me I’m a Control4 Gold dealer, IP cameras is the way to go.

[@earleswan4151]

How to under cable and out date the system before the house is finished. CVI cameras are a stop gap for pre installed gear not for new installs, you should have fibre and minimum Cat6A/s for your networking, if you want a properly cable a new house.

[@Polaku81]

you realize augmented cat 6(A) is for backbone only...... and as fiber goes...send me an example of what you have done in fiber so I can critique it...... I'm sure you are highly qualified in structured cabling.....

[@earleswan4151]

Polaku81 20 years.

[@nvdice]

Hi Lupe, I enjoyed the video and just subscribed, but any chance you can post update videos for this project on how you continued the install with the control 4 hardware and rest of the CCTV and home run room?

[@Lupestang1]

nvdice will do, the house is still under construction but I'll post an update soon.

[@Lupestang1]

I posted an update check it out. kzbin.info/www/bejne/bHWne5J-r8iteJY

[@minh8080]

What light switches are you planning to use.

[@ltzmartinez5927]

Wow! How much was the cost of that project?

[@zaneh6224]

Alex didn't look too happy in this video

[@ttss5726]

analog wow talk about behind in times.

[@LiezerZero]

And yet... Not one word about a Solar Power System.

[@lsdave]

For a smart home from 2001

[@Agnelum1]

Any particular reason that you're using all the Cat6 instead of Cat5e throughout? Seems like a massive extra cost. It looks like it was a nightmare there where you had to chase the block-work! What happened - were you contracted late or was it due to a variation? Looks like a great project though.

[@Lupestang1]

Truly Zambian I'm using cat6 shileded for video and cat5 for IR triggers, I'm going to use a video matrix and all the tv use a balun receiver to disrupt video. The manufacturer suggests minimal Cat6 type A for speed and I've had issues with unshiled wires picking up interference in other homes. The shield provides an extra bit of protection after it's all installed and we ground all the wires.

[@Lupestang1]

Truly Zambian I apologize for not responding sooner.

[@Agnelum1]

+Lupe Perez Ah, I see.Thanks for explaining it to me. I haven't yet seen any installations where the Cat6 was actually REQUIRED and not just "specified". I have worked on a couple of sites where the design spec called for Cat6 but it was more just to make it "Cat6 Ready" as opposed to actually being required by any of the equipment that was going in by the time of commissioning. Great video. You and your team do fantastic work.

[@Lupestang1]

Truly Zambian Thanks for the compliment I appreciated it, check out the new video I just recently posted. It's a walkthrough for another large home that I'm working on I will probably upload a video after it's fully pre wired I explaining all the details.

[@stephenjmuenstermann7455]

We primarily use CAT-6 for all our installs for much of the same reason Lupe mentioned. And in addition technology speed is growing faster for almost all devices. Cat6 is rated for 10x higher speeds. Nothing future-proofs a design, but planning for today with the emerging technology of tomorrow keeps the client safe for at least the next decade and beyond. We also use 100% IP cameras.

[@ChucksBasix]

Essentially a mansion, but no desire to splurge on IP cams..?

[@Lupestang1]

Chucks Basix when you have the a product that does the same thing for less money that seems logical to not ''splurge'' but to budget wisely. Now a days CVI cameras are just as good as IP. Yes 6mp, 8mp and even 12mp IP are great, yes they look awesome. When your done and deliver the project you'll have to connect them to a 4k tv, a 4mp CVI camera set at 20 fps looks so impressive and detailed you'll never notice the difference between analog and IP cameras. Even if your NVR is capable of a higher resolution what's the point of setting it on something your tv can't handle.

[@MatSmithLondon]

"What's the point of setting it on something your tv can't handle"... answer: so you can zoom in more to catch the pesky thieves...

[@chrisspencer6502]

I'm no geek but I think he's ripping off his customer all the coax for cams, why not just go with cat 5e with adapters to coax. The cat six why not shielded cat 5e?

[@jbirdie3196]

Shielded Cat6 allows you to run 10G ethernet, the most you can get out of cat5 is 1G ethernet shielded or not. I dont see a problem with the camera setup, obviously if the customer wanted to spend the money on IP cameras they would. Ive done huge houses for massively rich people and most of the time they want to splurge on all the fancy things that catch peoples eye so they can show them off, when it comes down to it they get tight immediately when they hear the cost of IP cameras and equipment or a whole house generator setup. Im an electrical contractor and I completely understand why the system here is the way it is. The only issue with the siamese cable instead of UTP/STP is that it has its limits as far as future proofing, but many times there are "future proofed" installs that are completely worthless for the proposed use 10 years later. CVI cams are great and if thats what they wanted thats probably all they were willing to pay for. I often give quotes for more than one "level" of system, such as IP vs analog cams, and most of the time its a completely cost based decision. Using UTP with coax baluns is not something I would do on a new install, its just another component to fail in the system, although that method is great for repurposing cables or super long runs, but those require powered baluns

[@Polaku81]

@Lupe Perez Keep up the good work, and for those that do not understand the difference between analog and IP cameras shouldn't say he is ripping off a client. Current HD-TVI systems (analog) use a lot less storage than most IP systems and while having the same high resolutions 5, 8+ 4k MP ranges. HD-TVI also provides no jitter or delay, and lossless format. I am sure the client was made aware of his/her options regarding the needs at the location.

[@kersenber]

hello how much is the salary of a technician or the engineer who installs the home automation project

[@Lupestang1]

As a tech you are only as valuable as you experience and the techs we have are 5 years minimum, they have above average salaries but they have to keep up with there training and there certifications. My salary is based on the sales I make, I'll have around 80 to 100 projects a year ranging from a $3,000.00 to my largest project this year $350,000.00.

[@Imwright720]

Definitely not done correctly. Some right but some wrong.

[@silverfeathered1]

What a difference half a year makes... This install is outdated in terms of "automation" now, lol. This can only be called an a/v pre-wire these days. A central a/v system at that, which is quickly losing popularity. I came here to peek at what you were doing for curtain controllers and power, networking build for smart equipment, smart hub wiring for future proofing, wiring for mesh, door locks, garage door, zone Bluetooth audio wiring, poe sensor wires, and all the crazy things people all of a sudden need. Then I looked at the date posted... Facepalm. I can hardly believe how fast the market shifted. "Alexa, why can't I do all the cool stuff the neighbor does?" "Because you wired your house six months ago, Gramps."

[@Lupestang1]

silverfeathered1 what are you taking about, what marks you say this is outdated? I think your confused, you probably think you could just have a few Google homes, a few eco dots, and a couple of fire tv's and that's it. Add a few Yale door locks and some hue lights and call that a Smart home. Good luck selling that idea to these kind of home owners, and making all that work in a 7k square foot home, with solid concrete walls. Lol God bless you

[@silverfeathered1]

You brought up your own problem. You're not wiring to make that work in a 7k' home. You got your head buried in the sand. The next few years are going to see big changes in how we control our houses. Even now, EVERY big client (commercial and residential) is rushing to get wired for automation to cut down on the RF. (The RF you get from the things in your unprofessional snide comment) That's a great central A/V and surveillance install. Great job! That's not home automation, though. I'm saying that your title says "automation". This kind of install can't be called "automation" anymore.

[@basitaliali1378]

Hi sair

[@Lupestang1]

hello

[@HazeKushBud]

I do this for a living and that is pure shit, so much wasted wire

[@samlouise]

blueprint to rob this place

[@HazeKushBud]

Amateur hour

[@zaneh6224]

Are you sure you'r not a used car salesman, look like one to me, HA HA HA HA HA