Wiring standards with Cat5

[fs483]

Hello,

I just went to a job site and I was a little disappointed. This was done about 3 years ago in a bank and the cabler stripped the jacket about 5 inches back (the lenght of small Nordx patch panel before punchng down the cable. Was this allowed back then ?

At another jobsite where we manage their servers, the cabler (I don't know how long ago) stripped the jacket at least 19 inches (the lenght on a 1 unit patch rack). Again was this ever up to spec ?

Can this be/was allowed in Canada (Montreal) ? It seems that all the old cabling from places where done this way.

thanks
anthony

 

[DToolsDesigner]

What type of blocks were they terminated on?
The Cat 5 BIX block called for 14" of sheath removal.
Since you are in Canada, I would assume it is a BIX but if not, then it sounds like poor craftsmanship, the standard says only as much as needed to affect termination, or per manufacturers specs.


Richard S. Anderson, RCDD

http://www.servamatic.net

 

[fs483]

Yup it's CAT 5 Bix blocks. So I guess it WAS ok. However the cabling guys that do the wiring (today) where I also work don't strip the jacket that far anymore. They strip just enough jacket to spread the pairs onto the blocks. Is it only in Canada that BIX is used ? Is there a reason for this ? Any advantages ?

thanks
anthony

 

[DToolsDesigner]

That is the way BIX Cat 5 was to be done according to manufacturer specs. Now with GigaBIX (Cat 5e) you don't remove that much jacket.
Gigabit has a hard time running if you remove to much jacket due to return loss and NEXT.
You can find BIX almost anywhere, but it is dominant in Canada.
Always follow manufacturer specs, that way there is no problem with warranties.


Richard S. Anderson, RCDD

http://www.servamatic.net

 

[JBeav]

This used to be the norm for the 6 port and 25 pair BIX strips. Termination techniques for the GigaBIX modules don't not allow this much to be removed. If these were 19" patch panels with BIX IDCs, this much jacket removal was/is not acceptable.

The reason for the jacket removal on the BIX strips (straight through, BIX in/BIX out)was to provide slack to allow for removal for adding or troubleshooting. Slack is still added but only enough jacket needed to terminate is removed.

Jeff

 

[fs483]

I was speaking with a local cabler that attends Nordx certification programs and he said that Nordx USED to allow the stripping of the jack for the lenght of the strip. Nowadays, this technique is allowed ONLY for voice runs NOT for DATA. For data, the jacket can only be stripped enough to spread the pairs. He also said Nordx used to ask that all cables are feed from one side of the strip so that the strip can be "rotated horizontally" out for service. Now Nordx say to feed the cables straight through from the middle...

anthony

 

[DToolsDesigner]

That is correct, those are the changes made for GigaBIX as I mentioned earlier.

Richard S. Anderson, RCDD

http://www.servamatic.net