atcomsystems.ca/forum Forums Wiring - Telecom Carriers - Trunks & Services Cabling Telephones Systems Wiring cabling in sequence

For as long as I have done this I have marked with a sharpie on the box and the wire. when I cut the wire I make the mark. I insist the guys that work for me do the same. IMHO I think running around using a toner to track the wires down is unprofessional. Taking an hour and marking a plan and putting it on the wall next to the boxes of wire is time well spent. Just my opinion.

For as long as I have done this I have marked with a sharpie on the box and the wire.

I keep hearing this. Hopefully you use a box of wire for more than one run and even more than one job. You must run out of room to write numbers on that box pretty quickly.

-Hal

My head installer has done this, too---he writes on the cable, and writes on the box. He's been doing it this way for almost 40 years. He also works with a plan on the bigger jobs and marks the floor plan. He gets a bit testy when someone wants to do it another way.

When they come back and unload boxes---it's my job to write on the boxes how many feet are left. Anything less than 100 feet is taken to the shop to be made into whips.

We haven't run out of room on the front of the box, yet.

Phones, cable and ports are tested when we jack, punchdown, jumper and plug in the phones. Network cables are tested with a cable tester after we jack, and punch down in the rack.

There are probably better ways to do this---but we do all of this stuff by rote, now---and we don't have to really talk too much to each other about what to do & how to do it. We just do it.

That's what I am talking about JW. We did a 300 run job this summer with a newbie, and two others in 3 weeks. We knew where every wire was to go before we stepped into the building. We still made money and the job went as planned.

Hal-
yeah we will run many cables at a time. In out last job we pulled 12 at a time. All labeled with a printed label on the end that we pulled and then when we cut it we put the label on it. So the label was on it at both ends. This job was for a real good customer that is big in this area and we wanted to do it by the book for them. Everyone does it differently, I personally want to have a sequential numbering in my work. Maybe its just me?

I personally want to have a sequential numbering in my work. Maybe its just me?

No, not just you. I do it too.

-Hal

I have worked with some of the cabling guys here at UT. What they do is just number the cables as they pull them, then terminate the jacks and panels. They use a fancy Fluke tester to check everything, and then they put pre-printed labels on the jack and patch panel end. That's how it is supposed to work, anyway

lets see you have 1000ft box and most of your runs lets say are 50ft (not often) thats only 20 lables.you have 4 sides to that box you will run out of cable before you run out of space to write on.

I too mark both ends of the cable with sharpie,On the box I put the cable number and the footage, so I can just glance at the boxes to see which one's I'll use for the next pull, I start at the front desk and number the cables clok wise around the space/office. Someone gives me a cable/jack number I can tell right where it's located.

For better or worse, the way I've done it: I run the wire then tone it out and mark it once the wallplates are trimmed out.

Every time I've marked the wire as it was pulled, some painter with a spraygun comes into the phone/data closet and sprays my wire, rendering my sharpie markings useless. If it isn't that, it's a numbering change on the floorplan ("Hey, 13 is unlucky: let's eliminate that room!" or "odd number rooms are now on the front of the building, not the back", or my favorite: "We've changed hotel brands, and they have a new room numbering scheme".), so all the print numbers get thrown off.

I suppose wrapping a trash bag around all of wiring would prevent some of the aformentioned problems.

Even if no one else destroys the wire marking, trying to find a number written on the side of a cat5e wire when there are anywhere from 50-300 wires in a (usually poorly lit) closet is super time consuming - especially as bad as my writing can be. Smudged marking is another problem. I've been using those 4" write on tie wraps recently (not installed too tightly).

If there is a phone/data closet every floor, especially if it's near the middle of the hallway, then toning/marking with one man is no biggie. Riser systems where everything is home run to the PBX room is a two man job w/ walkie-talkies.

Toning also lets me find shorts, opens and reverse wired jacks (i.e., phone line on a 8p8c) as well as do a qc check on the wallplates for level, tightness and gaps (and paint on them).

I like all of the different ways you guys have posted - I'm going to try to incorporate some of those methods into the way I run wire and label.

Question: doesn't putting at least all of the phone lines in numerical order make it easier to make the jumps on a 110 block when using 25-50-100 pair cable?

Quote from Fletch:

Question: doesn't putting at least all of the phone lines in numerical order make it easier to make the jumps on a 110 block when using 25-50-100 pair cable?

We have told you and told you..... NO 110 BLOCKS FOR VOICE !!!

Please look at this thread and you will see why to NOT use 110/Nordes/BIX (okay if you are in Canuckastan) ... 66 blocks is the way.