bpb 0 Posted August 25, 2014 Hi folks, first post. My house is a two-story house, with integral garage. Networking/cableTV enters the house through the garage wall, goes through the garage, and enters the living room. Before a recent discovery, the upstairs was impossible to cleanly wire for networking because there simply wasn't any utility chase I could use. This spring I drew an accurate floorplan with "sweet home 3d" (free SW), and discovered several "hidden" spaces, but one was particularly interesting. This one space is above the garage, and goes straight to the attic, and is an entirely unused, open space of about 15"x24" (37x60cm). This space is like the Rosetta stone for my house that mates the downstairs with attic access; I can finally run all the networking through it, and cable the rest of the upstairs cleanly. What I'm looking to do is install a cabinet in this space in which I will place my networking equipment and video surveillance DVR. It will be in air-conditioned space, and sealed off from the attic and garage entirely. The cabling in/out of this cabinet will be through a PVC conduit I'll install, and physical access is through a door (maybe lockable, don't know yet). So my questions. I've been looking for examples of this in the DIY/alarm/IT/video installers' realm, and haven't found anything. Has anybody created a cabinet like this, and if so, was it custom built or off the shelf? Fully enclosed? While this will be in air-conditioned space, ventilation in/out of the cabinet is a concern. Any suggestions here? None of the equipment runs particularly hot (DVR, ADSL modem, switch). I'm interested in your suggestions, or hearing your experiences if you've had to deal with a space like this before. Thanks! -Brent Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Billy_ICU 0 Posted August 25, 2014 Metal CCTV lock boxes have louvers for air flow in the front and a fan in the back. Here is one - difficult to see the louvers, but they are there. http://www.cableorganizer.com/p/quest-vcr-dvr-security-lock-box-cabinet/ Then rooms in a house which need air - like a natural gas water heater room - will have vents at the floor and ceiling. Like this... http://inspectapedia.com/Energy/Combustion_Air1c.jpg Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bpb 0 Posted August 26, 2014 Thanks for the links. While that locker is too large for the space, it certainly gives me some ideas. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
