QUATRA Coverage Unit cables are Ethernet based, standard IT cable routing practices should be observed.
General CU Cabling Rules:
- CU cables must pass 1000BaseT (gigabit).
- Make sure the RJ45 terminators are appropriate for the cable used.
- CU cables may pass through patch panels, but not active equipment such as routers or switches that will not understand QUATRA signaling.
- CU cables should follow normal low voltage cable pathways.
- Do not run CU cables alongside AC powerlines or other sources of interference such as LED lighting.
- Crossing powerlines are 90 degrees is OK.
- Only a QUATRA Extender may be used to extend a CU cable from 100m to 200m in length. Off-the-shelf Ethernet Extenders or Fiber interfaces will not work. Install the QRE halfway along the cable.
- There are different QRE models, make sure you have the correct QRE for your product.
- CU cable lengths up to 150 meters (150m+150m with a QRE) are possible with specialty cable such as GameChanger (or a suitable 22-23 AWG gauge cable such as CAT6).
Troubleshooting:
- Check that each CU cabling rule has been satisfied.
- Re-crimp the terminators to make sure pins are well set into the wires.
- Debris in the port – Blow off the connector and port and insert the connector a few times to “clean” the contacts.
- Test the port on the NU or CU to see if there is movement. If there is any movement then the port may be damaged.
- Plug the CU directly into the NU using a short known good machine made Ethernet cable to determine if the hardware or cabling is at fault.
- Redo the terminators on either end of the cable in alarm.
- Consider punch-down Ethernet Surface Mount Boxes to remove the human cable termination component. This is more in line with standard IT practices that favor screw or punch-down terminations and machine made cables. They are more reliable and end-point machine made jumpers are easily swapped out if they fault.
- Check that the RJ45 terminators are correct for the cable used (cable diameter spec for example).