Currently remodeling a domicile, with the sweet and expensive ability to add anything I want within reason. I plan on modernizing the place to bring it into the 21st century because this house deserves it (just a great structure with lots of history and nearing it’s centennial birthday).
Luckily, everything is built perfectly for access so nothing is off the table. I came onto this property with my own server “rack” and a mini diy setup for network debauchery, but plan on expanding that and installing a mini-server “room” (a fancy closet I might install in a “dead space” that I can pipe duct work in and out of).
I will be running all new electrical, A/C, Telecom lines, the whole works. I’m currently in the process of ripping out all the old coaxial, phone, piping, anything not ran properly or of a modern importance (probably reinstall phone and doorbell circuits but they’re currently strewn everywhere from previous installers). I’m also creating up to date blueprints for the structure and including mechanical systems/engineering schematics for anything I’m doing or plan to do. All of this will be saved to a USB for the next owner and printed out for a laminated notebook to stay with the house (maybe a copy for myself for the nostalgia one day).
The only 2 things I KNOW I want to do is installing
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a monitor with a pi that will run a weather and local data program that I’ve been working on into the kitchen area
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a multi-camera cctv system (local and offsite backup) with a monitor in a neutral-shared living area.
I will probably leave those parts of the system installed here unless it’s requested to be removed. I actually would love to leave everything here as a full system package for someone to “inherit” with the house but I’m not sure if that’s a benefit or a hindrance someone wants to receive.
There’s 3 different plans in the works (3/5/10 year plans, we are here for family but that will eventually not be required and we desperately want out of this area), depending on the time frame I might need to put in
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monitoring stations for renewable energy systems (solar/wind),
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a personalized-home weather monitoring system (barometric,temp,humidity) with a display and functionality to control the mechanical systems (A/C adjustment, daylight sensors for shades/lighting, etc),
and a bunch of other off the wall ideas I’ve been wanting to tinker with. Unfortunately most videos out there of “home setups” include someone with 10x my price bracket and their system is designed for themselves and their specific equipment in mind. I’m wanting to install something more generic that anyone would have use for (like weather and security). There are really only 2 “office areas” that I think would require a hardline besides any monitors I have to install for systems (I don’t mind running wiring, but I don’t think every room needs an ethernet port to be functional, or am I wrong thinking this way?). I will probably need to install repeaters in two locations though to cover the entire property in wifi because old houses gobble signals up but inside everything “just” reaches.
Everything I’ve done with my network so far I’ve gotten around needing a switch (it would’ve saved me a lot of hassle in the past but I usually find a way to get everything connected or just disconnect unused equipment that’s ran it’s course), but at this point I can’t expand any further without a headache. So now I’m looking at new tech and equipment I don’t have hands-on experience with and don’t know it’s proper use/limitations which I don’t like when making action plans. I figured just trying to get a general sense of what people want or see would be a better angle to come at since I don’t do this professionally and don’t have the insider knowledge of the taboos of home networking infrastructure.
TLDR: What kind of wiring, connection setups are important to you and won’t be obsolete after a few years? What do you consider a “modern” house to have or are decent “quality of life” improvements like lighting control, sensors, etc? What’s your best case scenario of equipment when walking into a house and seeing a pre-installed setup?
edit: I’m not sure why but for some reason I’m not seeing everyone’s comments (assuming de-federated instances from .ml but seeing it since I posted on .world), if I don’t respond I apologize and will probably look for a new instance if this is the case.
Conduit everywhere. Every cable will be obsolete eventually, a conduit run to every room with pull cables makes it so replacing cables doesn’t require a remodel.
I wonder why I don’t see houses using dropped ceilings to provide for infrastructure space with easy access? It seems like a universal in offices that I’ve seen.
Poor insulation, and even if you had drop ceilings you still have headers you’d have to drill through at the top of every wall. Not to mention they look awful and damage easily.
My first home had a dropped ceiling in the basement. It was so ugly, dropped whatever the hell that material is all over the floor when you moved it, and it was an old house so it started to discolor.
I’d rather crawl space that allows for running cable once every 10 years than have to deal with a dropped ceiling.
and here I thought I was being excessive with thinking about conduit. There is a large unfinished basement that mostly everything in it was destroyed from a flood. After I ripped everything out, installed a new stairwell, and ran new drainage to avoid the next eventual flood (as all lower elevations like to do), I was pondering running conduit for everything to protect from moisture in that area for at the very least some high wall outlets to power systems down there. I could scale that plan back and not have everything being conduit (for cost sake) but install it in specific spots for anything that won’t have easy access in the future. I know of a few spots that will need new lines ran through 3 floors so the pull cables would come in handy for future use.
It’s excessive if you’re only thinking short term, but longer term it is 100% worth it. It’s one of those things you’ll kick yourself for in 5 years.