running hdmi cables outside?

U

uklipse

Audiophyte
I am planning on putting a lcd above my fireplace. I want to hide the cables but I want to avoid drilling through all those studs. My idea is to run the cables up from the fireplace then over about 10 feet to the left and above the windows and then down to the ground near the corner of the house. I want to do this outside of the house under the vinyl siding to avoid drilling into any studs. My question is whether the shielding around a normal hdmi cable will protect it from the elements under these conditions? Has anyone done this without any problems?

Thanks for any help
 
M

m_vanmeter

Full Audioholic
It is very doubtful that the typical PVC outer sheath cable cover will resist UV, heat or freeze/thaw for very long before it starts to harden and crack, exposing the inner wiring to moisture. Plus, by taking such a round-about routing you are adding a lot of extra length to the cable with the possibility of signal loss.

If you have to run the HDMI cable outside, put it in conduit, not stuffed under vinyl siding
 
highfigh

highfigh

Seriously, I have no life.
I am planning on putting a lcd above my fireplace. I want to hide the cables but I want to avoid drilling through all those studs. My idea is to run the cables up from the fireplace then over about 10 feet to the left and above the windows and then down to the ground near the corner of the house. I want to do this outside of the house under the vinyl siding to avoid drilling into any studs. My question is whether the shielding around a normal hdmi cable will protect it from the elements under these conditions? Has anyone done this without any problems?

Thanks for any help
If the cable isn't rated for in-wall use, don't run it that way- it would be an electrical code violation and the cable won't like it, either.
 
j_garcia

j_garcia

Audioholic Jedi
IMO, it will probably be a code violation even though it is low voltage. Is there a reason you can't run it underneath the floor? It could probably be done with RG6/RG59 and some kind of adapters.
 
Last edited:
U

uklipse

Audiophyte
I can't run it underneath the floor because of the concrete slab. The total cable length shouldn't exceed 25 feet so I'm not worried about signal loss. I have seen some all-weather hdmi cables, would those work?

Also is it possible to run a cable up through 2 stories into an attic and over then down? What I mean by that is there space to run a line down the studs and through the floors in between the first and second story?

Thanks
 
j_garcia

j_garcia

Audioholic Jedi
Yes, there should be room to run the wires in the ceiling, however you never know what is already up there as well. IMO, that would be a better choice to me though.
 
brad1138

brad1138

Audioholic
I am planning on putting a lcd above my fireplace. I want to hide the cables but I want to avoid drilling through all those studs. My idea is to run the cables up from the fireplace then over about 10 feet to the left and above the windows and then down to the ground near the corner of the house. I want to do this outside of the house under the vinyl siding to avoid drilling into any studs. My question is whether the shielding around a normal hdmi cable will protect it from the elements under these conditions? Has anyone done this without any problems?

Thanks for any help
There are 2 other solutions that might work better for you. First is wireless HDMI, the drawback there is cost, generally $200+. The other is HDMI via Cat6, adapters at Monoprice start about $50 and outdoor cat6 is easy to get, a bit more expensive though. It said you can run up to 150' of cat6 on one of the products I saw at Monoprice.

Brad
 
j_garcia

j_garcia

Audioholic Jedi
I was going to say wireless also, but there's that whole cost thing :)
 
highfigh

highfigh

Seriously, I have no life.
IMO, it will probably be a code violation even though it is low voltage. Is there a reason you can't run it underneath the floor? It could probably be done with RG6/RG59 and some kind of adapters.
HDMI going over baluns using coax isn't the cheapest method. OTOH, it's not cheap over Cat5e, either.
 
Rickster71

Rickster71

Audioholic Spartan
I am planning on putting a lcd above my fireplace. I want to hide the cables but I want to avoid drilling through all those studs. My idea is to run the cables up from the fireplace then over about 10 feet to the left and above the windows and then down to the ground near the corner of the house. I want to do this outside of the house under the vinyl siding to avoid drilling into any studs. My question is whether the shielding around a normal hdmi cable will protect it from the elements under these conditions? Has anyone done this without any problems?

Thanks for any help
Here's a link for in-wall rated HDMI. (not sure how long you needed, was it 25'?)
http://estore.circuitassembly.com/products/CL3-HDMI-Cable-Rated-for-In-Wall-Installs-24-AWG.html
Your options sound limited, so a run 'under' the siding sounds like a reasonable choice.
 
BMXTRIX

BMXTRIX

Audioholic Warlord
If you expect it to be a very complex installation job, then go with the right cables to begin with.

http://www.outdoortvspot.com/departments_name_Outdoor-TV-Cables_path_11410.html

Something like the above linked cable is an outdoor rated cable which is designed to withstand the elements and should provide you years of troublefree use without issue.

Unfortunately, at that price, I might seriously consider cat-5 extenders with two pieces of cat-5 and the HDMI baluns necessary. Outdoor cat-5 is cheap, and if you run 3 pieces (or so) then you likely could replace an HDMI 1.3 balun with a HDMI 1.4 balun and get the newest features without replacing the entire cable.

Either solution is appropriate.
 
Rickster71

Rickster71

Audioholic Spartan
My thoughts were that, with the run being completely under the siding it wouldn't suffer from any exposure issues.
 
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