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Ethernet & Structured Wiring

Hardwire the things that matter

Wi-Fi is wonderful until it isn't. A desk, a TV, a game console, an office, a camera — anything that stays in one place is better off on a cable. Running ethernet is the single most durable upgrade you can make to a house's technology, and it outlives every router you'll ever own.

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quoted per project · see how pricing works

  • Cat6 and Cat6a drops to offices, TVs and desks
  • Attic, wall and crawl-space runs
  • Patch panels and structured media panel cleanup
  • PoE runs for cameras and access points
  • New-construction low-voltage rough-in

What a drop actually involves

We locate a path, fish the cable, terminate both ends properly, and test the run. Done right you get a keystone jack in a wall plate that looks like it came with the house, not a cable stapled along a baseboard. Tucson houses usually have accessible attics and no basements, which makes top-down runs practical in most single-story homes.

The path an ethernet drop takes through a houseA house in cross-section. The cable leaves a patch panel in a hall closet, goes up into the attic, runs across the ceiling joists, then drops down inside an interior wall cavity to a keystone jack in the far room. Three things decide the price: whether the attic is accessible, whether the wall can be fished, and how far the run is.Patch panelhall closetKeystone jack1Up into the attic2Across the joists3Down the wall cavityAttic access, wall construction and distance decide the price
  1. Up from the patch panel into the attic.
  2. Across the ceiling joists to the right wall.
  3. Fished down the wall cavity to a flush jack, then tested end to end.
Every one of these three steps changes with the house. That's the whole reason a cable run is quoted rather than listed.
  • Cat6 or Cat6a depending on run length and use
  • Keystone jacks and flush wall plates
  • Terminated, tested and labeled at both ends
  • Cable rated correctly for attic temperatures

Cleaning up the panel

Most homes have a structured media panel in a hallway closet that's a nest of coax, a splitter nobody remembers installing, and a phone line from 1998. We turn it into something legible: patch panel, switch, labeled runs, and a diagram taped inside the door so the next person has a chance.

A structured media panel before and after cleanupA wall-mounted media enclosure with its door open. Before: a tangle of old coax, a phone line and an unlabelled splitter. After: a patch panel at the top, a network switch below it joined by short color-coded patch cords, a router at the bottom, and a map taped inside the door listing what each numbered run connects to.patch panel1234switchrouter?RUN MAP1 Office2 Bedroom3 Living TV4 CameraBeforeAfter
  1. The usual: old coax, a splitter nobody remembers, and a dead phone line.
  2. A patch panel, a switch and short labelled cords take its place.
  3. A map of every run goes inside the door, so the next person has a chance.
The same closet, made legible. Retiring the dead wiring is part of the job.
  • Patch panel installation and termination
  • Network switch sizing and install
  • Labeling and a documented map of every run
  • Retiring dead coax and phone wiring

Wiring for cameras and access points

Power over Ethernet means one cable carries both data and power, which is why serious cameras and ceiling access points use it. Planning those runs before you buy the hardware saves a lot of money and a lot of patching.

One ethernet cable carrying both power and data to a camera and an access pointA house in cross-section. A PoE switch in a closet sends one cable up through the attic to a ceiling-mounted Wi-Fi access point, and one cable out to a security camera mounted under the eave. Each cable carries power out to the device and data back to the switch, so the camera needs no separate power outlet at the eave.atticPoE switchAccess pointCamerano outletneededpowerdata
  1. One cable from a PoE switch to each camera or access point.
  2. That same cable carries power out to the device and its data back.
  3. So there's no outlet to add up under the eave for the camera.
Planning these runs before you buy the hardware saves a lot of money and a lot of patching.
  • PoE runs for cameras under eaves and at entries
  • Ceiling and wall access point drops
  • PoE switch and injector setup
  • Outdoor-rated cable and proper entry sealing

Building or remodeling

If your walls are open, this is the cheapest this will ever be. We'll rough in ethernet, in-wall HDMI, speaker wire and camera runs while the studs are exposed, and coordinate with your builder on timing.

Running cable through open studs versus finished drywallTop: an open stud wall before drywall. A network cable passes straight through holes bored in each stud, with a spare conduit and pull string installed beside it for later. Bottom: the same wall after drywall. The studs are hidden, the cable has to be fished blind, and small access holes are cut in the drywall at each stud to get it through.Walls openTop: new cable. Below it: spare conduit.Walls finishedFished blind, with a hole cut at every stud
  1. Studs exposed: bore once, pull the cable straight through.
  2. Spare conduit with a pull string, for runs you haven't decided on yet.
  3. After drywall, the same run is fished blind, with access holes cut at the studs.
If your walls are open, this is the cheapest the wiring will ever be.
  • Pre-drywall low-voltage rough-in
  • In-wall HDMI and speaker wire
  • Future-proofing conduit for runs you haven't decided on yet
  • Garage, shop and casita runs

How this is priced

Cabling is quoted, never guessed. Run length, wall construction, attic access and the number of drops change the job enormously, and anyone who quotes a whole-home price over the phone is going to revise it once they see your attic. We walk the house, then give you a written number.

A short cable run next to the panel versus a long run across the houseeasierharder

Run length

A room next to the panel is a short pull. The far end of the house isn't.

Cable fished inside a hollow drywall cavity versus run in surface raceway on a block walleasierharderraceway

Wall construction

Drywall can be fished. Solid block usually means coming down from the attic or using surface raceway.

A tall open attic versus a shallow attic packed with insulationeasierharder

Attic access

A tall, open attic is quick to cross. A shallow one packed with insulation is slow, careful work.

One network drop versus several, each with its own cable run and jackeasierharder

Number of drops

Every drop needs its own path, its own termination and its own test.

You can only see these in person. So we walk the house first, then give you a written number that holds.

Cabling is quoted, never guessed. These are the reasons why.

Questions

About ethernet wiring

My house is block construction. Can you still run cable?

Usually yes, but the route matters more. Interior block walls can't be fished the way drywall can, so we generally come down from the attic into interior partition walls, or use surface raceway where there's genuinely no path. We'll tell you which one your house needs after we look at it, not before.

Is Cat6 enough, or should I get Cat6a?

For nearly every home, Cat6 handles multi-gig at household run lengths and costs meaningfully less. Cat6a is worth it for long runs, dense commercial installs, or if you want 10-gig headroom you'll grow into. We'll say which one your specific run wants.

Why won't you give me a price over the phone?

Because it wouldn't be a real price. The cost of a drop depends on the path, and the path depends on your attic, your wall construction and where you want the jack. We'd rather walk it and give you a number that holds.

Where we do this most

MaranaVailSahuaritaCorona de Tucson

While we're there

Wi-Fi & networking

from $179

Security cameras

from $175 per camera

Smart home

from $129

Need ethernet wiring sorted?

Tell us what's going on and we'll give you a straight answer on what it takes and what it costs.

Get a free quote (520) 891-9682
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