I recently discovered some Cat 5 cables and a telephone line coming directly out of my drywall, with an electrical box and different Cat 5 and telephone lines located about three feet above. It seems like the previous owners intentionally patched over the wires, but I'm puzzled why they didn't just move the box down where the wires exit. Is there any reasoning behind this setup? I'm considering cutting out a small section of drywall to install a smart box or an old-work box for these wires, but I'm curious about their initial intentions.
2 Answers
This isn’t unusual; it could just be the previous owners created a little data hub or something similar. If you have Cat 6 wired to different parts of your home, you could easily set up wireless access points, which can really improve your internet quality!
Actually, low voltage wires like Cat 5 and telephone lines don’t necessarily need to be in a box per code, which could explain why they're just sticking out. Sometimes, they just run those wires right in the drywall or even cut a small channel and cover it up later. It sounds like that’s what happened here!
Exactly! It could be that these wires were intended for another room, where you might have better internet access but it looks like they got mixed up!
That makes sense, especially since I've seen doorbell wires run the same way. It’s just surprising since all the other Cat 5 lines in my home terminate in boxes.
Totally! We’re really trying to maximize our internet coverage since we're building a cabinet that will cover where the wires come out. I just want to make sure I handle the wires properly!