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Stop driving staples too deep - a lesson from last month's nightmare
I used to just hammer RG6 staples until they were flush with the cable. Then last month I had a job in Arlington where half the runs failed signal test. Turns out I was crushing the dielectric on every staple. Now I leave a tiny gap, just enough to hold the cable without pinching it. Has anyone else had to redo a whole house because of pinched coax?
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aaronclark2d ago
Leave a tiny gap, just enough to hold the cable without pinching it" - I was the opposite for years, hammered every staple flat thinking tighter was better. Then I had to go back and rerun four coax runs in a customer's attic because I crushed the shielding on every single one. Now I actually use a staple gun with a depth adjuster, but even then I check by sliding the cable a tiny bit after stapling to make sure it moves free.
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the_parker2d ago
Tackle it from the other side entirely - instead of worrying about how tight the staple is, focus on what kind of cable jacket you're stapling into. I've noticed a huge difference between the cheap PVC stuff you get at the big box stores and the better-grade plenum or riser cables. The soft PVC just crushes way easier, no matter how careful you are with the staple depth. I've started using those little plastic cable staples that have a curved saddle shape to them, they grip without squeezing flat. It's like the difference between a vice and a handshake, you know?
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henderson.wesley2d ago
I switched to those saddle-shaped plastic staples and never looked back, works like a charm.
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