Outdoor Access Point

[HCHTech]

U7-Outdoor is sold out at the distributors we use and at the UI store as well. So, plan B. Should I choose UAP-AC-M Mesh outdoor or US-Ultra Swiss army knife?

Mounting will be direct to the outside of a home at about knee-height, so no cover from the elements. It providing coverage to a pool area and a screened in porch with a TV.

 

[britechguy]

Just curious, but could it be mounted within the perimeter of that screened-in porch to provide at least some shelter?

 

[YeOldeStonecat]

I've been using the 6-Mesh (previously the Flex-HD)...what I call the "toilet paper tube form factor".....love those units, sort of my "go to" for most applications now. (except where I need max outdoor range/load, so I use the Mesh Pros...stuff like marinas)

But those toilet paper tubes are outdoor rated, and just work so well!
I've deployed a few swiss arm knifes...but only deployed in light environments..haven't put them to a good test yet to get much of a feel for them.

 

[HCHTech]

Just curious, but could it be mounted within the perimeter of that screened-in porch to provide at least some shelter?

No, this fancy house was built in 2017 and has almost no network wiring (unbelievable). There is no access to the porch area (which is on a slab) from the basement to run a line there. There is access to go through the outside wall right near the pool, which is next to the covered porch, so we're stuck with that solution. To make it worse, they have a stone interior knee wall on that porch, so it would not be trivial to go through the outside wall there either. I thought of that, but both my wiring guy and the owner were not amused at that suggestion - haha. My wiring guy mostly hates me for these residential jobs - he stays with me because of the commercial work I get him, which is so easy in comparison.

I've installed lots of the 6-Mesh units indoors, but I'm just a bit afraid of using them outdoors with no cover - I know they say "weatherproof" when used with the pole mount, but they just don't look the part. Given where we have to mount the thing, it could well be buried in snow during some of the winter, too - another cause for concern.

 

[YeOldeStonecat]

Its IPX5 rated. Can hit it sideways with water jets!
Just don't mount upside down.
I have plenty of 'em outside, doing great. Only thing that can get tight with the side mount kit is...the flexibility of the ethernet cable fed into it. I always use the slims. Don't use ones with boot protectors...or if you do, they won't bend enough for the mount to slide on...so I sometimes have to snip the boot a bit to allow it to flex enough.

I've seen some installs done where the tech will glue gun or caulk the opening once the ethernet cable is in there....just to make it crazy water proof. I've not done that, haven't replaced one for water damage yet...actually haven't replace ANY of those Flex/6-Mesh models at all.

 

[HCHTech]

haven't replaced one for water damage yet...actually haven't replace ANY of those Flex/6-Mesh models at all.

Well, that fact is worth more than my impression that the seam around the top LED didn't look like it would be waterproof to me - haha. Thanks.

 

[britechguy]

my impression that the seam around the top LED didn't look like it would be waterproof

And that's what clear-curing, non-silicone caulk is for if it had turned out to be the case. I've had to "make water resistant or waterproof" any number of things that are not such "as supplied."

That, or E6000 clear, but I want something that I can "fix" with water, while uncured, and wash off from my hands with water, too. I've loved DAP's line of non-silicone caulks for just these kinds of purposes for decades now.