Electronics

July 16, 2019

Installing the Amazon Ring Video Doorbell Elite

I owned the Ring Video Doorbell 2 for almost a year now.  I loved the doorbell however I had several complaints.

  • Battery would last roughly 1-2 month’s (I have kids they are constantly triggering it).
  • Was bulky never really looked great on my house.
  • Purchased solar cover to go around it, made it even more bulky & never charged unless direct sun hit it constantly.

Anyways after getting frustrated and seeing a sale on the Ring Doorbell Elite I decided to order.  The hardest part of my installation was running the CAT5 ethernet cable. 

Step 1.

My house is an older house so I needed to rip off the molding/trim going around the door so I would be able to hide and drill a hole for the Ethernet cable.  Then I had to drill a hole behind the molding into the basement.  After that was done I ran the cable over to my switch / power which is also located in the basement.  This where you will hook up the POE (Power over ethernet) device that Ring supplies you with the Doorbell elite.

Step 2.

Next I used a 3/8 inch  long spade bit to drill the hole from the siding into the house.  This caused a problem because I totally forgot in my old house it was plaster walls when I was drilling from the outside in I heard a bunch of crumbling.  Either way the wife wanted to paint this room.  (So more delays I had to spackle, sand and re-paint the room after the cable was ran).

Step 3.

Now that the hole was drilled, the ethernet cable through the floor and installed down into the basement.  I needed to cut out the hole for the actual ring device.  So with this I just used a razor blade and kept scoring the siding until it finally came out. 

Step 4.

Next once I was done with the hole and made sure the Ring device was going to fit.  I started to crimp the cables.  I work for an internet company so crimping these was a breeze however if you are unfamiliar you will need the following.  This can be tricky if its your first time doing it, I would suggest watching a YouTube video.  Once you have both sides crimped plug in the one end that says Power Out – to Ring Device and then plug the pre-made cable into your switch/router.   Now outside plug the other end into your Ring Doorbell Elite.

Step 5.

Now that everything is installed and the ethernet cables are connected.  I would download the Ring app and begin installing the Ring Doorbell Elite before you finally screw everything down.  Once everything is setup to your satisfaction begin to screw in your Ring Doorbell Elite. 

That’s pretty much it.  I’m so pleased with the Ring Doorbell Elite!  No longer do I have to swap out batteries.  I know the price tag on this Doorbell is very expensive but its worth it.

I wish I had more of the installation I bought a GoPro for the video but it didn’t turn out that well.   

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May 22, 2019

Adding SONOS Wireless Speakers Outdoors

I figured I would take you through my entire experience with installing speakers that will work with Sonos outdoors.  

First Step.

We rarely used our swimming pool.  So this spring we decided to finally tear it down.  Good news is we posted it on Facebook and someone bought it and took it down themselves.  (All I had to do what get rid of the liner).

Installing Sonos Speakers Outdoors

Ok, So taking the pool down took about roughly 2 hour’s to get everything packed up and the liner cut up and thrown away.

Step 2.

Last year my wife and I built a patio near our kids swing set so we had somewhere to hang out.  I decided instead of just killing the power that was ran over to the pool, I was going to have an electrician come and replace the 230 line that was ran to the pool over to the shed.

Right when I had the power ran this is when I actually got the idea of installing Sonos and a Ring camera over to the shed.

I had to dig about a 30′ foot long trench and about a foot deep.  I even had the little one help.

The next day the electrician came out ran all the cabling and outlets to the shed.

Step 3.

My next step was to a add a ceiling light inside the shed so I could see what I was actually doing.  Mr Beam’s worked great for the last 2 years however now that I have power it was time to upgrade.

Purchase:  Hykolity 5000K LED Shop Light Linkable, 4FT Daylight 42W LED Ceiling Lights for Garages, Workshops, Basements, Hanging or FlushMount, with Plug and Pull Chain

Step 4.

Now that the power and lighting has been installed the next step was to extend my WiFi and network over to the shed.  I was really considering just running a CAT5 over  however the electrician was kind enough to fill the hole back in for me.  So since I already have Google WiFI in almost every room of my house I purchased another one.

Step 5.

I ran out of outlets in the shed so I decided to purchase a nice wall mountable surge/power strip.

Purchase:  Stanley 31610 SurgeMax Pro 9 Outlet Metal Surge Protector, Black

Step 6.

So now I went to Lowes and bought a piece of plywood and a circle saw to make perfect holes for the cables.

Purchase:  Desk Grommet (5 Pack) + Hole Saw kit – Ultimate Grommet Hole Bundle Kit 2-3/8″

Step 7.

Next was the expensive and fun part.  We needed to purchase the Sonos AMP so we would control Sonos and group all speakers from inside the house and outside now.  I also purchased the Sonos AMP mount so the Sonos AMP and wiring could be mounted to the plywood.  My shed’s small so I try to pack as much as I can so I wanted everything to be secure inside there.

Purchase:  Sonos Amp, The Versatile Amplifier for powering All Your Entertainment

Purchase: Sanus Wall Mount for Sonos Amp – Slim Black Design with Lockable Latch for Security

Step 8.

So now that the Sonos AMP has been installed I connected it to the Google WiFi.  Powered it on and started running speaker cable to connect to the outdoor speakers.  I decided to purchase Klipsch Outdoor speakers just from reading a ton of reviews on them. 

Installing the speakers were so easy.  The mounting brackets were awesome.

 

 

I also went and purchased outdoor speaker covers so they don’t get wet.

Purchase:  Klipsch AW-650 Indoor/Outdoor Speaker – Black (Pair)

Purchase:  Two Sun Dust & Water Resistant Speaker Covers Bags for Definitive Technology AW 6500, Klipsch AW-650 and Pyle 6.5 Outdoor Bluetooth Speakers by SoundCover

That’s all!

Addison Approves!

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November 1, 2017

PC BattleStations | The Best Products for Cable Management

If there is anything I hate the most it’s computer cable management.  It’s just awful even for me I’m constantly changing the way my computers setup and the layout of the room.  So i’m always adding and removing cables.  The first thing you must have is patients don’t rush your cable management or your just going to end up re-doing it again in a few weeks.

The first thing I did when I started my build was purchase my desk.  I purchased it from Ikea and wanted something to hide the cables behind it.  I needed something long because my desk consists of (2) desk’s added together.  Anyways here is everything I used for my cable management and hopefully it will help others with their computer builds.

As I come across future products and other tips for my BattleStation cable management I will be sure to update the post.  (Last updated 11/1/2017)

J Channel Cable Raceway – Black – 48″

This was a 2 pack it worked perfect because I have 2 of the same desks put together.  This came with 3M tape that was very strong it was a little longer then I needed so i took out my dremel cutter and easily cut the excess away.  If you had to or wanted to you could easily drill in the bottom of this to make sections for shorter runs.

Price:  $28.00  Order on [Amazon]


Mount-It! Dual LCD Monitor Desk Mount

When I was using dual monitors this was a must.  Recently I updated to a 34 ultra wide screen because I really didn’t need a dual monitor setup anymore.  I constantly see people running dual monitors on the stand if you want to maximize desk space and have a clean sleek build.  This will support (2) monitors up to 27″ each.

Price:  $36.99 Order on [Amazon]


Kootek 118 Inch Cable Management

Another must have product for managing your cables.

Price:  $10.99 Order on [Amazon]


Cable Clips,YOCOU 12 pcs 3-Channel

These guys saved my life a number of times.

Price:  $8.79 Order on [Amazon]


Reusable Cable Ties, Trilancer

I use these all the times rather than zip ties.

Price:  $8.99 Order on [Amazon]


Cable Management Sleeve

Another great product instead of always using zipties to minimize my exposed cables.  I came across this cable management sleeve.  It’s still sometimes  a pain because I’m always adding and removing new gadgets so I have to keep unzipping to remove/add something.  Still beats cutting zip-ties and the look is excellent!

Price:  $14.99 Order on [Amazon]


IKEA – SIGNUM Cable management

This product also helped me out, it hung down a little more then i liked it to but overall it did the trick.  I was able to mount (2) power strips on the inside then wrap all the excess cables under my desk that I did not want to be seen.  I even mounted an external hard drive, and USB 3.0 hub all inside this.

Price:  $25.99 Order on [Amazon]

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