With so many electronic devices and appliances in our homes and workplaces, organizing cables and keeping everything tidy can be a real pain. Wires can quickly get tangled without effective cable management, making your spaces unpresentable.
Beyond aesthetics, cluttered wires are a tripping hazard and a safety risk. But with proper planning, you can budget for something like cable trunking, which will create an order for your cables and leave you with a clean, safe living and working environment.
Here are some cable management tips that you can use to improve the appearance and safety of your home.
1. Get the Right Cables
One way to a cluttered space is to use overly long cables. No matter how good your cabling system is, you’ll end up with unnecessary slack and, as a result, tangled cables.
Map your room to know the exact cable size you need. But it’s not just excessive cables you’re trying avoid – if your cables are too short, they can get stretched, causing tension or breakage. Even more alarming, stretched electrical cables can become twisted, leading to overheating. This can damage the insulation creating short circuits and even fires.
In data cables, tension can also degrade the quality of audio, video, and data signals due to increased resistance and signal loss.
2. Use Color Labels and Tags
This is one of the best ways to streamline your cabling. By using color-coded labels and tags, you can make it easy to identify the purpose of each cable and the device it connects to.
Once you know where each cable goes, finding the best routes for each becomes easier, avoiding cluttering. This not only improves aesthetics but also facilitates easy access to the cables. It can save you a lot of time when installing devices and during future repairs and maintenance.
3. Enhance Safety with Cable Trunking
Cable trunking is an excellent solution for organizing cables. It allows you to route cables safely, keeping them off the floor and is particularly useful in areas in high foot traffic. If your pet likes to chew on things, using cable trunking can also help prevent possible electric shocks.
In addition to improving safety, cable trunking makes it easier to spot and fix faults in your wiring. It will also help protect cables from wear and tear, making your cable installation last longer.
Trunkings are available in different sizes and designs and you can easily find one that suits your home decor. They are also flexible, and can be scaled up to accommodate potential home renovations.
4. Organize Cables on a Budget with Cable Ties
If you’re not ready to invest on cable trunking, you can still improve your cabling significantly with cable ties. These allow you to bundle and secure multiple cables and are available in different sizes and materials such as plastic and velcro.
If you’re looking for a more permanent set up, zip ties are the best option. They are more durable, conserve space, and can fit through smaller holes. For temporary jobs, velcro straps are a better fit. They can be used and reused as necessary and are also better than zips when dealing with large cable bundles.
5. Go Wireless
You can reduce cable clutter altogether by going wireless. This eliminates the need for cables, simplifying your cable management.
Wireless options are now available for almost any device, from printers to audio and video equipment. You will still need to use cables in some situations and as a result, wireless is unlikely to be a cure it all for your cable woes.
6. Regularly Inspect and Test Your Wiring
Effective cable management is a continuous process. You should ensure you inspect and test your installation regularly. If you detect any faulty cables, replace them right away.
