Everyone’s great tech hides a dirty secret: a bunch of cables that are as ugly as they are boring. Cable management can seem like a daunting task, but with a few of our cable management tips and a little patience, you can keep your tech tidy.
Here’s how.
Working with long cables
Jacob Roach / Digital Trends
The cable length is killer. The first step in cable management is to get rid of what you don’t need. Assuming you’ve disconnected all your excess cables – we’ve got a dedicated cable collection guide to help you with this – the next step is to deal with the extra length of cable you’re not using.
The main issues here are Ethernet cables, power cables and USB cables. If you can replace the long cable with a shorter one and get to the outlet without any problem, you should. An excessive amount of cables makes future cable management difficult.
For cables that you cannot replace, shorten the length by wrapping the cable around itself and securing it with a cable tie. Cable management isn’t the goal here yet; it’s to keep your cables manageable.
One cable to control them all
I like to start cable management by routing all of my critical cables through a cable sleeve — sometimes oddly called an umbilical cord. I like to think of it as the main cable, the one that comes off with everything you need.
You can find plastic cable tubes, but I’m a fan of loom tubes. They’re easy to wrap around a bundle of cables, they’re really cheap, and they allow you to disconnect the cables before the end of the pipe.
Your goal is not to throw all the cables into the pipe. Instead, you want to route only the cables that you will always leave plugged in. For example, if you run your entertainment center via cable, your HDMI, power cable and data cable will all go into the main cable. For a PC, your peripheral cables, data cables and display would.
Do not overfill the tube and avoid running multiple main cables if you can. Ideally, you’ll group cables of similar length together.
Secure the manifolds
Jacob Roach / Digital Trends
Most cable management tips focus on what you plug into the power strip, but a stationary power source goes a long way toward cleaning up cable clutter. There are two ways to do this, depending on where you put the manifold and how much money you want to spend.
A quick and dirty method is to put in Velcro and attach your timing belt that way. This works especially well for tables, as you can put the distributor on the underside and hide everything. I’ve used double-sided tape in the past, but I prefer velcro because it leaves less of a mess in case you need to replace the manifold.
Another option, which works well for entertainment centers, is a cable management box. These boxes are about a foot long, and you place a power strip inside and run the cables out. They cost about $20, but you can get away with any box with a few holes that can fit a splitter.
Clean races, clear mind
Jacob Roach / Digital Trends
Once your main cable is done, it’s time for everything else. For starters, find out where your cables come from. All of your power cords may go into a power strip, but they probably come from different places on your desk or media console.
This is where most cable management falls apart. You don’t want to overlap cables in such a way that one prevents you from adjusting the other. I like to separate where my cables come from into zones and group the cables together. So all my cables coming from the left side of my desk will be one pull, for example.
Hide the mess
By now you should have all your cables, now it’s just a matter of hiding the mess. There are several ways to do this, which will vary depending on the area you are trying to manage the cable:
- Wire cable supports
- Wall coverings for paths
- Adhesive cable clips
- Covers for cables in the wall
For tables, I like adhesive cable clips. Like the splitter, I mount them under the table and run the cables through the clips so I can’t see them. Wired cable management brackets are also great, especially for devices that have their own power brick. They are located under or behind your desk, and you can lay all the cables inside.
For a TV stand, you have several options depending on how much work you want to do: wall-mounted cable covers or wall-mounted covers. These channels, as they are called, are plastic covers that are attached to the wall with glue. They are easy to install, hide cables well, and can be painted to match your walls.
If you have a mounted TV and want an even cleaner look, you can run your cables through the wall. The idea is to cut a few places in the wall, cut the cable covers and pass the cables that way. If you go this route, be aware of any electrical cables that may be in your wall and contact an electrician if necessary.
Go wireless if you can
Mark Coppock/Digital Trends
Finally, go wireless if you can. Wireless keyboards and mice are fast enough that you now feel like you’re using a wire, and most are inexpensive. If you want to say goodbye to wires, the best way is to get rid of them wherever possible.
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Source: newstars.edu.vn