I hear you on the mesh wifi—mine was useless once it hit the metal siding too. I’m curious, did you use regular Cat6 or go for the direct burial stuff? I keep seeing people say you need the gel-filled cable, but that stuff’s pricey. I’m tempted to just run cheap ethernet in some conduit and call it good. Not sure if I’m overthinking it, but I’d rather not spend more than I have to.
Title: No more dead zones: how I got wifi in my backyard shed
Honestly, I’ve wondered the same thing about the gel-filled stuff. Every time I look it up, it feels like overkill unless you’re literally burying the cable with no conduit at all. I’ve run plain Cat6 through PVC before and it’s been fine for years, but that was in a spot that didn’t get much water pooling. Are you planning on running it above ground or digging a trench? If you’re using conduit and can keep water out, I don’t see why you’d need to pay extra for the fancy cable. Always seems like there’s a “must-have” upsell in this hobby...
I get where you’re coming from, but I’ve actually seen a few cases where regular Cat6 in conduit didn’t hold up as well as folks hoped—especially if the conduit wasn’t perfectly sealed or shifted over time. Even a tiny bit of water getting in can cause issues down the line, and it’s not always obvious until you start having weird connection drops months later.
I know the gel-filled stuff feels like overkill, but if you’re already going through the hassle of trenching and running cable, sometimes that extra layer of protection is worth it for peace of mind. PVC is great, but it’s not invincible—roots, critters, or even just ground settling can crack it. Had a client once who thought their run was bone-dry, only to find out a year later that condensation had built up inside the conduit.
Not saying everyone needs to go full industrial-grade, but sometimes the “upsell” is just insurance against headaches you don’t want to deal with later. Just my two cents...
That’s a really fair point about the conduit not being a perfect solution. I’ve had similar surprises—thought I did everything right, only to find out later that ground movement let in just enough moisture to mess with things. It’s frustrating when you’ve put in all that effort and then have to troubleshoot weird dropouts months down the line.
I used direct-burial gel-filled Cat6 for my shed run, and honestly, it felt like overkill at the time. But after seeing how unpredictable things can get underground (especially with our freeze-thaw cycles), I’m glad I did. The cost difference wasn’t huge compared to the peace of mind, especially since running a new cable would mean digging everything up again... and nobody wants to do that twice.
PVC conduit is a decent first defense, but yeah, it’s not foolproof. Critters and roots are sneakier than you’d think. If anyone’s on the fence, I’d say if you’re already trenching, it’s worth spending a bit more upfront to avoid headaches later.
- Honestly, I’ve seen too many “sealed” conduits fill up with water after a couple seasons.
- Direct-burial gel cable isn’t overkill if you want it to last—especially with shifting soil and critters chewing through stuff.
- I’d add: if you’re already digging, throw in a pull string or even a spare conduit. You never know what you’ll want to run out there in five years.
- Not a fan of relying on conduit alone. It’s just not a guarantee, no matter how careful you are.
- The upfront cost is minor compared to the hassle of re-trenching. Learned that the hard way once... never again.
