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Columbia Montour Amateur Radio Club

               
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Power over Ethernet (PoE) - optional

Power over Ethernet allows you to connect to and power your router using a single LAN cable.  You need a pair.  One is a 'power injector' and one is a 'splitter'.  The injector supplies the voltage, the splitter provides a power out jack to tap the voltage and power the router.

You can extend ethernet cables to 100 meters (328 feet).  Ethernet cable will usually have 2 spare wires that can be used to send power to a variety pf devices, including your new node.

 

Active PoE

In an active PoE system you have a main power supply that can send a variety of voltages over the LAN cable.  The power supply is located at one end of the cable as an 'injector', and the 'splitter' at the other end taps that voltage and makes it available for the device.  Some active 'injectors' use a 48 volt power supply, and convert the voltage at the 'splitter' to obtain 12, 9 or 5 volts.  You can send a higher voltage with less current so this makes sense.  Be sure your cable is capable of handling current requirements for your devices.

This system is desirable if you want to power a 12 volt router and a 5 volt web cam for example.  Use an active injector on one end and a  PoE hub with splitters at the other end.  One splitter set to 5 volts for the camera, and one splitter set to 12 volts for the mesh node router.  You usually want to buy these together as matched equipment to avoid any confusion.

 

Passive PoE

If you only plan to power your mesh node router you do not need an expensive voltage selectable pair.  You can use cheap 'passive' injector/splitters.  Passive injector/splitters are not self powered.  You plug your existing 'wall wart' for the LinkSys router into one end, and tap the power with a jumper plug from the other.  Why buy a more expensive powered unit when you already have the power supply?

Power over Ethernet is a great way to stuff your node into the attic and provide power and access with one wire.  It is also a great option for using outdoor enclosures where running separate power and LAN connections may be a pain in the you know what.

Cheap passive injector/splitters are about $5 on Amazon...

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002QXUE78/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Buy 2 for each router.  You need one for each end of the LAN cable.  You will need to make a power jumper cable for the splitter end.