Brad Rogers <brad@fineby.me.uk> wrote:On Tue, 28 May 2024 11:31:29 +0100 "mick.crane" <mick.crane@gmail.com> wrote: Hello mick.crane,Is there not some system that runs ethernet over the mains wiring or did I misunderstand it.Yes, there is. I believe you're thinking of powerline adaptors. They do require everything be on the same circuit, however.I have a powerline adapter (Devolo units). There's no such restriction, as far as I know. My powerline transmitter and receiver are certainly on different circuits.The way electrical wiring is done in the UK often means separate floors are on different circuits, and in larger properties, each floor might be on two (or more) circuits, making it difficult, at best, to get the whole building networked this way. And that's assuming ring circuits, if everything is on a radial, you're stymied.Most houses in the UK are wired to a single phase, so everything is connected together at the consumer unit and powerline works just fine. If you have a specific problem, then there are DIN rail powerline units designed specifically to be mounted in the CU to spread the signal better over ALL the circuits.
Yes and no. Most houses in the US are wired 'single phase as well... but they tap off 240vac, and then split that to two 120v 'legs'. As long as all the powerline ethernet devices are plugged into circuits on the same 120v leg, they'll talk together just fine. If they are spread across both legs... not so much. There's literally a coil of the xfmr up on the pole (or padmount) between those two sections, and it blocks HF comm waves pretty effectively.
Although... in theory... i.e. it occurs to me but i haven't tried it personally... you *might* be able to have plugs in both 'legs' connected to a switch, and be able to bridge them that way. Might be some overarching electrical/grounding considerations worth thinking about further, though. More likely the immediate 'problem' is finding two circuits conveniently close to one another physically, yet on the separate legs of the mains. Not extremely likely, and it'd probably be far easier to pursue other solutions.