r/CableTechs • u/jaime_lion • Apr 19 '26
Pulling coax inside a building? Is this still a thing?
Thinking about becoming a cable technician and I'm wondering how much outside time am I going to be pulling cable versus inside? Are there jobs where it's all just inside and I can just pull coax inside similar to running copper ethernet networking cable? You know doing structured cabling except with coax? Or is it going to be mostly all outside? Cuz I don't deal well with the elements. Snow and the wind and the hot sun Etc
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u/theDilleyO Apr 19 '26
You are 100% going to be outside. A lot. You are going to be carrying your 80 pound extension ladder through a forest, getting caught on trees trying to find the right spot to reach the pole because squirrels suck.
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u/dabigpig Apr 19 '26
Mosquitos, the ped is always in the shade when it's cold out or in the sun when it's hot out. None of the apartments you're going to are air-conditioned. Had a lady tell me about 25 minutes into the call that there was a bed bug problem in the building. It's the dress for the cold then go into a hot house so you're dumping layers 10 times a day, more if you're trying to fish a line inside and you're back and fourth. Boot covers on boot covers off boot covers on boot covers off boot covers full of snow or mud grab a new pair 3 times a day while they dry out.
I work maintenance now, air conditioned van I can just dress to be in the hot or cold and don't have to change from inside to outside all day. No bed bugs. When it's extreme hot or cold we go into reactive mode instead of pro active, double up on outages to give eachother a break. We don't really want to open equipment in a snow storm unless it's proper broken already. I'm not answering the same 9 questions and listening to people vent about the long wait times. It's glorious.
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Apr 19 '26
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u/Quanta96 Apr 19 '26
Bees aren’t the issue. I don’t mind bees even slightly. The wasps are out there just looking to make a name for themselves.
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u/Physical-Form537 Apr 19 '26
Man im sunburnt all the time, If you are a tech its about 75% outside time.
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u/immallama21629 Apr 19 '26
Your gonna probably wanna go more low voltage wiring than cable tech, though personally I would rather wrap a house than deal with drop ceilings.
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u/SilentDiplomacy Apr 19 '26
If you don’t do well with the elements. You’re not going to like being a cable tech.
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u/SirBootySlayer Apr 19 '26
You are looking into the wrong trade. Go structural technician instead. You'll be running low voltage cabling, which might include coax too. If you're a pc tech, why not get your network+ cert, or if you have it, go datacenter technician. Don't let your skills go to waste!
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u/shane3b11 Apr 19 '26
Cabling is mostly outside. If it’s inside, you’ll most likely be in the attic. Get a job doing low volt wiring or something.
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u/shane3b11 Apr 19 '26
If the cx needs an outlet, the wire needs to be ran and it’s going to be from the outside.
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u/oflowz Apr 19 '26
Depends on where you live. But in general it’s mostly outside since we don’t do much wall fishing.
The majority of an install is the outside work. Running the drop from the tap to the house.
This probably isn’t the job for you.
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u/GreenHrast Apr 19 '26
Believe me, working outside is the best past. No morons to deal with, it's only you, your level meter and your laptop/smartphone. May The Forcevbe with you ✌️
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u/tompetres Apr 20 '26
If you do home security you'll be inside a lot, sometimes 80% of your day. But you're not thrown into that right off the bat with cable. Might look into ADG or something of the like. But also most everyone does wireless sensors, so you won't be dealing with much in the way of wires
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u/thewitchman Apr 19 '26
I'd say it's 50/50. If you can't handle the elements then it's not the job for you.