Cable Management

Recently, the jungle of wires around and behind my desk has been getting on my nerves.

For those of you with peripherals like speakers, an external monitor, a printer, etc, how do you keep your computer area tidy?

 

One word : tie-wrap

Seriously, tie-wrap does wonders. It shortens cables to a desired length(so you don't have excess hanging everywhere) and you have kinds of tie-wrap where you can label cables so you don't have to pull on them to figure out what it is

But yeah, tie-wrap is the first thing I do when I set up a new cubicle computer at the office.

Other things might include cable separators which basically are mostly just a thingy you attach onto the back of your desk that "separates" cables so it looks a bit more organized.

Really, there isn't much you can do to reduce the amount of cables other than by going wireless so unless you do that, the only thing you can do is shorten the cables to stop excess hanging and keep it more organized(ex: one powerbar for pure PC stuff, one powerbar for accessories, one for printers/scanners/faxes).

 

I use ties, and even a silk scarf I have (yes I know)

You can use these - Cable Ties

Or, something like this:

Velcro Cable Ties, and Tie Wraps

I'm just using them as an example thru amazon, you can prolly get them cheaper thru meritline, dealextreme, etc..but if you have Prime shipping..amazon is also a good source!

Cin...

 

Regular industrial or construction tie wrap is the best IMO. Velcro tie wraps can get used over time and the ones that lock in place are a pain to remove. Industrial tie wraps are the ones usually found in packaging so you might actually snag some for free if you look around the house lol

It's just a metal wire in a plastic casing most of the time so it's usually very durable and can be wrapped and unwrapped many times.

 

I use this type of cable tidy kit with these clamps

It comes with a tool that allows you to wrap the wires in a breeze



Theres also the spiral wrap and desk cable management

 

@Peon the Velcro Cable tie wraps are pretty decent, for use "at home". I have a friend who has those for his setup. He said they were pretty easy to use, and did the were supposed to do ~ Hide the "spidery mess"

You don't have to go with the Belkin brand, there are many options availi'!


Cin...

 

http://www.belkin.com/surgeprotection/concealed/

I did consider getting one of those Concealed Surge Protectors form Belkin to hide the numerous plugs and adaptors but I thought I'd do some DIY instead by fixing a standard multi-socket power strip underneath my desk using some MDF and small corner brackets. A few screw hooks and cable ties are then used to control the spaghetti of wires.

 

I have those plastics spiral things and they are great except when you need to get a wire out, then you pretty much have to unwind the whole thing. Make sure you do some planning and don't just slap them on there.

 

My cable management. Cut to size, then cut through the middle.

 

http://www.monoprice.com/products/subdepartment.asp?c_id=109&cp_id=10520

Can't beat those prices. Got a whole bunch with my cat6 cables a few months ago. Seems like everyone else did too, because the good ones are sold out =/

 

http://www.amazon.com/Cable-Buddy®-5-pack-Black-Organizer/dp/B00288OOQI/ref=pd_sbs_op_4

Like the name says... these guys are my 'buddies'.

 

tie wrap is one way to go. I have a roll of blue painter's masking tape. Not only can you tape together cables, but you can also make little blue flags and label the cables. Or tape the cables to a table leg.

Masking tape baby.

 

That sounds a bit messy to me . . if you ever need to remove or add a cable then you'd have to peel it all off leaving that sticky crap collecting dirt and junk. But i'm anal about that kinda stuff . . i prefer to use cable ties and velcro tie wraps, if i'm gonna do it i wanna do it right . . nice and neat.