Home Theater Wire Labels

[VandyCWG]

Hey fellow DBSTalker's....

I am looking for a cheap'ish solution to labeling my wires in my new AV closet.

I see the heat shrink label printers, but those are expensive for 14 - 20 labels. Anyone know of a cheaper solution?
Or does any one have a label printer that would help me out?

Thanks!

[davring]

Here is what I use for all wiring:

http://www.shop3m.com/80611424609.html

[Chris Blount]

I purchased a label maker at a local office store. Cheap and it works fine especially if everything will be indoors.

[VandyCWG]

Chris; (great name btw, mine too!)

I didn't think about that, maybe I will try a label maker. I just wanted something more than masking tape personally. Just trying to make it look nice and all.

[rudeney]

I use a P-Touch labeler. I print the text twice before cutting the label off. I then wrap it around the wire perpendicularly and let the printed parts stick to themselves back-to-back. The only problem I've had is that the labels are thermally reactive. When kept in a warm place, like an equipment cabinet or rack, the print tends to fade. When kept in a hot place, like an attic, the entire label turns black (or whatever color the "ink" is).

An alternative would be to buy a sheet of inkjet labels. The waterproof shipping labels work well. Print them on the computer and cut them to any size you need.

[BattleZone]

When doing custom wiring jobs (head ends, commercial installs, etc.), I use "flag"-type zip ties. You can either use a Sharpie or a label maker to label the cables, but the zip tie makes them easier to access and allows you to bundle groups of cables together.

http://www.actfs.com/CatalogImages/ID-Ties.jpg

I was able to find the ones I wanted on eBay for fairly cheap in bulk. They are similar to the white one, second to the left, where the flag hangs off the end, except that the flag is parallel to the zip tie instead of perpendicular. The flag itself is about 1.25" long and about half an inch wide. The zip tie itself is narrow and only about 4" long, but that's plenty most wiring jobs.

IMO, you don't want the ones where the flag is in-line with the zip tie, like the the other four pictured here, as it's hard to read them and you may not be able to close the zip tie enough.

Okay, I found a better picture:

http://www.nelcoproducts.com/shopping/images/blank_flag_6in_big.jpg

[VandyCWG]

I like the ziptie idea..

I found them in bulk, my issue is, I only need 2 dozen or so.....

I am down to a label maker or these....

Thanks for all of the suggestions!

[Yoda-DBSguy]

Here's what I used back in the day before I got too darn tooting sufisticated:

http://www.hamlinkonline.com/images/Tape.jpg
hamlinkonline.com/product_info.php?products_id=39

[BattleZone]

https://www.cabletiesunlimited.com/cs.php?f%5B0%5D=sha&sl%5Bbr%5D%5BNR%5D=2&sl%5Bbr%5D%5BSR%5D=1&sl%5Bbr%5D%5BcgID%5D=13

Here's a 100-pack for under $3...

[Richard King]

Back in the days when I was in the pro audio business we used the 3M labels shown in Post #2 above. We would apply them to the cable and then put clear heat shrink over them and shrink them in place. Worked very well and was very permanent and neat.

Edit: We also used these guys in the same method: http://www.bradyid.com.sg/web/SiteBuilder/ISST-SISBv1r0.nsf/FLV/Preprinted+Wire+&+Cable+Marker+Cards

If I were doing it today, at home, on my system, I would probably just print labels on my printer and do the clear heat shrink on that.