Clear tubing for fibre cable?

Circet are busy in the street, up poles, down inspection pits, splicing etc. FTTP is coming.

I'm hoping to persuade the installer to put the CSP in a boarded list loft.

To help with the install from the CSP to the ONT I was thinking of using this clear tubing with a draw string https://www.amazon.co.uk/Dcizlont-Clear-Plastic-Tubi... , suitably fixed to walls, rafters in the loft. Most conduit may be rigid but this is flexible.

Is this a bad idea?

Thanks

Not sure what a ‘list loft’ is ?

The CSP is most commonly fitted externally* for Openreach installations. Then a cable is run from the ONT to CSP and spliced through.




*There will be plenty of anecdotal tales of CSP’s sited in weird and wonderful places, by accommodating installers. The norm however is as described above.

Your tubing looks too tight. And how are you going to get a drawstring in there?

I fitted some 20mm conduit in my loft. Does the job nicely (the joints aren't glued to make it easier). I suspect that anything narrower might be asking for trouble. Sure it will be do-able, but might be annoying at the same time!

The internal diameter was 10mm but maybe I need to look at a larger diameter.

I could look at some round rigid conduit and leave the joints unsealed.

@zarjaz, the copper drop line enters the loft at the eaves. I was hoping the fibre would follow the same path hence thinking of the CSP in the loft, instead of fibre travelling down, to the CSP and then back up the wall.

I think you’ll have to cross your fingers you get an accommodating installer then.

10mm might be a bit tight by my reckoning too.

The internal fibre from my CSP to ONT is no more than 1mm diameter.My run was 18m and was mostly glued to the corner between ceiling and wall with a couple of holes drills through walls.
Difficult to see !
Excess fibre rolls up into a surface box with short fibre "lead" to ONT

My CSP is in the loft and te CSP to ONT is around 1m.

I had a sub-con do mine and had pre-installed conduit from soffit, through first loft and into the second.

In reply to a post by MHC:

My CSP is in the loft and te CSP to ONT is around 1m.

I had a sub-con do mine and had pre-installed conduit from soffit, through first loft and into the second.

I refer the learned gentleman to my first reply to the OP

https://forums.thinkbroadband.com/fibre/t/4783611-re...

In reply to a post by rarrar:

My run was 18m and was mostly glued to the corner between ceiling and wall with a couple of holes drills through walls.

I would not have "glued" it, as you are causing issues in the event of it needing to be replaced - a job and a half, and if its a OR bod, they will probably lay a new one. or is this your own kit

In reply to a post by rarrar:

Excess fibre rolls up into a surface box with short fibre "lead" to ONT

from the above it seems you have added your own kit to the ont.

Edited by Taras (Sun 14-Dec-25 10:09:36)

I would say that @rarrar is not referring to normal residential installations but in flats (MDUs) where Openreach and others use Invisilight fibre which is very thin and glued in place.

In usual standard installations the incoming fibre is much thicker and difficult to get around corners and doorframes. In my case the ONT was near the front door with no mains socket nearby. I was able to put in a hidden ethernet cable to the router around the edge of the floor through an under stairs cupboard to my office. ONT powered from my POE switch.

In reply to a post by Realalemadrid:

I would say that @rarrar is not referring to normal residential installations but in flats (MDUs) where Openreach and others use Invisilight fibre which is very thin and glued in place.

In usual standard installations the incoming fibre is much thicker and difficult to get around corners and doorframes. In my case the ONT was near the front door with no mains socket nearby. I was able to put in a hidden ethernet cable to the router around the edge of the floor through an under stairs cupboard to my office. ONT powered from my POE switch.

yes mdu installs from OR uses invisi link (spelling) which is glued. But in a normal install do not glue the cable to the wall it is still OR's property.

On the plus side, initial faulting becomes easy … no light at the ONT ? Put your light source on there, and see which bit of wall is glowing red.

In reply to a post by Zarjaz:

On the plus side, initial faulting becomes easy … no light at the ONT ? Put your light source on there, and see which bit of wall is glowing red.

😂

Welcome to the red light district of upper Southampton(random city chosen)!!!!!

Residential house install by altnet WeFibre.
Didnt need any special pleading etc.
I suppose its down to what the installers will do.

In reply to a post by rarrar:

Residential house install by altnet WeFibre.
Didnt need any special pleading etc.
I suppose its down to what the installers will do.

Yeah if the installer did that then its a different matter. Basically i was refereing to basically - installer glues its ok, otherwise if its a customer then thats really a nono (for mass general public)

Thanks for all the feedback and advice.

I've examined my existing internal conduit which comes from the loft to floor level on the 1st floor and contains the copper feed for the existing broadband. There's a tight bend that may not be suitable for fibre. I think fibre (Ezbend) needs a bend radius which is similar to a £2 coin.

I live in a terraced house where the 1st floor rooms straddle an alley way. The next door neighbours current copper feed comes from the fascia, down the front wall, along the alley way and then enters a rear room.

Could/would an installer consider a similar option for fibre? Drop fibre cable down the wall, through the alley way, CSP located at the rear at ground level, whole drilled for the cable to the ONT.

I tend to over think (some say I worry too much), but I always like to think things through.

Openreach had stopped using EZ bend cables a few years back. Favouring an ‘inside out’ cable.

The bend radius we were told for the cabling was a 50 pence piece (based on staff being unlikely to have a £2 coin)

Over thinking indeed. All you can do is ask. Be prepared for a reply you don’t want.

In reply to a post by Zarjaz:

All you can do is ask. Be prepared for a reply you don’t want.

Sadly good advice.. Thats not being harsh on in field or bods

Install scheduled for 5 Jan.

Thanks everyone.

Despite sub zero temps, 2 guys from "M Group" arrived and installed with the help of some coffee but didn't want biscuits.

Cable ran down one side of the bay window, the across at just above ground level to the other side of the bay, connected to CSP, and then down the shared covered alley to the rear before entering a rear room. No fuss.

One of them tried to get my (now old) BT SH2 working on a non BT FTTP - but I pointed out I had my own router.

All appears fine, BQM setup for IP_V4 but having trouble with IP_V6. Seen this: https://www.thinkbroadband.com/guides/broadband-qual... but is there some magic?

Running OpenWRT

Resolved.

I used the ip returned from the tracert tool

https://www.thinkbroadband.com/tools/traceroute

It isn’t resolved.

How do I find the correct ipv6 address?

I think Openwrt is using a virtual interface called “wan_6”

Perhaps I need to add the settings for ipv6 manually.

I will look at it tomorrow

In reply to a post by BarkingMad:

Resolved.

I used the ip returned from the tracert tool

https://www.thinkbroadband.com/tools/traceroute

That tool gives you the client address.

In reply to a post by BarkingMad:

It isn’t resolved.

How do I find the correct ipv6 address?

I think Openwrt is using a virtual interface called “wan_6”

From a Linux client you can do

sudo traceroute thinkbroadband.com -6

There is hopefully a windows equivalent

Edited by DFScale (Mon 05-Jan-26 21:54:15)

In reply to a post by DFScale:

From a Linux client you can do

sudo traceroute thinkbroadband.com -6

There is hopefully a windows equivalent

tracert -6 thinkbroadband.com