In reply to a post by F00tS0re:

just 3 houses on a 3/4 mile dead end road

We are similar - 4 houses up a dead end. Unlike you, our lines are overhead for about 1km until they enter the village then about 500m underground to the cabinet at the cross (then an unknown distance to the AN).

Has anyone had a quote for mostly overhead so we can compare the cost relative to underground?

Cheap. My brother has had his desktop quote. Similar country lane and distances to mine, edit: except all overhead lines. Initial desktop quote was £6500-ish. Compared to my initial quote of £29k+VAT followed by real quote of £12500+VAT.
He is waiting for survey after paying £250 fee. With a grant to come off and hopefully a discount from desktop to surveyed his could become really reasonable.

Nailing a fibre cable to some posts has got to be cheaper than trenching and ducting.

Edited by F00tS0re (Tue 04-Dec-18 18:10:14)

In reply to a post by F00tS0re:

As the job progresses I get more and more greedy. I know they run multiple fibres to the premises, is it possible once installed to have a second ONT installed using one of the other fibres with a second FFTP connection?

If you get the newer '1 stage' FTTP install (most likely) then they will run a connectorised (pre-made) fibre cable from the DP direct to your single LAN port ONT. However you could kindly ask the Openreach bod on the day of the internal install if they could supply you with the 4 port older ONT which supports multiple FTTP lines. Otherwise Openreach would swap out the single port ONT with a 4 port ONT at a later date after you have placed the 2nd FTTP order.

Alternatively, like i did, you may get fibre blown from the DP to your premises which is usually 4 fibre strands in 1 tube - this will terminate at a Customer Splice Point (CSP) outside. From there they splice 1 fibre strand to a lead-in fibre cable which terminates at the ONT. The remaining 3 fibre strands are kept as spares in the CSP all nicely coiled up. TBH i don't think you will need any of the 3 spares as the single live fibre strand supports at least 4 FTTP lines.

This is my fibre CSP:
https://i.postimg.cc/tJwXB3vB/IMG-001.jpg
https://i.postimg.cc/8PfkjYs9/IMG-002.jpg

4 port ONT:
https://i.postimg.cc/WpHbpVp0/IMG-004.jpg

Internal guts of the CSP:
https://i.postimg.cc/tT1RWv2s/IMG-0360.jpg
https://i.postimg.cc/Kvhc3NLY/IMG-0361.jpg
https://i.postimg.cc/fymwgt4Z/IMG-0362.jpg
https://i.postimg.cc/9X7FfSDS/IMG-0363.jpg
https://i.postimg.cc/RV1S7HQL/IMG-0364.jpg

In reply to a post by baby_frogmella:

It might be that your nearest agg node is close to the exchange but your line will still connect to an agg node.

I've commented on it a couple of times in the past but in some cases, particularly in very rural areas, the local FTT* infrastructure is fed directly from the exchange.

In areas of the Scottish Highlands for example, some FTTC cabinets aren't fed by Aggregation Nodes placed between or near cabinets, but directly from the exchange.

Wether they use the same Aggregation Nodes placed inside the exchange, or in underground chambers on/near the exchange grounds in these cases, I have absolutely no idea.

In reply to a post by j0hn83:

In reply to a post by baby_frogmella:

It might be that your nearest agg node is close to the exchange but your line will still connect to an agg node.

I've commented on it a couple of times in the past but in some cases, particularly in very rural areas, the local FTT* infrastructure is fed directly from the exchange.

In areas of the Scottish Highlands for example, some FTTC cabinets aren't fed by Aggregation Nodes placed between or near cabinets, but directly from the exchange.

Wether they use the same Aggregation Nodes placed inside the exchange, or in underground chambers on/near the exchange grounds in these cases, I have absolutely no idea.

But I was under the impression that exchanges in very rural areas aren�t equipped for FTTx services and instead rural fibre lines terminate at the nearest head end exchange which can be many many miles away? Unless BT/Openreach have recently upgraded rural exchanges to support FTTx lines at the same time as upgrades to 21CN (adsl2+)?

But I was under the impression that exchanges in very rural areas aren�t equipped for FTTx services and instead rural fibre lines terminate at the nearest head end exchange which can be many many miles away

Generally yes
The head-end can still be very rural though.

Most assume all small rural exchanges are fed by larger urban exchanges but that's a massive over simplification.
Some areas of the country OpenReach has smaller "child" exchanges that link to a larger "parent" head-end exchange.
Some areas it's the opposite and larger exchanges are fed from a smaller head-end.

OpenReach haven't used the 1 size fits all for the whole country. That makes sense as every area is different.

I think Aggregation Nodes cater for around 1400 homes?
Maybe in more rural areas the exchange is a more central location for an Agg Node than near a distant cabinet? or if there's nowhere near 1400 homes perhaps they do things different? I'm Speculating here, I don't know the specifics.

It's not impossible that the poster above is being fed his fibre from NGA equipment at/near his exchange, as he was advised a number of times.

The Agg Node might simply be in a chamber outside the exchange.

If I see the team again I'll see if they can give me any further info on kit/equipment. But if it connects to Agg Node then most likely it will be connected to an Agg Node, either in/on/nearby exchange.

The surveyor, the notes supplied by Cereberus, the update that stated they had a reroute sorted to avoid the high street, and the guys stating it was a 2km+ pull all point to the fact that the fibre is headed to the exchange. If will be connected to a thing, located in a thing, connected to other things!
The DP will likely go in the box in the verge, then a 200m -ish run into the greenhouse (ducting installed under greenhouse floor) for the CSP, and straight through the wall to put the ONT right next to the server cabinet. 200m run possibly excludes pre made connecterised install from DP.

Now to upgrade the Draytek 2860 which seemingly only has 150MB throughput (300MB total split in/out). Never thought I would have that problem. As we use UniFi for hotspots, and end switches I most likely will go for USG-Pro-4 (the extra cost over the USG is small so may as well have the extra processing power). New toys!

In reply to a post by F00tS0re:

Yup pretty much.
£12.5k+VAT (reclaimed) less grant at £3000, so I forked out just less £10k.
- parts for my dig, plus their labour to connect my duct to their ground box.
- 242m of duct (according to roadworks.org) laid by contractor
- then there is existing ducting laid for about 1-mile to the edge of town that won't have been touched for a while. They carry the risk on this and would need roping and inner duct laying according to survey (see below).
- then a further 1-mile back to the exchange which is where they say it is running to. Acknowledging that it may be connected to Ag node in the vicinity of the exchange.

In the country the drawings don't match reality (which resulted in my phone line being cut last year as it was on the other side of the road to everyone else!)
I would add that since it was surveyed they have spent weeks in town running fibre for the new housing estate which is on the route. This may have partially cleared my route.
Some other work related to wayleaves since survey also meant they had already moled a duct under my tarmac road/entrance way which previously wasn't ducted. This would have been on my list.
The team on the ground currently believe there are 2 spare inner ducts in a 4-way from neighbours but they aren't scheduled to use this for some reason. The have said they could blow fibre down this from 240m away from me.

They carry the risk on blocked ducts which is possible. 'We' cut the verges in enormous tractors and trample all over them in heavy goods vehicles. I won't feel out of the woods till this whole lot is rodded and roped back to town.

Distance to exchange is roughly 2.5miles by shortest route on road.

Don't suppose I'll a refund!

Can I please ask what size duct (96mm, 54mm or some other size) Openreach supplied for your part of the dig (last 210m)

In reply to a post by dect:

Can I please ask what size duct (96mm, 54mm or some other size) Openreach supplied for your part of the dig (last 210m)

54mm

3m lengths with a push fit into each end. Would have rather had a roll than 67 lengths but suspect they don't issue rolls to end customers!

Openreach were spotted this morning somewhere down the lane staring into hole. Wife said digging holes but presumably just digging joint box out. Looks likely they are working their way backwards towards civilisation.

In reply to a post by baby_frogmella:

Alternatively, like i did, you may get fibre blown from the DP to your premises which is usually 4 fibre strands in 1 tube - this will terminate at a Customer Splice Point (CSP) outside. From there they splice 1 fibre strand to a lead-in fibre cable which terminates at the ONT. The remaining 3 fibre strands are kept as spares in the CSP all nicely coiled up. TBH i don't think you will need any of the 3 spares as the single live fibre strand supports at least 4 FTTP lines.

Did they push/pull the fibre tube through the duct first then blow the 4 fibre strands down the fibre tube afterwards or did they blow them all through together?