Drop cable

Has anyone had the drop cable replaced from DP on Mast, Friend still has the old twin cable coming from DP ? And how much did BT charge for the change ?

Would be done for free if fixed due to a fault ...

Just moved into a property where it seems I'm the only one of my neighbours with the white twin drop cable.. everyone else has new black single cables. The house has never had FTTC only ADSL in the past apparently, will this cable affect my FTTC sync? This is what it looks like.
Twin cable

Does that cable run all the way to the nearest telephone pole?

Don't recall seeing white drop cable like that ever before, GPO/BT/Openreach cables usually have markings to identify them.

A non twisted pair cable if a significant length may affect the VDSL2 performance, a lot depends on how bad the RF noise is in the area, or put another way you will only know until you try the service out.

Edited by MrSaffron (Wed 19-Jul-17 14:15:57)

Looks like satellite coax!!

Looks like a DW3 to me (pale grey rather than white).

Or DW6 similar to what I had underground a pale grey, possibly faded.

In reply to a post by Banger:

Or DW6 similar to what I had underground a pale grey, possibly faded.

agreed looks like the underground feed I once had to a BT66, crimped to standard cable.

Thats very old drop wire and will kill BB.

Well maybe not actually kill it, but surely impair the sync through it.

It is DW3 as said, and was originally grey in colour.

It is grey against a white background, just not my darkish grey wall.

The distance to the pole is about 15m. This is what it looks like tied to the wall, it's definitely my telephone drop cable.
Drop cable

Do you think it would be replaced automatically if the OP or Binary_Digit gets an engineer install for the FTTC? (I just realised the person giving us the picture and asking about FTTC is not the OP).

Edited by RobertoS (Wed 19-Jul-17 20:16:01)

Ooo been a while since I've seen one of those cables....

YUCK

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

Do you think it would be replaced automatically?

I would hope so, actually you would hope that and CP checking the line for service provision (phone or BB) wouldn't get non engineer options.

I have an engineers visit organised to re-activate the line next week.. I guess we'll see if I get a new Drop wire or not. I've not ordered FTTC yet as I'm awaiting the above. My telephone line provider doesn't think they will replace it unless there is an actual fault.. like slow sync speed.

Is it copper cable? Remember my Grans dropwire being grey/white and it was aluminium apparently.

Why do you expect an engineer visit to re-activate a phone line?

IF you get an engineer visit during the line activation (many are just switched back on ) they really ought to replace the DW3, they are supposed to.

Oh, and yes, nice thick copper inside, there never has been aluminium dropwires.

Edited by Zarjaz (Thu 20-Jul-17 06:02:53)

Yep, DW3, and right there in your photo is their usual weak point, as it goes through the 'curly-whirly'.
The insulation goes brittle with age, allowing ingress of damp and then corrosion.

Despite being man size copper inside, it isn't a twisted pair.

Not good.

>>Despite being man size copper inside, it isn't a twisted pair.

It's actually copper coated steel.

Fair enough, that's another reason it's pants for ADSL/FTTC then.

Jeezo! Will be pushing for it to be replaced..

And to the commenter earlier.. I've been instructed to be at the property for the OR Engineer to gain access, in fact I can't remember a time when I have not had an engineer actually visit (I've moved 5 times in 7 years)
Mostly always Kelly Comms but occasionally it is an OR.

From my supplier:
'The Openreach engineer will need access to your building in order to complete the work so it is essential that you arrange access for him.'

How can you tell that from a photograph?


Some was CCS and other solid copper. I have offcuts of both here - waiting to go to the scrap yard.

Edited by MHC (Thu 20-Jul-17 12:52:56)

I have just stripped off some CCS DW3.

The OD is 0.9mm and the steel core 0.58, say 0.6mm.

Overall the cross-sectional area is 0.636 sq mm and the steel core 0.283 meaning that teh copper has an area of 0.353 sq mm

When I compare that to DW10 or 15 which have just 0.5 diameter conductors with a cross-sectional area of 0.196, the original DW3 is twice as much which would lead to lower attenuation.

Yes, it may be more prone to noise being non-twisted is there a trade off?

Does it use the steel core for overhead cable runs as the steel provides tensile strength whilst the layer of copper then provides the transmit layer?

Correct. In more modern DW10, 12, 15 there are plain annealed copper cores 0.5 mm dia (0.9 in DW12) with three separate brass coated steel support strands - normally with yellow insulation.

Nope it's copper coated steel. You would need a really thick copper wire for it to be pure copper.

Mine was replaced five years ago when a nick to the outer sheath and presumably to the copper coating caused the inner steel core to rust away on one side of the figure of eight. The final snap occurred during a storm just before Christmas. That said when I reported the problem BT claimed they had done a line test and it was fine. Even tried saying that to my face while the line was crackling like mad. In the end it worked out for me as the replacement drop wire was rerouted and I got an NTE5, which otherwise I would have needed to pay for.

I find it interesting that the OP has not appeared in this thread since making the opening post, yet three hours ago made this one.

It seems to be a habit.

You got the twists by taking it off the side of the drum and or by the action of putting it on the dropwire clamp.

Twists also help stop galloping in the wind. Hence multicore overhead cables should also be put up twisting around the suspension wire.

I am old enough to have installed that grey dropwire back in the day. It was all copper coated steel. The steel eventually rusts.They did a 3 wire version of it too for party lines.

Edited by deleted (Thu 20-Jul-17 15:21:54)

TBF, no matter what it's made of, it's pants and needs swapping out.

Thanks for all the reply's, The Twin cable comes direct from the Mast DP each side of cable has a single core with small round flat end and small wire coming from that into master socket

Sorry did not know you kept track of my posts will try and keep on top of them

Don't be so rude.

It is rather noticeable when someone starts a thread then ignores it for four days. Also rude and insulting to the many who reply.

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

Don't be so rude.

It is rather noticeable when someone starts a thread then ignores it for four days. Also rude and insulting to the many who reply.

Bit OTT

In reply to a post by BOT:

Sorry did not know you kept track of my posts will try and keep on top of them

I guess I'll just have to wait until the 27th to find out if they replace it or not. Thanks for the info people.. I'll tell him or her it is **** steel core, I know and you know it should be replaced.

When I moved to this property 11 years ago that is the wire that fed my phone. I was not on fibre then but it performed o.k.
It was replaced due to a fault mid span but I think it was the original wire when a phone was installed many many years ago.

Post deleted by JohnR

Well when we moved in here about 30+ years ago we also had the very thick 2 core grey phone cable.

It was only when we ordered Home Choice (media streaming service) many years ago that used ADSL which failed to work due to speed issues, so they had to replace the whole line from the chamber to our home and then it worked fine.

Paul

Indeed - you being the hob in this instance.

The OP started a new thread elsewhere in this "holiday time".

(S)Troll on John.

Yawn.

Edited by deleted (Sat 22-Jul-17 19:13:15)

People may have many reasons for how and why they post, and it is not your place to dictate to other posters.

OMG Home Choice, that takes me back ....

In reply to a post by Zarjaz:

OMG Home Choice, that takes me back ....

Yeah it was you guys that installed this and yeah, it was a very long time ago

That was when we got our first NTE5A Master Socket installed along with a Data Extension to the room the Set top Box was in.

They did screw up the install at first and had to come back a few days later to rectify the issue which was down to incorrect wiring at the Master Socket.

Sadly the Home Choice Service didn't last that long before it was sold off, but it was nice while it lasted.

Paul

Well we were both right and wrong.. he never came to the house but spent a few mins up the pole, replaced a few bits on the pole and left. Dodgy cable still there. It was a Kelly Coms van, didn't get a chance to speak to him as I was at work and the other half said he came no where near the house.

Although the type of cable is now not used, if there is no joints from the pole to the property then it is within quality standards and for a self install FTTC or PSTN install it can be left in situ. If it was a FTTC managed install then it should be replaced.

For any OR bods on here read ISIS doc.