Telecoms

[RichS]

So, while I'm still jumping through hoops trying to get conditions discharged and other assorted issues I have started on the services.

I have just had the gas installed as far as the remote meter box and am currently trying to negotiate a price for the electric.

My question is regarding the telecoms wiring. I know it goes in grey ducting and from what I gather this is generally provided free by Open Reach, if not I have another possible source.

From what I read on the Open Reach web site:

For all Single Dwelling Units (SDU) duct must be terminated on the external surface of the property•

The duct termination point shall be in a location that will allow unrestricted access for any future maintenance activity.

Is this still applicable or has anyone managed to just bring the ducting up through the slab directly into the dwelling, I don't envisage using BT as the provider.

Edited July 5, 2017 by RichS

[ragg987]

First I have heard of that - we just brought the duct up through the slab and Openreach happily pulled the cable through when we were ready. I recall telling them this in the original application / plan and no questions were asked at either point.

 

We put in a spare duct at the same time, just in case fibre ever makes it to our village.

[ProDave]

Depends where you are. Up here in the Highlands, Open reach still supply steel wire armoured telecoms cavle that is buried directly. the only bit I put in grey duct wa under the road crossing.  My SWA comes direct into the house with no external junction and OR just connected the master socket to it.

 

They do seem to have different local rules, but once you get your local OR surveyor to visit the site he will tell you what needs to be done to meet local rules.

[Stones]

4 minutes ago, ProDave said:

Depends where you are. Up here in the Highlands, Open reach still supply steel wire armoured telecoms cavle that is buried directly. the only bit I put in grey duct wa under the road crossing.  My SWA comes direct into the house with no external junction and OR just connected the master socket to it.

 

They do seem to have different local rules, but once you get your local OR surveyor to visit the site he will tell you what needs to be done to meet local rules.

 

Exactly the same for me, and previously when we built in Perthshire.

 

I think Openreach view SWA cable as self burying.  Various roadside installations I've seen, the cable is simply laid on top of grass and left to do its own thing...

[Gone West]

14 hours ago, RichS said:

Is this still applicable or has anyone managed to just bring the ducting up through the slab directly into the dwelling, I don't envisage using BT as the provider.

 

I am in Kent and when we originally spoke to OR they gave us the ducting and told us we could have an underground service from the pole and bring it up inside the house. By the time we wanted the line put in they had changed the rules and told us they would only install a line to the outside of the house and it had to be overhead. Needless to say we are not going to be using an OR line.

[richi]

2 hours ago, PeterStarck said:

Needless to say we are not going to be using an OR line.

What's your alternative?

[Bitpipe]

My duct comes into the basement, completely underground from pole to house.

 

On the advice of our local OR surveyor, we laid the ducting ourselves and pulled cable through to the master socket location and left a big coil at the foot of the pole (inc. a road crossing). 

 

OR were more than happy to make the connections either end. 

 

Cost about half as much as the OR quote. 

[ProDave]

OR didn't charge us a thing. They provided the cable free issue. There is something about all connections get a subsidy of about £3K and you only get charged if your connection would cost more than that.

 

I had to pay BT £65 for a "new connection" but that then got refunded because of the length of time it took them to make the connection.

 

Compared to over £1K each for water and electricity,  the telecom connection was a bargain.

[Gone West]

5 hours ago, richi said:

What's your alternative?

We're using a local company called Vfast, that use WiMAX, for our broadband and telephone using voIP.

The problem we had with OR was they originally agreed to supply an underground line then changed their minds. That was because we already have an overhead line to the bungalow in the garden of which we are building our house. So they would only supply an overhead line to the new house.

[MikeSharp01]

5 minutes ago, PeterStarck said:

The problem we had with OR was they originally agreed to supply an underground line then changed their minds. That was because we already have an overhead line to the bungalow in the garden of which we are building our house. So they would only supply an overhead line to the new house.

Sounds daft on their part to me Peter did they say why this was the case?

[Gone West]

2 minutes ago, MikeSharp01 said:

Sounds daft on their part to me Peter did they say why this was the case?

It came down to money. They wouldn't contribute towards the cost of an underground line, which we wanted, but would use the subsidy to provide an overhead line which we didn't want. The net result is they've lost a landline customer.

[curlewhouse]

On ‎05‎/‎07‎/‎2017 at 18:49, Stones said:

 

Exactly the same for me, and previously when we built in Perthshire.

 

I think Openreach view SWA cable as self burying.  Various roadside installations I've seen, the cable is simply laid on top of grass and left to do its own thing...

Actually, the Openreach guy I spoke to today told me they do call it "self burying cable" amongst themselves.

Tried to get Vodafone (who we use for mobile here, it being the best of a very poor signal from any of the others - think 2G as "best") to do our broadband and landline, but ended up in a loop where they won't give a price or let me order a connection as the house is not connected already (catch 22).... whilst Openreach provide the cable (SWA I myself am laying around our hedgeline so self burying itself in time) and are saying of course that I need a "provider" to provide the actual connection.....    After half an hour on the phone with Vodafone explaining that this is a circular argument - they wont agree to supply us without testing the speed of our connection, but how can they test a connection if they won't connect, they said that anyway, as we are a "silver" address they won't supply us!  Turns out a "silver address" is one which appears on the  post office database, but not some other databases - and they only provide to "bronze" addresses (which they say are not on any databases), and "gold" which are on all databases . It's like a blo*dy Monty Python sketch!. 

 

** Update**

Rang PlusNet who I'm currently with on a business contract (whose "special offer" lasted one payment then rocketed!)  and who I was planning to leave, and asked and they could not be more different -  "not a problem, we'll get a survey done in 2 weeks when you have the cable in and go from there".  No nonsense about Bronze, Silver or Gold addresses, but since he could see it on the post office database that's fine with them - how refreshingly sensible! £60 connection fee, which is fine too.

Edited August 2, 2017 by curlewhouse