Moving Broadband connector box.

[Vormulac]

Hi folks,

I hope someone can help me with something. I have had my Telewest/VM broadband piped into a room at the front of my house for years now, and that is where the connector box thing is located (the bit screwed to the wall that the coax comes out of before it goes into the modem - see picture). I now need that box relocated to the back of the house, there is plenty of cable attached, but my question is this: Is it good old fashioned copper in there that I can disconnect and reroute, or is it fibre-optic? Also, how the devil do I get into the thing? It has two sort of male torx-type screwheads to get it open but my torx set don't fit it.
Any thoughts?

Thanks all!

 

[Woody Alan]

That is certainly a co-ax connector in view so it is unlikely to be fibre to co-ax in that box as there is no power to it . The whole system in our area is co-ax based anyway. Regarding your torx I suspect they are security torx with a pip in the centre, you need to get a set of security torx. something like this
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/9pc-OFFSET-SECURI ... dZViewItem

Edit should have said alternatively a very sharp pair of wire cutters can sometimes get a bite into the edge of those screws, if you manage to get them out, replace with ordinary ones.

Alan

 

[Racers]

Hi,

Can't you get telewest to move the box? I wouldn't be happy doing it myself and I mess with networks electronics etc. You don't know what is on the other end you could short the cable and blow up what ever is on the other end, not to mention if their is a potential difference between the cable and your house earth.

The screws are probbaly tamper-proof ones like this http://uk.rs-online.com/web/search/sear ... &R=0526748
So they don't want people accessing the box.

Pete

 

[Woody Alan]

If there was any risk regarding voltage it would be scrawled over the box. The only issue is whether you can disconnect the incoming cable without interfering with how it's made off at the connector. As long as you don't shorten it to alter the attenuation settings I don't see a problem. The worst you could do is make a poor connexion and affect some other customers, but you would know that as you'll be affected as well.
If you asked to shorten it etc I would be more hesitant but as you are just disconnecting and reconnecting I dont see a problem.
There would be a £75 charge for telewest moving it unless you say it's too much and will cease the service, if they say OK go with it and take up a new offer again.

Alan

 

[LarryS.]

I moved my NTL box (which is virtually identical), just like moving an aerial cable (it was easy).

In last house couldn't be bothered to move the box so just bought a longer connector cable and routed it from the box to the bedroom and plugged it into the computer there - that was the simplest solution.

 

[Vormulac]

Thanks for all the advice guys, I hadn't asked Telewest as I figured there'd be a fairly extensive fee involved.
What sort of connections are there inside the box, Genghis?

 

[LarryS.]

Thanks for all the advice guys, I hadn't asked Telewest as I figured there'd be a fairly extensive fee involved.
What sort of connections are there inside the box, Genghis?

From memory I think it was a simple co-ax type connection (live in a non-cable area now). Like I said easiest solution (and least messy) is to buy a longer cable and run it from the existing box

 

[George_N]

I was with Telewest up to about 4 years ago. I'm pretty sure the fibre optic cable stopped at the junction box in the street and the connection to the house was with copper co-ax.

 

[andycorleone]

is coaxial and normally with one of these:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/33PC-SECURITY-SCR ... dZViewItem


you can open almost everthing with a strange screw. I would try call telewest (virgin) if the want more than £15 I would do it my self

 

[Racers]

Hi. Woody Alan

Two earths can be at different potentials to each other but both earths, that is one reason you can’t connect two houses together with wire the earth connection can be at different voltages causing current to flow, and you don’t need much to kill you. In lightning strikes the voltage drops the further from the strike point you are the cows feel it worse because there legs are farther apart so they have a bigger potential across them. Loads of things like network cards, modems, fax machines have isolation transformers in for this reason, just because it doesn’t have a sticker on doesn’t mean its dangerous they have covered themselves by putting tamper proof screws on.
Also all BT phone cable is owned by BT you just rent the line (and the same for most cable companies) and you aren’t meant to tamper with it we have trunking with stickers on saying property of whoever.


Pete

 

[Woody Alan]

Pete Thanks for the info on lightning in cows in fields although I am not sure of the relevance. The use of isolation transformers and gas discharge modules in equipment connected to phone lines to reduce lightning damage/pathing. once again I really cannot see the relevance. And the earthing fault loop impedance is really out of my knowledge area except to say the cabinet and equipment co-ax will be earthed to the same sub station that the houses it supplies are, so unless a "serious" fault condition exists (unlikely).

Just for the record I work for BT (although we are not talking about BT ?) and have done so for 31 years as an engineer and have during that time installed more miles of co-ax and run and spliced more optic fibre than I care to recall. During all that time the only electrical incidents to my knowledge from the safety bulletins have been from overhead power cables coming into contact with our overhead cables or some plonker connecting mains to his phone line. Just as a matter of really small interest, my current job is to identify, where records are wrong, the correct routing of co-axial ccts within exchanges and sometimes we can measure the differences in the earth potential of the screens in differences of millivolts as a means of confirmation....but it hasn't killed me yet.
Now I think about it, the potential difference for a cow whether struck by lightning or standing under power lines will be between the ear and hoof wouldn't it? has nobody told them to curl up into a ball?

Alan

 

[Adam]

I'd say its co-ax and thats an "F" type connector on it. You can simply unscrew it with a pair of pliers, move the box, and connect it back up. Or extend the cable with an extension, although I'm not sure about getting an extension made up. When I had mine installed, I got the bloke to provide several extra meters of cable before terminating the cable into a connector which I duly pushed back under the floorboards, just in case I ever needed to move it.

So... if you could get an extension I very much doubt it would cause any problems as the loss would be minimal compared to other installations where the cable has to extend further from the exchange due to house layout etc.

I thought I'd seen 'F' type connectors for sale in RS components but I may be wrong.

Adam

 

[Vormulac]

Yet more good information here, thanks guys, I'm feeling more positive about getting the wretched thing open and moved now!