Damaged telephone cables can disrupt both your phone & broadband Service, as well as be the root cause of intermittent faults.  If you want to maintain good broadband internet & phone services it's worth taking the time to understand a little bit about how to protect yourself against the risk of hefty service provider call-out charges.

The easiest way to start would be to consider the cable that runs from your service supplier network to your property. This cable has characteristics built into it, that will protect it from the general elements of an external environment throughout the cycles of the four seasons. Irrespective of whether the cable is routed underground or over ground it will need to have strength in several areas. These could include some of the following:-

• water resistant
• physically strong
• temperature resilient
• resistance to electromagnetic interference
• rodent resistant
• exposure to UV light

The persistent damaging effect of ultraviolet light from the sun, which over time will cause many plastic-based materials to break down & become brittle is a major factor when installing cable that runs on the outside of a property.

The relevance becomes very clear when considering the cost of cable with protective properties. The Higher costs of cable suitable for external use combined with a limited understanding of the required specification has led to many instances of internal grade cable being used for external applications. The life span of internal grade cable used for external applications is greatly reduced, in many cases something in the region of 3 - 5 years. Whereas many correctly specified external grade cables will last well over 50 years.

How can you tell if it applies to your wiring, well as a general rule the loss of protective properties of internal cable used outside will happen progressively. As such provided you have taken the time to carry out periodic visual inspections of the physical condition of your cables, there will be ample time to make arrangements for replacement and or re-routing as required.

In terms of overall cost, it's best to plan, rather than find out when you are billed by your service provider because you have reported a fault with your phone or broadband service and the fault is tracked down to wiring that is deemed your responsibility.

When the cracks appear it is just a matter of time before the effects of moisture & humidity cause service-related problems. Electrical insulation tape will not solve the problem, as it is not waterproof.

It is important to remember that if you request an engineer call-out from your service provider, you will have to accept possible charges for the minimum call-out fees, this may also be applied if no fault is found. However, if a fault is present & originates from the supplier side of the network, you will not be charged a call-out or repair fee.

Burytec can inspect all your wiring & replace or reroute as required, often for less than your service provider's call-out fee. Burytec can also help you repair issues caused by your pets or any accidents caused during gardening or building work.