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Cable from pavement to House

Derwentmailman
Dialled in

I am awaiting a house move to a property in an area served by VM.  No existing VM connection from pavement to house.

My issue is that the house is surrounded by a block paving path and drive.  There is a small garden between the boundary brick wall (CATV access point marked on photo) and the front of the house.

BungalowBungalow

I would assume that a hole will be drilled in this boundary wall with the cable possibly fed up the RHS of the garden until it hits the RHS of the front path with the external brown box being located perhaps near the water butt.

1)  Would the installer just lay the exposed 1m of cabling on the top of the path inside the green tubing?

2) Assuming that the brown external box is to the RHS of the front door, would I then be able to have the connection to the internal access point (where I want the router to go) fed to a room which is on the LHS of the house next to the garage (rather than the closest room to where the external brown box is sited)?  Or am I expecting too much?

TIA 

19 REPLIES 19

goslow
Alessandro Volta

Based on the installations in my area, the default approach would seem to be along the lines of what you have written. Looks like you already have a BT point on the house wall at that location adj. the neighbour's boundary. As the customer, you should be able to decide where you want the equipment located inside. Getting the cable to that point might down to the skills of the installers.

The job is done in two phases usually. Step 1 brings the cable from the pavement to a box on the outside wall of the house. Step 2 involves running cables from the outside box to a connection box inside. If you are not at home when the external team turn up they will probably just go with the default box location you have already described.

Also, worth keeping in mind that wherever you locate the VM hub inside will influence the wireless coverage inside the house so if you place the hub in one corner of a big property, then the wireless coverage is unlikely to be that good on the opposite corner of the house.

Both you (and the installers most-likely) will want to avoid having the cable too much on show, or following a route that involves lots of digging or negotiating loads of obstacles such as door, windows and steps. Based on your photo, the cable would come out of the ground from the pavement, probably up the garden wall for a short distance and covered with a cable cover and then through the wall.

If you want the end point to be on the side of the house next to the garage, you could investigate clipping the cable to the house-side of the garden wall and running it down to the brick gate post. From there it could go back underground and run to the LHS front corner of the house. You could maybe have the external box there. The remaining cable could be clipped down the side of the house externally to the garage end. Can't see what is behind the garden wall but looks like it might partly be a bit of lawn where the cable could be buried and perhaps a small width of path in front of the house where the blocks would have to be lifted, if possible.

By some means the cable has to get from garden wall to house wall. Just a case of what means is practical, is acceptable to you on appearance and is achievable for the installers.

If VM bury any cable for you, it is likely it will only be a few centimetres below the surface and may be easily damaged in the future if likely to be disturbed. If they lift blocks or paving for your then you would be relying on their skills and abilities in re-laying them to an acceptable standard. The final outcome might depend heavily on the skills, attitudes and abilities of the individual people who turn up to do the work as well as how much time they have been allocated to do the job.

Just to add to @goslow comments...

I would really try to be in when they do the external works so that you can 'project manage'.

If it was me, I'd probably lift a row of the block paving stones on your neighbours side as a helpful guide.

If you want the internal access point on the LHS of the property then the cable will be run from the 'Omni Box' placed on the RHS on the external walls.
The problem I can see will be getting it across your front door as you seem to have some steps.
The tidiest route would be under the eaves if this is possible.

In terms of placement of the router, @goslow is correct. However, is this only Broadband or TV also?
Also, do you have a rear garden where you will want WiFi access? If so, you might want to think about getting your own WiFi mesh system.

Tudor
Very Insightful Person
Very Insightful Person

I assume you would want the omnibox box located near the white gas box. In that care I would lift some bocks up diagonally across from your marked location. From other posts on the board people have stated that installers will not lift block paving. External work is usually carried out by contractors and you do not always know when they are coming. 


Tudor
There are 10 types of people: those who understand binary and those who don't and F people out of 10 who do not understand hexadecimal c1a2a285948293859940d9a49385a2

Adduxi
Very Insightful Person
Very Insightful Person

@Eeeps wrote:

<snip>  In terms of placement of the router, @goslow is correct. However, is this only Broadband or TV also?
Also, do you have a rear garden where you will want WiFi access? If so, you might want to think about getting your own WiFi mesh system.


Personally, as it's a bungalow I would consider using PoE Wireless Access Points. These are similar to smoke alarms as they are ceiling mounted and powered over the ethernet cables. A simple PoE switch located in the roof space would do the trick.  I've done similar installs for family members and wifi coverage is excellent.  Have a look at the Unifi AC Lite range of WAP's but I've also used TP-Link EAP 225 ones with good results. 

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@goslow wrote:

If you want the end point to be on the side of the house next to the garage, you could investigate clipping the cable to the house-side of the garden wall and running it down to the brick gate post. From there it could go back underground and run to the LHS front corner of the house. You could maybe have the external box there. The remaining cable could be clipped down the side of the house externally to the garage end. Can't see what is behind the garden wall but looks like it might partly be a bit of lawn where the cable could be buried and perhaps a small width of path in front of the house where the blocks would have to be lifted, if possible.


Yes had not thought of that route - could be much better plus the brick lifting will be at a minimum


@Adduxi wrote:

@Eeeps wrote:

<snip>  In terms of placement of the router, @goslow is correct. However, is this only Broadband or TV also?
Also, do you have a rear garden where you will want WiFi access? If so, you might want to think about getting your own WiFi mesh system.


Personally, as it's a bungalow I would consider using PoE Wireless Access Points. These are similar to smoke alarms as they are ceiling mounted and powered over the ethernet cables. A simple PoE switch located in the roof space would do the trick.  I've done similar installs for family members and wifi coverage is excellent.  Have a look at the Unifi AC Lite range of WAP's but I've also used TP-Link EAP 225 ones with good results. 


Only BB needed (+phone).  The connection to my main PC will be direct to whatever router I decide to use with other devices either connected wirelessly (for tablets and smartphone)/ ethernet cable (for the smart TV) .  I would probably see how the VM hub works wirelesssly before shelling out on a router (and putting the hub into modem mode)

Will certainly look into AP's though - never considered this.


@Derwentmailman wrote:

Yes had not thought of that route - could be much better plus the brick lifting will be at a minimum


Your new home is a very smart and tidy-looking property. The default length of green VM conduit across the garden will not really be suitable so hope it all goes well and you get something fitting installed, as you want it.


@goslow wrote:
Your new home is a very smart and tidy-looking property. The default length of green VM conduit across the garden will not really be suitable so hope it all goes well and you get something fitting installed, as you want it.

Yes hope the move goes without hitches.  The back garden is a real beauty as well.

Q)  Can the green conduit piping protecting the cable to the brown omnibox be trimed to suit the length required?  Is the green pipe rigid or flexible?  Would it (the cable) be normally buried within this pipe, and the pipe then covered with soil.  Or buried within a thin slit in the grass if no soil border?

Hi, Yes the green tubing is flexible and can be trimmed to size.  Are you already a Virgin customer and have you already put an order through?

 

Regards

Rich


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