Want a job doing well?

[adamnreeves]

I reported a brandband problem yesterday after weeks off an intermittent service it finally went off permanently yesterday.

However I had noticed that when my wife was on the phone the broadband would come up! She spends a lot of time on the phone but not as much as I spend on the internet so not a workable solution really  

Anyway I did some googling and apparently this is like the old static on the line problem, dry joints somewhere between your house and the exchange, usually at spliced junctions.

why does taking the phone off-hook make broadband work, well taking the phone off hook uses a lot more current than the broadband modem does so this overcomes the resistance of the dry joint and then provides a path for the current for the router, simple really.

I had to wait for BT to check the wiring so I thought I'd check the wiring on my side, in sockets, etc. no problems there. I then ventured into the BT box on the outside of my house! This was a different story, wires everywhere. The connecting wires were just wrapped together and a bit on insulation tape cover the joint. This tape fell off and as the box is not exactly water tight the joint had oxidised quite badly, the copper was black. So I cut back twisted together, got my soldering iron to make a proper joint covered liberally with electrical jointing sealant.

not sure I am allowed to do this, but my broadband works now and my phone line is clear.  

[carpetstu]

I had the same problem at work last week.

Called BT who "threatened" to charge me a call out fee if they couldn't find a fault!  

Sure enough the numpty engineer called out and before getting his screwdriver out repeated the threat!

Guess what - yep no fault!!

I then pulled out the ace card. I requested he did a full pairing test while using the Hawk test gadget he had on his van to to a line check.

I think at this point he nearly shat himself, as he realised I wasn't average joe public that he was going to throw a £200 bill at. I pointed out I already knew it was an external fault (ie their problem) and my brother is a head engineer for BT and had already told me what they would try it on!

Surprise Surprise he found the fault after that!

Be warned BT engineers are instructed to bill first then fix.    

P.S. he didn't get offered a cuppa or biscuits either. That will teach him for trying to con me!  

[Man On The Clapham Omnibus]

I had a similar - well sort of - problem at my son's flat in south London. He kept getting micro power interruptions and it affected the whole flat but wasn't reproduceable so I spent a couple of hours with a meter and neon tester waiting for it to happen. An engineer from the supplier would have declared it A1 and charged a fee and I wanted to avoid that. During the few seconds that it was out the neon tester stayed lit and the live supply had 240Vac on with respect to earth. After a couple of episodes I noticed that the meter showed the break across a 13A outlet but not at the fusebox where I had the neutral probe clipped to the casing (grounded). My suspicions were aroused that we had a neutral fault so when the lights went out the next time I had my meter on neutral and earth and neon tester on the neutral conductor rather than live. Sure enough they both registered 240Vac on the neutral wire when the lights were out. When nothing was switched on in the flat at all this didn't happen which showed that any resistive load like an ordinary lightbulb (incandescent) was passing the live voltage through to the neutral line in the flat but it wasn't being held to whatever voltage the Company's neutral line sits at - usually a volt or two only. As this existed right up to the company's incoming connection the fault had to be outside the flat so I opened the building's communal meter cupboard, found the relevant meter and found that the incoming neutral cable was almost hanging out of the terminal. A tweak with a big screwdriver and it's been fine ever since!

How long would it have taken for Southern Electric to find that?  

[pistonbroke]

about 1/2 inch  

Ive had similar run ins , the latest with a plummer who tried to con us with price of a "special" and "very difficult to get hold of  ,  has to be ordered in specially for you sir" 28 x 15 mm mains supply stop dangler !

further to which  because this pattern was no longer available I would require another "specialist part" oredered in , an "adapter " to change from  28 to 15 mm .

His face was a picture when I suggested that to save him that time and trouble sourcing them , that I would supply the parts and he then charge for fitting them, as I knew someone who could supply me that same day.

Like any of half a dozen plummers supplies in the area  

[Norman Verona]

Many years ago, I seem to remember it just beforev a recesion, we had a SAAB dealer near Aylsebury wheer we couldn't get connected via the dial up modem (75 /300 in those days -broadband had something to do with women)

BT said nothing wrong must be in your building.

So i went up to see if I could find anything. As I walked from the car park I noticed a birds nest up a pole in the car park. The telphone wire pole!

Carfully moved nest to the adjacent tree (no eggs), cleaned the bird crap off the connections and the modem worked.

[dombanks]

Afraid it's a sign of the times... People/companies need to make money so will "try" it on if they think your gullible. Having said that it's always happened my mum needed a new front tyre on her 18month old sierra (many years ago) kwickfit got it on the ramp  and claimed it needed new discs pads wheels bearings and track rod ends and that they couldn't possibly allow her to drive the car away when she said to get the car off the ramp. I think when she said she'd call ford and ask them to recover it to their garage they backed down and let her take the car away .... Without the new tyre I light add that they hadn't said needed replacing

[Man On The Clapham Omnibus]

Don't get me started on British Gas heating maintenance blokes - I won't say 'engineer' or even 'technician' - it's be an insult to those jobs.

If anyone really wants details I'll explain, but you'll regret it...