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During a make-over of the front garden the main incoming cable from the street has been damaged:doh:. Can this be repaired? Replacing it is now a big no no as most of it is under tarmac (damaged part is in the middle of a flower bed).
The cable has been half cut through. All services still appear to function properly at the moment but am sure in time something has got to breakdown.
I wondered if a connector could be put in to link the cable back together in a water tight manner (just got the cable rapped with insulation tape for now).
This may be a stupid question from a not so bright person but your response would be appreciated.
Call out Virgin explain the problem make them do all the work.
Is it possible for them to do a repair?
Do they charge?
Jonnymeg
18-12-2007, 15:39
Is it possible for them to do a repair?
Do they charge?
It is possible to do a repair. I would just chop the cable in the damaged location and join it back together with decent connectors. A bit of alamgi tape will waterproof it.
Virgin will fix it for you but it is likely that they will want to do a full repull not just a fix.
There will be a charge of at least £75.
Call out Virgin explain the problem make them do all the work.
nice attitude :erm:
And when you have done that and introduced noise into the feed you may want to call VM out to do it anyway as yours and your neighbours service will probably go down the toilet at some point. If you have damaged the cable then you need to bite the bullet and get it done properly.
Who damaged it? If it's a contractor then it's their bill to pay.
Jonnymeg
18-12-2007, 16:20
And when you have done that and introduced noise into the feed you may want to call VM out to do it anyway as yours and your neighbours service will probably go down the toilet at some point. If you have damaged the cable then you need to bite the bullet and get it done properly.
Who damaged it? If it's a contractor then it's their bill to pay.
A decent join will not cause noise problems. A cable TV system is full of joints.
Any diy joint in place on the line is going to stand a very good chance of introducing problems into the local area feed unless it is done very well and no mistakes are made. Suggesting that someone do this themselves and not worrying about the possible impact on the services provided to people in the neighbourhood is ridiculous in my opinion.
nice attitude :erm:
Is it not their job? Or am I missing your point?
Virgin will do all the work but if its not Virgin's fault the cable got damaged they will charge to repair it
If I bite the bullet & get VM in what are the chances of them doing a repair? Pulling a new cable through is a big non-event.
IF they can do just a repair then that is what they will do, is the cable not in a conduit of any kind or did you just bury it?
sprattgraham
18-12-2007, 20:26
if the cable isn't in a conduit it's VM fault
Actually all depends how long ago the cable was in the ground. All new installs for the last few years have always been (or should have been) in tubing and buried deep enough not to be able to get hit by normal gardening.
My parents, however, got installed by Videotron 11 years ago and they just cut a channel with a spade and shoved it in
If it can be proved that it was a substandard install they Virgin will look at any fee charged.
If it was correct and it was still damaged then you would have to pay
I would also like to point out here that as part of the terms that everyone signs when they get cable (applied to ex-ntl and ex-telewest) you agree NOT to do anything that would stop Virgin digging up and replacing the cable
Its covered (http://allyours.virginmedia.com/html/legal/oncable/terms.html) by section M
Part 3 says:
'You agree not to do anything, or allow anything to be done, at your home that may cause damage to or interfere with the equipment or prevent use or easy access to it'
Though part 2 does say:
'We agree to cause as little disturbance as reasonably possible when carrying out any work at your home. We agree to repair, to your reasonable satisfaction, any damage that we, our agents or contractors may cause at your home'
The cable must of been installed around 10 years ago, when it was under the name Diamond Cable (in Leicester) before it was even NTL.
The point where it is damaged is right at the point where it comes in from the street, a plastic conduit starts about 6" later.
sssshhhh
19-12-2007, 11:21
As far as I am aware, if your cable is damaged, and at your request you do not want your drive dug up, they may just connect it using a gel seal pack. It basically connects the cable where it's cut using 2 f's and a barrell, the telco part is connected back together using Jelly crimp connectors. This then sits into a heavy duty plastic casing which is filled with gel to protect the connections and prevent damp etc getting in. Worth asking the engineers about if you book a call.
Nedkelly
19-12-2007, 11:22
If it can be fixed with 1 join then its ok we use a joint with a gel inside which stops water coming in .:)
One last question if I can.
I know technically only VM should do anything relating to the equipment but am sure they will want the £75.00 for doing it.
Would a qualified satellite / aerial engineer be able to do the same type of repair? If so not only would it be cheaper, it would also be a lot less pain in not having to talk to somebody on other side of world.
Nedkelly
19-12-2007, 15:10
They tend to use the push fit rf connectors not the crimp type we use .If it is a loss of service you have then we would come out and fix it free .If the cable has been cut before the conduit then there is nothing you could of done .See loads of these most of the time people have done a temp fix to get there services on before we get there .As i said before we use a gel filled coffin seal which stops water getting in when under ground .Tape tends to breakdown after a while and the telephone connectors we use (jellies or scothlocks) have a gell filled bit to stop shorts to earth .I would give us a call i the temp fix they might do might fail after a while wheile a fix we would do would last a lot longer :)
It is possible to do a repair. I would just chop the cable in the damaged location and join it back together with decent connectors. A bit of alamgi tape will waterproof it.
Virgin will fix it for you but it is likely that they will want to do a full repull not just a fix.
There will be a charge of at least £75.
Nooooooooooooo, don't do it at all, the problems caused to your service and the other people in the local network is not worth it.
Yes there might be a small charge, but when it's replaced explain where YOU want the new cable to be routed and i'm sure they will accommodate.
---------- Post added at 15:54 ---------- Previous post was at 15:52 ----------
A decent join will not cause noise problems. A cable TV system is full of joints.
Sorry but you really have no idea the amount of problems caused by this way of thinking, IT NEEDS TO BE DONE PROPERLY.
rossco555
19-12-2007, 16:06
If there was a charge fro VM, would'nt it be claimable on your house insurance?
If there was a charge fro VM, would'nt it be claimable on your house insurance?
Abit OTT claiming for a petty thing like a broken wire, would this not make the guys premiums go up?
'sollp' is very correct in saying I really have no idea on the problems that can be caused, so big thankyou for all comments.
I'm off to give VM a call to get a certain wire repaired.
lostandconfused
19-12-2007, 21:16
Abit OTT claiming for a petty thing like a broken wire, would this not make the guys premiums go up?
depends how much VM charge;)
TraxData
20-12-2007, 21:07
Any diy joint in place on the line is going to stand a very good chance of introducing problems into the local area feed unless it is done very well and no mistakes are made. Suggesting that someone do this themselves and not worrying about the possible impact on the services provided to people in the neighbourhood is ridiculous in my opinion.
Common sense and having basic DIY skills can get you a long way.
Unless you make a total balls up of it, it wont affect anything, that i can guarentee.
So if you had a BT line and that failed you would get up a ladder with some tape?
Jonnymeg
21-12-2007, 15:38
Sorry but you really have no idea the amount of problems caused by this way of thinking, IT NEEDS TO BE DONE PROPERLY.
If you re-read my post you will see that i stated 'A DECENT JOINT'. My intention was not to tell the OP to do a quick stick together with sellotape!
Common sense and having basic DIY skills can get you a long way.
Unless you make a total balls up of it, it wont affect anything, that i can guarantee.
I can guarantee that the OP will not have any RG6 connectors,barrels,Compression tool,Drop trimming device and a temporary splice kit then i can guarantee it will affect his service and others within the network.
Even installers-service tech have difficulty in doing it properly with the correct tools.
on in an hour!
21-12-2007, 20:01
I can guarantee that the OP will not have any RG6 connectors,barrels,Compression tool,Drop trimming device and a temporary splice kit then i can guarantee it will affect his service and others within the network.
Even installers-service tech have difficulty in doing it properly with the correct tools.
:clap: well said sollp. ;)
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