Moving Fibre

[nikaiyo2]

Bit of a random one…

I have a fibre link between 2 buildings, I would like to move the box from one side of a wall to another, is that possible?



This is not my installation but is the same, I have opened up the big black box and it looks like the cable comes in loops round then has grey screw in terminals to the grey cable.

Is it as simple as unscrewing the cables, moving the box then screwing them back in?

I presume it’s not that simple!

[Mr Pointy]

Neither the photo or your description is very clear but it sounds as if the incoming black cable goes into the black box & then get connected inside the box to the two round silver connectors. There is then a patch cord with round connectors on one end & square blue plastic ones on the other from the splice box to the interface.

If that's how it is then yes, you can just unscrew the round connectors on the patch cord, move the splice box & interface & then reconnect the patch cord. You need to keep track of which one goes where & be very careful not to touch the ends of the patch cord or get dust on it as the connection is very vulnerable to dust & dirt. Ideally you should clean the ends but you won't have the proper kit to do that.

[nikaiyo2]

Mr Pointy said:

Neither the photo or your description is very clear but it sounds as if the incoming black cable goes into the black box & then get connected inside the box to the two round silver connectors. There is then a patch cord with round connectors on one end & square blue plastic ones on the other from the splice box to the interface.

If that's how it is then yes, you can just unscrew the round connectors on the patch cord, move the splice box & interface & then reconnect the patch cord. You need to keep track of which one goes where & be very careful not to touch the ends of the patch cord or get dust on it as the connection is very vulnerable to dust & dirt. Ideally you should clean the ends but you won't have the proper kit to do that.

Thanks for the advice!

Haha tbh I grabbed that pic offline, expecting the answer to be “no you will break google ”

Here’s some pictures I have just taken!


This is the box.



These are the connections, that look unscrewable?

My plan is to maybe tape a plastic bag over the end of each one to protect it then pull through wall.
Can I coil the unused cable up without issue?

[Mr Pointy]

I didn't realise you meant take the connectors off the inside of the splice box - that's another level of risk as the bare fibre cores are very vulnerable. However, on the bright side they have left you the black end caps to put over the connectors to keep dust out.

The best way to move that cable is to get a piece of clear plastic tube a litle bit longer than the bare fibre cores & very carefully thread it over the connectors & fibres & then tape it to the black cable sheath. Then you aren't putting any strain on the fibre cores. You'll need a fair inside diameter to accomodate the connectors - a piece of hosepipe won't do it. This shows the principle:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KIbPQOwQ9yk

[nikaiyo2]

Thanks for the advice

Am I on a hiding to screwing this right up?

The hose looks like a great way to do it!

The splice box is inside an old wall mounted switch/ patch cabinet that is entirely redundant other than this box, I have to get the fibre out before the box can come down!

[Mr Pointy]

You just need to be extremely gentle & don't bend the fibres as you disconnect them & lower them into the tube. Hold the tube vertical & just let the fibres drop into it so nothing is strained. It's not brain surgery but you can see that the caps might cause an issue so the tube idea might need a rethink. How big is the hole you have to get the cable through?

It's perfecetly doable & you are lucky they have connectors on & aren't spliced.

[Captain_Morgan]

One of those times when I’d ask are you a fte being asked to relocate it or are you a external contractor doing it as a one off or part of other works?

Does the service owner have a support contact with the fibre provider in case it did go wrong?
What’s the impact if the fibre is disconnected for a period if it did go wrong?

Normally if you are carful it’ll be fine but if it doesn’t what’s the down side?

[_-XXXX-_]

Mr Pointy said:

The best way to move that cable is to get a piece of clear plastic tube a litle bit longer than the bare fibre cores & very carefully thread it over the connectors & fibres & then tape it to the black cable sheath. Then you aren't putting any strain on the fibre cores. You'll need a fair inside diameter to accomodate the connectors - a piece of hosepipe won't do it. This shows the principle:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KIbPQOwQ9yk

Not watched the vid but that is how pre terminated fibre is done. OP you'll be looking at approx. 30mm diameter hole. Is it a stud wall?

[Captain_Morgan]

_-XXXX-_ said:

Mr Pointy said:

The best way to move that cable is to get a piece of clear plastic tube a litle bit longer than the bare fibre cores & very carefully thread it over the connectors & fibres & then tape it to the black cable sheath. Then you aren't putting any strain on the fibre cores. You'll need a fair inside diameter to accomodate the connectors - a piece of hosepipe won't do it. This shows the principle:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KIbPQOwQ9yk

Not watched the vid but that is how pre terminated fibre is done. OP you'll be looking at approx. 30mm diameter hole. Is it a stud wall?

Not watched the video either but will add don’t forget to take bend radius into account, different fibre types have different requirements, if these are unknown then I’d take the ‘coil’ of unsheathed fibre in the box as my bend radius & not go tighter when relocating.

[nikaiyo2]

Captain_Morgan said:

One of those times when I’d ask are you a fte being asked to relocate it or are you a external contractor doing it as a one off or part of other works?

Does the service owner have a support contact with the fibre provider in case it did go wrong?
What’s the impact if the fibre is disconnected for a period if it did go wrong?

Normally if you are carful it’ll be fine but if it doesn’t what’s the down side?

We have a main building with the servers/ office in etc.

We have another building split into 2 warehouses, we dont need one of them, so are looking to let it out, as its currently about 10,000 feet with a desk and about 5 sq feet of crap in it!

The main building and warehouse are about 10m apart.

However the data cabinet is in the warehouse we want to let. We need the connection to the one we use! It is all internal so there is no external support or anything, its literally our server talking to the Fibre link.

If the worst happens I can run a CAT 5 cable in some trunking! As things stand all the "warehouse" does is send and receive barcode data so there is no great data transfer, the biggest files are about 10kb!

[_-XXXX-_]

nikaiyo2 said:

We have a main building with the servers/ office in etc.

We have another building split into 2 warehouses, we dont need one of them, so are looking to let it out, as its currently about 10,000 feet with a desk and about 5 sq feet of crap in it!

The main building and warehouse are about 10m apart.

However the data cabinet is in the warehouse we want to let. We need the connection to the one we use! It is all internal so there is no external support or anything, its literally our server talking to the Fibre link.

If the worst happens I can run a CAT 5 cable in some trunking! As things stand all the "warehouse" does is send and receive barcode data so there is no great data transfer, the biggest files are about 10kb!

If you do that be careful over mains phasing, if the two buildings are on a different phase (unlikely I'd guess, prob both on three phase) you can get some nasties when linking two machines together, should only be an issue if the CAT5 is shielded though. (it was more of an issue back in the days of coax where the machines earths would end up being linked!)

[Captain_Morgan]

Sounds like you would be okay with some down time which could reduce the impacts if it did go wrong.

It might also be worth considering p2p wireless link as a mitigation, could be easier to install if you have line of sight between buildings.

Relatively Lo-cost options from both Ubiquiti & TP-Link among others.

[nikaiyo2]

Thanks for all your help guys, gave me the confidence to give it a go.

All went well, got the cable through the ceiling just fine, apart from when I fell off the ladder :P, thankfully only hurt pride!

The cable passed through a poured concrete slab, not a breeze block as it first appeared! So I could only make a relatively small hole without really messing about.
I ended up putting the dust covers over the connectors then taping one of those old plastic coin bags over each end, then taped to a stick and poked through.

All is no re-routed and working for about a week.