ChrisW
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| posted on 9/7/08 at 05:15 PM |
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Anyone work for BT?
As subject really!
Bit of background first:
Having loads of problems with my phone line, not that I ever use it for calls. I'm less than half a mile from the exchange, but I get really
bad ADSL speeds, and every time someone rings the landline (which just has a fax machine on it) the ADSL connection hangs.
All my voice calls, both for the business and personal, go out via VoIP. However, if I plug a regular phone into the line, it crackles away like a
bonfire.
I've tried all the obvious stuff (yes, I do have a reasonable amount of technical knowledge on the subject, having owned an ADSL ISP for a
while!), new microfilters, test socket, blah blah blah.
I've discovered that the line into the block of appartments is aluminium, and it's a rather convoluted route to get to my flat - goes
through a master drop point, then to a slave, also connected via aluminium. I've run a new (copper) cable from my flat down to the sub drop box
which improved things slightly. I also tried punching a socket directly into the main drop box, and it was even better (but still not great) but
obviously I can't leave the router sat in the corridor outside someone else's flat, nor run Ethernet from there up to my flat.
Now, here's the question! I'm told BT will replace aluminium cabling if you can get hold of the right person to report it to. Apparently
there are "SPI's", special premises investigators, that can decide that it really is aluminium and make arrangements to have copper
installed instead. However, nobody seems to be able to put me in touch with one of these people.
So... any BT, or ex-BT people... who do I need to call to get hold of one of these SPI people? Or, what can I say to customer services to get them to
put me through?
Cheers, Chris
[Edited on 7/9/2008 by ChrisW]
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speedyxjs
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| posted on 9/7/08 at 05:28 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by ChrisW
Or, what can I say to customer services to get them to put me through?
Youl need to take about a week off in order to have engough time to get through to them! 
How long can i resist the temptation to drop a V8 in?
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phoenix70
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| posted on 9/7/08 at 05:43 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by ChrisW
However, if I plug a regular phone into the line, it crackles away like a bonfire.
Cheers, Chris
[Edited on 7/9/2008 by ChrisW]
Hi Chris,
Not sure of changing to Copper will make that much on a difference, but if you hear a lot of crackling on the line when a normal phone is plugged,
then you should be able to get BT to fix it and hopefully that will also resolve your ADSL problem. If there is a high level of noise on the line
then report it as a fault and they should come out and fix it.
P.S. I've got a similar problem with my ADSL but mine is down to being miles away from my exchange.
Cheers
Scott
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Jackman
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| posted on 9/7/08 at 06:12 PM |
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Once you have taken the week of and got though dont forget you cant speak to them in english as they dont understand you!
GOOD LUCK!
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splitrivet
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| posted on 9/7/08 at 06:37 PM |
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Im an independant Telecoms engineer Chris and could write a book on how bad BT are getting.
Changing to copper wont make any difference.
It sounds like you have an underground fault or a bad connection in a DP somewhere en route. Go to the first box in your premises if you have
extensions undo the 2 screws holding the lower half of the faceplate the lower half will then unplug any extensions will be wired to the rear of this
lower half. Plug your handset into the socket thats now revealed via a Broadband filter if it still crackles its definately the line, ring faults (154
from a business line) do it between 9 to 5 otherwise youll get the call centre in India and let them hear it crackle. This way you'll stand a
good chance of getting it sorted, if your with an alternative provider or its a domestic line god help you.
Ive just spent since Monday morning trying to get a BT engineer to switch a clients lines back on who moved premises 100 yds. BT finally got his line
working at 4 PM today and we are still waiting for his Fax/Broadband the job was appointed for last Friday.
This is not a one off every job we have done that involves BT over the last 12 months has given us similar hassles.
If your fax is a Hewlett Packard try disconnecting it, I seem to remember having problems with these and B/B
Cheers,
Bob
[Edited on 9/7/08 by splitrivet]
I used to be a Werewolf but I'm alright nowwoooooooooooooo
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David Jenkins
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| posted on 9/7/08 at 06:44 PM |
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I had a load of hassles with BT over a line problem - mostly due to the incompetence of their contractors. I kept a note of every call I made (there
were many). Eventually I called Oftel and complained: they gave me a reference number and an Ipswich telephone number - when I rang I found out that
it was the local service manager, who was NOT impressed when he read the history of the problem. The phone was fixed within a few days.
I'm not saying that this is the answer for you, but you never know...
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stevebubs
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| posted on 9/7/08 at 06:48 PM |
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Chris,
As per David's recommendation, if you've persued it via BT without success, I'd raise with OfCom - you'll be surprised how
fast BT can work if they want to.
Stephen
(ex CW)
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ChrisW
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| posted on 15/7/08 at 10:41 PM |
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Update! According to BE:
quote:
The monitoring of your phone line has identified a possible problem with the physical connection of your phone line to the broadband equipment of
Be* Unlimited at the exchange or an issue on the medium itself. It is necessary to arrange the re-connection of your phone line first, and in case the
disconnections of your service persist to check the last mile copper that runs to your premises. The re-termination of the line is a task that can
take several working days to be accomplished and requires an engineer to be sent on site. During this process you are going to experience a network
downtime.
Any ex-BT people tell me whether it will really take 2-3 days of downtime to replace the connection? Surely it's just a case of going to the
Krone frame and putting a new patch in?
Chris
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Macbeast
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| posted on 16/7/08 at 05:07 AM |
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If they have to check the last mile of copper ?
They're probably giving you the worst-case scenario to cover themselves. And it doesn't actually say that you are going to be disconnected
for the entire period of the investigation, just that you will experience downtime.
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ChrisW
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| posted on 17/7/08 at 12:33 AM |
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Well, that's what I thought. So I asked exactly that... and was told 2-3 days downtime.
Not sure whether to just put up with it. All the business stuff goes through the line - half a dozen VoIP lines, VPN for Exchange server, all our
network monitoring.... 3 days downtime would be an absolute nightmare.
I've got an HSDPA router around somewhere which would do most of it, but I can't see the phones being too happy over that kind of
connection!
Chris
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JamJah
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| posted on 17/7/08 at 11:24 AM |
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some routers will show you how many packets need to be resent. if it noise on the line affecting your broadband youll have a high number.
but i guess you know that.
This is personal advise or personal opinion.
Constructive comments gratefully recieved, picking is left for noses.
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