Cable hookup to my house

[elf]

The Comcast cable person came today to attach the cable to the house and set up the modem.

He went away without doing that and telling me I had to hire an electrician.

I don't understand. So let me review, for you, and maybe you can help me understand.

My house is down a long driveway with a pole partway down it. Power from the street comes through the air to the pole and underground from there to the house. MA law provides that other utilities must do the same.

It's taken two months, but finally the cable from the pole to the house has been installed in the shallow trench dug by the Ditch Witch.

The final step is getting the service to me, in the house. That's what the guy today didn't do.

So here's my question (s).

Does the cable get attached to the outside of the house through a box? Or does it get installed through the house foundation to somewhere inside?

If it comes through into the inside, does it usually get installed into the living area or into the basement?

If it is installed in the basement, who is responsible for the hole in the floor or running the cable along the walls to get it to the first floor?

I don't even know what to tell an electrician about what s/he's needed to do! And I certainly don't have any idea who pays that bill.

[TerryLL]

I recently had buried fiber optic run to my house. After that I removed the telecom cable that had not been used in decades. Those cables don't carry power, only the signal. The cable ran to a box on the outside of the house and from there coax cables ran to every room in the house.

The only power needed is for the modem. Perhaps the Comcast guy saw that there was no power outlet available for the modem.

[elf]

No. The power outlet is right where I was intending to place the modem. I understand that it needs power, needs to be plugged in. But it needs to be plugged in to two things - the electric power and the cable.

Right?

So the cable has to get into the place where the modem is going to sit somehow. Right?

Now if the electrical outlet is in, say, the living room, and the cable comes through the foundation into the basement, clearly someone's gotta drill a hole through the floor for either the cable box to come up into the house from the basement, or gotta run a bunch of cable from the box to some other place where it can get into the living area of the house. Right?

Or the cable from the outside has to come into some other place than the basement. Right?

But if the cable box is on the outside of the house, who pays to run the coax?

And if the cable box goes only to the outside wall, why did the trenching guys leave 30' of cable from the trench to the outside wall of the house?

[Beowolf]

That’s weird.

My only thought is that the cable guy is only responsible for bringing it into your home, say a junction point in the basement. From there, it’s the responsibility of someone else (say an electrician) to run cable throughout the home to various wall outlets.

But I don’t understand why he wouldn’t have done at least that.

[Ian McColgin]

It's been twenty years since I worked for the Department of Public Utilities so from memory and ignoring if changes in technology have affected cost:

Customer gets to install and pay for (low-voltage electrician or [sometimes] a cable company installer) any inside wire. Internet will give listings. As with any contractor, talk over what you want and if there are alternative installations which will provide the service you need at a better price. A lot will depend on how many G are available in your area versus how many you really need.

G'luck

[elf]

Thank you. I think you're right about that.

He wouldn't attach the box to the outside wall where the cable came up out of the ground. I asked.

I wasn't figuring on a $200 or more bill to run the coax. And I'm willing to pay it, but not sure how many more months it will take to get an electrician. But I sure don't want an electrician coming in here to do something that I'm not clear about what he's supposed to be doing.

And I still don't understand why the electrician should be the one running the coax out to where the cable box will be attached to the house.

[Jimmy W]

I have no idea what you need an electrician to do. I suggest that you call Comcast and ask them. Here, cable is above ground via a coax wire run to the house and under eaves of house to where it drops to enter through wall of house to modem which they installed inside. There might have been an installation charge, but cable company did all the work.

[stromborg]

I have my own personal utility pole too. Power, telephone and cable run from a pole on the street to my pole and then cut underground. The phone and cable used to cross the 10 feet from pole to house and run along the exterior. Phone to a junction box, cable to a small hole they drilled through the outside and inside walls where it terminated at a plastic wall plate with a connector I could screw a length of cable to run from there to my modem. The cable had a junction on my pole so if there was a problem with the line past that the whole length wouldn't have to be replaced.

I've since built a new house 100' from the old pole, everything is 2' underground in conduit. How far did the cable guy run cable? If it is to your pole, screw the ends together and run some cable to the house. No electrician needed, unless there was something wrong with your power lines he didn't tell you about? It does sound kind of mysterious.

[elf]

I doubt there's any signal to the house yet, as thus far the final step before authorizing the account was what the guy was supposed to be doing today. It's not a signal problem, it's a mechanical problem - how to get the trenched cable connected to something I can connect the modem to.

They haven't even brought the modem yet. (and I get it rent free for the first two years.)

[elf]

So it seems some of you think the norm is to bring the cable into the house and install the box somewhere inside?

Perhaps from there it's my problem?

[Stiletto]

I think it will depend on your particular contract arrangements with your provider. They will be the best people to ask specific questions of.

In this part of the world there is one crew that brings the cable in from the road, and another that does the final hookup right into the inside of the house. The electrical supply is the homeowner's problem. I ended up running a short lead to the modem.

[Garret]

We had cable installed by Comcast 3 or 4 years ago. They ran the cable from the road to the house - buried the last 100 ft from the pole. They ran it to a box on the side of the house that they installed & ran coax into the house (by drilling a hole in the side of the house behind the box) to where I wanted the modem. They hooked up the coax to the modem, plugged it in, tested it, asked me to hook my router to it & test the connection on my confuser. The connection to the router was on me, as I supplied it. If I'd gone with a Comcast supplied wireless router, they would've connected that & tested it.

IOW - when they left I had working internet & no electricians were involved. Mass. may have different laws, but I'd call Comcast & ask them what's going on.

[Jfitzger]

I have had Comcast install service at 2 houses in Minneapolis and one in Chicago, In all cases the coax comes from the utility pole to the house. It should be even easier to connect to a cable coming from the ground. From there it is attached to the house and run along the exterior. It runs inside the house through a hole drilled in the wall. The cable is attached directly to the modem, no box. If you want a cleaner install you have to pay or do it yourself. An installer being willing to fish through the basement would be unlikely. They should hook everything up and make sure it’s working.

Cables are extended with connectors and no box, even on the exterior. It’s all low voltage so an electrician isn’t necessary. A decent handyman should have no problem.

Cable installers for Comcast are almost always independent contractors who are paid by the number of installs, not the time it takes to do them. If it looks too hard they make up a bs excuse and move on.

[Garret]

I have had Comcast install service at 2 houses in Minneapolis and one in Chicago, In all cases the coax comes from the utility pole to the house. It should be even easier to connect to a cable coming from the ground. From there it is attached to the house and run along the exterior. It runs inside the house through a hole drilled in the wall. The cable is attached directly to the modem, no box. If you want a cleaner install you have to pay or do it yourself. An installer being willing to fish through the basement would be unlikely. They should hook everything up and make sure it’s working.

Cables are extended with connectors and no box, even on the exterior. It’s all low voltage so an electrician isn’t necessary. A decent handyman should have no problem.

Cable installers for Comcast are almost always independent contractors who are paid by the number of installs, not the time it takes to do them. If it looks too hard they make up a bs excuse and move on.

They absolutely installed a box on the side of my house & even more important, ran a ground wire from the box to a ground rod. I want no part of a wire coming directly into my house from a pole without that ground.

[Rumars]

The guy that came to your house expected the house to already be wired for internet/cable. His job is to hook up your wire at the street junction box, then he asks you "wich room do you want the router" then check the signal, plug the router in and authorize the connection. How many rooms are wired for internet and where the distribution panel and individual outlets sit are not his problem. Some companies do provide their own outlets, but they expect the cables to be laid and the outlet holes to be bored. Others do not and only specify the standard wich the cables and outlets must respect. This is something you must clear with your provider beforehand.

Hire and electrician qualified for cable/internet installations, make a plan where you want "entertainment outlets" (wich rooms, where exactly should the outlet sit) then he wires your house according to plan installing one or several distribution panels somewhere appropriate. He is also the guy who connects the cable coming from the trench to your house. For a new construction this is all done together with the electrical installation.

[Dave Gray]

Talk to Comcast. They used to offer wiring to the house as well as plugging cable through the walls. Look at your agreement and talk to a service representative.

[Dave Wright]

Out of curiosity, why Comcast? Are they the sole and / or cheapest provider available to you?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Critic...redit%20checks.

[Canoeyawl]

We had cable installed by Comcast 3 or 4 years ago. They ran the cable from the road to the house - buried the last 100 ft from the pole. They ran it to a box on the side of the house that they installed & ran coax into the house (by drilling a hole in the side of the house behind the box) to where I wanted the modem. They hooked up the coax to the modem, plugged it in, tested it, asked me to hook my router to it & test the connection on my confuser. The connection to the router was on me, as I supplied it. If I'd gone with a Comcast supplied wireless router, they would've connected that & tested it.

IOW - when they left I had working internet & no electricians were involved. Mass. may have different laws, but I'd call Comcast & ask them what's going on.

This is exactly how Comcast did mine in California...

(Except, they ran it underground my shop (they dug the ditch ran the line and closed the ditch, drilled a hole in the wall where I OK'd it) then using a splitter ran it to the house through an existing underground phone conduit service where it is hooked up to their modem, which is sitting on the floor of the upstairs bedroom and pretty reliable at about 80Mbps)

[elf]

Out of curiosity, why Comcast? Are they the sole and / or cheapest provider available to you?.

No other option.

[Dave Wright]

No other option.

That's a shame, but you have to do what you can for service. Be absolutely brutal in your dealings with them. No matter how nice individual representatives might be, the default position of the company is to take as much as they can get from you.

[Jim Bow]

Our cable has always terminated at a splitter on the outside wall. Then coax along the wall and into the house (if its on a slab) or into the basement and then up through the floor.

[elf]

That's a shame, but you have to do what you can for service. Be absolutely brutal in your dealings with them. No matter how nice individual representatives might be, the default position of the company is to take as much as they can get from you.

We know. The whole town knows. That's why it's trying to get a public cable service going. Making good progress on it too - got a plan, got lots of funding, had many public meetings, already serving businesses across the Cape.

There are also some places in town where one can get wireless internet. Verizon and T-Mobile both advertise it and provide it throughout town, except on the side where I live. My wi-fi hotspot on my T-mobile phone often gives me better service than what I'm stuck with if I don't go forward with Comcast.

But 26 years of Verizon DSL - I'm thoroughly sick of it. I have to go to the main library to get fast enough speeds to update my OS and Adobe apps.

[Canoez]

I would also recommend talking with Comcast regarding the issue the technician had with completing the installation.

We have Comcast internet service at our house.

Cable is route to the house underground. On the outside of the house at the lower edge of the siding is a small bracket with a cover. The coax cable from underground goes to one side of a grounded union with a ground cable leading to a copper grounding rod. (This may be the work of the electrician.). The other side of the union is the cable drilled through the siding just above the sill plate into the basement.

In the basement the cable connects to an amplified 6 way splitter (AC-DC adapter) and from there to various locations in the house for either internet of cable television. We have a cable modem, two WiFi mesh nodes, an Ethernet hardwired connection, and two cable television boxes connected.While the internal wiring was pre-existing in the home, my Father recently had Comcast install cable. They did all the wiring from the pole to the house, through the basement and through the living room floor to the cable box.

Can’t see what your installers issue was, frankly.

[Peerie Maa]

What a lot of faff, My interwebs come in through the telephone landline.
DSC04023.jpg

[Andrew2]

Our telephone copper interweb was abysmal. Last year, they slung fibre all round the area and the guy from Orange (France Telecom) knocked on the door. Connection was done a month later and the day after they disconnected the old line. So all our coms are via fibre. The installation was free up to the Livebox, then up to me.
So, guy slings a cable from the junction box to our gable, down to the lower window and drilled a hole to get in. Ran it allong the skirting board to the next room (study) and fitted the box. It needs a fancy welding/fusing kit to join the ends, so no DIY until after the box. I then ran the plug in cable over the door to where the PC lives (not on WiFi) Job done.

[Peerie Maa]

Our telephone copper interweb was abysmal. Last year, they slung fibre all round the area and the guy from Orange (France Telecom) knocked on the door. Connection was done a month later and the day after they disconnected the old line. So all our coms are via fibre. The installation was free up to the Livebox, then up to me.
So, guy slings a cable from the junction box to our gable, down to the lower window and drilled a hole to get in. Ran it allong the skirting board to the next room (study) and fitted the box. It needs a fancy welding/fusing kit to join the ends, so no DIY until after the box. I then ran the plug in cable over the door to where the PC lives (not on WiFi) Job done.

The old copper cables are being replaced by fiber throughout the UK, up to the local distribution boxes. Our BT router is both hard-wired and WiFi.
Curiosity triggered a speed check.
2022-08-01 a internet spee4d check h.jpg

[bluedog225]

Much discussion of wiring the house. Why? My place runs entirely off wireless from the box, to a couple of repeaters. Works well for all needs to include full time work from home with many video calls.

Pole, fiber run through wall to box (immediately inside wall), wireless transmitter, repeater, end user.

Hope it works out for you. I’m surprised the installer did not give you more detail. Maybe you can speak to him?

4CEEC57A-21CB-4AD8-A78C-6D8168C895CF.jpg

[elf]

Much discussion of wiring the house. Why? My place runs entirely off wireless from the box, to a couple of repeaters. Works well for all needs to include full time work from home with many video calls.

Pole, fiber run through wall to box (immediately inside wall), wireless transmitter, repeater, end user.

Hope it works out for you. I’m surprised the installer did not give you more detail. Maybe you can speak to him?

I'm talking about that box.

[elf]

What a lot of faff, My interwebs come in through the telephone landline.

Read the thread. Only DSL is available here through the landline.

[Garret]

Emily -

Here's the box Comcast installed. The orange wire is the line from the pole, the green is a ground & the coax to the modem is behind the box. It was all installed by them - I just had to tell 'em where I wanted it.

Around here at least, this is the standard Comcast/Xfinity installation. Big ugly box..

xf.jpg

[Art Haberland]

We know. The whole town knows. That's why it's trying to get a public cable service going. Making good progress on it too - got a plan, got lots of funding, had many public meetings, already serving businesses across the Cape.

careful with comcast on that. Friend's of mine live in a town with their own private cable company, until Comcast came in and offered huge sums of money to the city to buy it. Now they are all back on Comcast. They are just an evil company, well earning their least favourite company in the US moniker.

[Canoez]

Emily -

Here's the box Comcast installed. The orange wire is the line from the pole, the green is a ground & the coax to the modem is behind the box. It was all installed by them - I just had to tell 'em where I wanted it.

Around here at least, this is the standard Comcast/Xfinity installation. Big ugly box..

xf.jpg

Similar to my installation. I think I see the signal line - is that grounded somehow for lightning protection?

[Canoez]

careful with comcast on that. Friend's of mine live in a town with their own private cable company, until Comcast came in and offered huge sums of money to the city to buy it. Now they are all back on Comcast. They are just an evil company, well earning their least favourite company in the US moniker.

All true, but they hold monopolies in many places.

[elf]

Called the private cell line my link to Comcast gave me when I signed up (June 2). She confirmed that the installer should have done the job inside, asked what the issue seemed to be. I told her the installer had claimed he only worked jobs where he could stand up fully to do the install. She made a new appointment.

My house is old, and terribly underwired. I held off getting insulation blown in for many years, hoping to assemble the money to have the wiring at least greatly improved. Finally, the cold got to me, and I let the guys come and fill the walls with that blown in stuff. Now having the house rewired is a lot more complicated.

The result of the poor wiring is that there aren't a lot of good places to put the modem. The best of the lot is in the dining room, where I had a new electrical outlet installed a couple years ago. Unfortunately, that's also where the charger for the electric mower has to be plugged in. So if the modem goes there, that corner is going to flicker and flash like a damn Christmas tree.

It may be possible to run the cable up the heat pipe for the radiator upstairs, however. That goes to the guest room, a slightly better place for all those flashing lights.

I hope the next installer person is more amenable to talking it over and figuring it out. Yesterday's guy wasn't.

[S.V. Airlie]

Just a glance tntrfough. My impressxionis the guy was too bloody lazy to hook up the cable. Too much work!