Short answer
The provider's engineer brings the fibre into your home and fits a termination point and a modem, usually in the meter cupboard. Everything after that is your own cabling. If you also want the speed upstairs or in the shed, that is the moment to have network cables run.
Who this article is for Anyone getting fibre or who has just had it installed. What the provider does and where your part begins.
What the provider does
The network operator's contractor brings the fibre from the street to your wall and drills through. Inside, a termination point goes on the wall, often in or next to the meter cupboard. A modem connects to it and converts the light signal into network.
That is where their work stops. From the network port of that modem onwards, it is your house.
Where it usually goes wrong
You only notice the speed of fibre where you have a good connection. If everything stays on wifi through thick floors, you will notice little of a gigabit.
That is not the provider's fault, nor the modem's. It is the stretch between the modem and the device.
What you arrange yourself
- network cables to the places that matter: workspace, television, loft, shed
- a switch by the modem if more than a few cables come together
- access points where wifi is needed, preferably wired
- a place with ventilation, see the meter cupboard as a tech cupboard
Think about where the termination point goes
Before the engineer comes, you can say where it should come in. Choose wisely:
- not behind a cupboard or in a corner you cannot get to later
- preferably at or next to the meter cupboard, because there is power there
- not in an unheated space or right behind an outside door
Once it is in place, moving it means a new appointment with the provider.
The old cabling
Coax from the previous provider usually stays in place. Sometimes it can be used for something else, an aerial for example, but it plays no part in the new network.
If there is already a network cable somewhere from an earlier renovation, I test it before I run anything new. That sometimes saves half a day.
The most practical order
- Place the order and decide where it comes in
- Have network cables run, ideally before the provider comes
- The provider's engineer brings the fibre in and fits the modem
- Connect, test and label everything
Doing step 2 before step 3 saves opening up the meter cupboard a second time.
Doing step 2 before step 3 saves opening up the meter cupboard a second time.
From my own work
A customer in Beek had fibre installed and complained that it had not got any faster upstairs. That was right: the fibre came into the meter cupboard and upstairs everything ran on wifi through two concrete floors. Two network cables later the loft did get the full speed. The fibre never did anything wrong.
When to call an electrician
- Fibre is being installed and you want the cabling right from the start
- The speed gets no further than the meter cupboard
- The termination point is in an awkward place
It is easiest if I come just after the provider has finished. Request a quote.
Frequently asked questions
What exactly does the provider's engineer do?
He brings the fibre into the home and fits a termination point and a modem. Everything after that is your own cabling.
Why has it not got any faster upstairs?
Because the speed has to get there over wifi through floors. A network cable upstairs makes the difference, not the fibre.
When should I have network cables run?
Ideally before the provider comes. Then the meter cupboard only needs opening once.
Further reading
Access point or mesh: which to choose
Mesh is quick to set up and works reasonably well. Wired access points work better and last longer.
A camera by the door or on the front of the house: what is allowed and what works
A camera on your wall may film your own property. The neighbours and the pavement are another matter.
Wifi does not reach everywhere: why that is
It is not that your router is too weak, your walls are too thick. That is why a stronger router rarely solves anything and a cable always does.
Questions and comments
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