Openreach fitting fibre to property

[Janice4]

I'm having a nightmare with City Fibre and wondering if switching to a provider that uses Openreach will be any better

I decided to "upgrade" to full fibre broadband when my last broadband contract ran out and opted to go with Zen, who use City Fibre in my region.

My current phone line enters the house underground but there is no duct on the front of the house as a porch was added several years ago and so the line is underneath this. It then appears at the master socket on the wall of the hall.

I don't want the fibre to come in here as there are no sockets and nowhere to put a router.  There is a convenient place on the front wall of the house coming into the sitting room. I understood that I could choose where the fibre entered the house.

A number of City Fibre operatives have been to the property and variously tell me that fibre can't be fitted or that fibre can be fitted but digging will be needed, but can't tell me what digging or where this will be to or from.  Some say it can be installed where I want it and others say it can't. Apparently when CityFibre was installed in my street they used existing Openreach ducts rather than installing their own

I accept that some sort of digging will be needed to bring to the fibre to the house but don't understand why I can't be told exactly what will be involved before giving permission for this.  Each person that comes suggests a different route. I'm beginning to lose faith with CityFibre and just don't want a complete mess made of my garden and house

I'm wondering whether to cancel my move to Zen and go with a provider who use Openreach or whether things will be just as disorganised with them!  

Thanks for any advice you can offer

[Keith_Beddoe]

https://www.openreach.com/help-and-support/full-fibre-broadband-installation-checklist

[rbz5416]

I was under the impression that Zen only used an alternative when Openreach was unavailable. Have you checked here to make sure that Openreach have FFTP available to you?

[Janice4]

Thank you.

It appears to be the external junction box that has been removed when the porch was built - other houses in my street have them.

Will it be possible for a new one to be fitted?

[Janice4]

Thank you

I have asked Zen about using Openreach but they say they only use Cityfibre in my area

I know that I can be supplied by BT, Sky and Plusnet - all of whom I think use Openreach ?

[36ULW]

If the existing Duct has been built over then Openreach will do a Duct Intercept.

Basically they’ll just Track and Locate the existing Copper Cable using a Cat & Genny and track its route up to your house.

Where it meets the house they’ll dig down, break into the Duct and put a Connector Bend on and then place the Capping and CSP on that part of the wall.

From there they’d then run an Inside Out Fibre Cable to the location you want the ONT, within reason.

[Janice4]

Thankyou, that makes complete sense.

The only problem may be that there is a tiled concrete step in front of the wall which the duct will run underneath so I'm not sure where they would place the capping and the CSP.

Hopefully someone will be able to assess it and work it out

[36ULW]

Ah, Civils would probably not want to take the steps apart.

Be to much hassle to reinstate them. I know from experience.

Might be they have to intercept it at an earlier point and the dig round the steps.

To be honest it’ll really be up to the Civils Team on the day.

[Janice4]

Thanks so much for your reassurance!

It sounds as though it is doable....just need to hope I get a team that know what they're doing rather than the people who have come so far.