My line passed and it's now failing???

Ryaner

I've been looking into getting BB since the summer of last year. My line has passed on EVERY occasion I've checked up till now. Even eircom told me I'd have no problems getting it.
One of the reasons I've been holding off getting BB was the fact I get a constant dl of 200k maxing at 300k while in work. Only recent has the line here started giving download errors that I've decided to go back and get BB into the house. I did the line check on both eircom and IOL's site and am getting Line failed. I know it's nothing to do with the exchange because people near me have BB. Has anyone any ideas what could have happened? Would anything that I've done inside the house effect the tests? (I've recently added an extra phone socket and an extension)
Thanks for the help

spongebob

Disconnect the extensions and get a retest, that could be the problem all right. If the retest passes you know the wiring in the extension is not the best, do it again.

I suggest you disconnect every extension in the house until you pass.

M

Ryaner

I've dc every phone in the house and still getting a fail. I rang eircom and asked them and was told that changes in their test a blah mean different specs on the line etc. but straight away was talking about sending out an engineer to check the line from inside my house?
Does anyone know if the online test actually does a test and doesnt just query some sort of database?

jd

Originally posted by Ryaner
I've dc every phone in the house and still getting a fail. I rang eircom and asked them and was told that changes in their test a blah mean different specs on the line etc. but straight away was talking about sending out an engineer to check the line from inside my house?
Does anyone know if the online test actually does a test and doesnt just query some sort of database?

this has been covered plenty of times on these boards
the online test queries a db which is updated every 4 weeks or so..

Ripwave

Originally posted by Ryaner
but straight away was talking about sending out an engineer to check the line from inside my house?

You'll be charged for any check on wiring inside the house (whether they find a fault or not).

Does anyone know if the online test actually does a test and doesnt just query some sort of database?

They just query a database. If you just disconnected your extensions this weekend, it won't make any difference to the test results until they retest.

Ryaner

Originally posted by Ripwave
You'll be charged for any check on wiring inside the house (whether they find a fault or not).

Good luck to them if they try get money from me for this. They were out before when our lines went dead a few months back and got nothing from us then when they tried. They never gave us a main socket when they installed the line so told us they couldnt fix the line and then looked for money for telling us that.
In regards the BB test, doesnt the prequal test just test the line from the exchange to the house and not the inside wires of the house?

spongebob

Originally posted by Ripwave
You'll be charged for any check on wiring inside the house (whether they find a fault or not).

The wqiring to the first socket and the first socket itself are the responsibility of Eircom. By disconnecting his extensions he has ensured that all the wiring is Eircoms responsibility .

Having said that, the system may very well pass the test now. It is possible to get an urgent test if you ask an 'Agent; for Eirocm BB to test your line . Those '3' shops in the large towns can get it done without having to wait for your exchange to do its 4 weekly test.

If the line still fails that could mean.

1. It has been wetter recently and the dampness got in the cabling system, you may have passed in drier weather .
2. A pairgain has been installed, maybe your neighbour got an extra line in ?
3. Damage to cables , truck or whatnot.
4. You loosened something when installing the extensions.
5. TOO MANY DSL lines in the area already . This has not been a big problem yet, given the low uptake of DSL but I do know of a case where a person is failing as there are too many DSL lines in his general area already.

M

Ryaner

Originally posted by Muck
The wiring to the first socket and the first socket itself are the responsibility of Eircom.

Here's my main problem tho. Eircom never put the "first socket" in the house. As was explained to us the last time we had an engineer out, for some reason they just ran extensions around the house instead of bringing out a main socket and then doing it. What would be my options with eircom in regards this does anyone know?

spongebob

The first socket inside where the outside wires enter the house then. Eircom stops there and will test back from there only.

To make it simpler put an Eircom badged socket on it to make it look like they did it themselves....these are good quality too .

Then retest.

M

Ryaner

The place where the outside wires enter the house is behind the walls. They left it all behind the wall and I've no access to it at all.

Ryaner

I've just spent the last few hours going back and forth between Eircom BB sales and Line Faults. The line faults people are telling me the line is perfect and there is nothing else they can do. While onto BB I happened to get a very helpful rep who got the line tested for me again not just the online pretest and it came back failing still.
Does anyone know what my options are? The guy in BB said I could try another line but it would prob not test any different so I cant think of any. Is there anyone I can contact over this?

Reyman

It's possible that eircom swapped out your line at the local junction box between the time you passed the test and failed it!

They could have done this to give DSL to one of your neighbours with more 'pull' in eircom i.e. he got the good section of your line from the junction box to the exchange and they gave you his failed one because you were only an ordinary PSTN punter at the time.

The bad news is that eircom have a definite policy not to do remedial work on faulty lines at present (unless you have pull). They don't need to ---- business is booming!

Ryaner

I've just found out that last week there was a problem with the local exchange and it caused alot of failed to appear around here. I heard the local exchange ran out of ports. Dunno how true this is tho.
Do the agents on the sales line have the ability to retest the line properly as they said they did and it came back failed?

Ryaner

After spending the day onto eircom I've found out that my line test is perfect except for a small feedback with everything pulled in. Possibly the eircom handsfree phone? I've a feeling this is why the BB tests failed and the people who redid the tests didnt actually but I dunno I have to exactly track down that fault.
The exchange where I live has been fixed and extra ports added to it. My line test on dsl section comes back with no bandwidth available. Most of gotten from a tech yet. Would/Could this be caused by the feedback on the line. Eircom line tester refered that to as having too many phones pulled in. It has pulled gain down tho as my dl speeds are still up over 6k at times.
Thanks

Reyman

what do they mean by " A small feedback on the line "?

Are they talking about crosstalk?

Ryaner

They said it meant that we had extra phones on the line which was right at the time of the test. I'm quite sure it isnt cross talk altho I'm still trying to investage about a DACS on the line. No one in eircom knows anything about them but I've learnt that they call then Carrier Lines internally so I'm gonna try that tomorrow aswell as engineers.

Dasilva94

I had my line tested back in March and it passed, but I put it off for a month so I could avail of the cheaper RADSL offer. When I tried to order it in early May my line came back as a fail and kept coming back as a fail for several weeks. I decided to risk getting a second line in, hoping that would pass, but when the engineer came out and did a test on the line with his equipment it passed . So I was able to get it installed two weeks later and it's been running without problems for the last six months.

Maybe you could find some pretext for getting an engineer out to do an on site test.

Serbian

Just something to consider:

We have 1 meg ADSL in work. We have had it for over 12 months. We always get excellent speeds (always over 100kbp/s downloading).

Our line doesn't pass the Eircom line test.

Our line has never passed the Eircom line test.

In my opinion, if the test was relaxed then thousands more people could get DSL and it would work perfectly well for them. I think this was discussed in relation to the BT line test a couple of days ago either here or in the Ireland Offline forum. Sure, there are a good few lines out there that would be unsuitable for DSL, but it would certainly open the door for thousands more home and business customers.

Ripwave

Originally posted by Serbian
Sure, there are a good few lines out there that would be unsuitable for DSL, but it would certainly open the door for thousands more home and business customers.

Judging by the threads on how long it's taking people to get Broadband, it doesn't sound like oreillycom have any need to "open the door" to thousands more - they can barely handle installing the customers they've already got!

Ryaner

Originally posted by Dasilva94
Maybe you could find some pretext for getting an engineer out to do an on site test.

I'm doing my best to get an engineer out. Eircom wont send one out even if I say I'll pay for one making me think they either dont want me to have BB (surprise surprise) or there something I'd find out if I got one out.

Reyman

I think you should press eircom on why your line has failed?

The usual reason for failing is because of high capacitance on the line - the admittance across the line is proportional to Capacitance x Frequency and DSL has a peak frequency of 1 Mhz so that the capcitance level is critical.

Ask them for a test report on your line! And if they don't comply, you must up the ante. Contact separately the Regulator and the Ombudsman with a detailed log of all your contacts, names and dates of your requests to eircom. And ask for their assistance!

Eircom definitely won't like this kind of attention!

Ryaner

Well eircom dont give out the details on why you fail the test for legal reasons. I'm looking at getting some terminating exquipment (the stuff for testing the line for BB) and running some of my own tests. I'm quite sure the handsfree phone with the txting interfers with the line because of how it gets txts but I'm not completely sure. Anyone know anything for def about that?
If I dont get an engineer soon I'm be requesting ALL information eircom have under the Data Protection Act. I'm quite sure they'll skip the tech readout from the line tests tho as they dont want anyone knowing that kind of information. Whats the bets I ask for that and suddenly I'm told oh hold on there was a mistake. You can have BB....if only it was so simple.

shinzon

i was due to get a copy of a report on my line from pheena lonergan, some months ago, plus all the correspondence that i had with her over 2 months

Guess what im still waiting, id love to be the guys who actaually do the tests, cause ive asked on umpteen occasions to speak to them directly, the nearest i got was the excuse oh they dont actually talk to customers, why because there mute I ask myself

Love to know when this new testing equipment is coming in that will supposedly give a more accurate reading on the line and actually tell them why its failing, yes i did get that from an eircom rep as well

Shin

Ryaner

Originally posted by shinzon
Love to know when this new testing equipment is coming in that will supposedly give a more accurate reading on the line and actually tell them why its failing, yes i did get that from an eircom rep as well

Shin

The engineers do have the exact reasons why the test fails. They dont give it out because of a legal battle that would happen if they did. The screen can show them very little results and always will. They do keep a record of line noise level. If anyone got a copy of this who actually failed and passed a standard line test I'm sure they'd realise pretty quickly where the exact problem was and I'm sure we all know that most of it eircom invented

Reyman

Do you have a copy of their test sheets?

I haven't seen them, but I believe they would not stand close technical scrutiny or argument!

Ryaner

I dont have a copy...yet. I'm at the point where I either get BB or I get an engineer and start doing some tests of my own. Eircom have announced work on the exchange here soon(27th I think) so my line may pass once thats true. If thats the case I'll make a complaint anyway because it aint fair on someone who would have rung up and been told no you can NEVER have BB we'll give you highspeed tho

shinzon

They do keep a record of line noise level

Can you at least tell me who told you this, cause the following people told me they dont

Sean malone (Phil nolans customer care manager)
Pheena Lonergan(customer care but i didn really catch what position she was in)
Waterfords Eircom team leader.

Ive been trying to get BB for 11 months now and have battled Eircom constantly on this issue, so if you have some information please share it

Shin

Ryaner

As it was explained to me by aunt who kindly asked an engineer who does the tests, they wont give out the information on BB tests because it's can be disputed very easily. QOS and all is what they strive for so thats why limits are there. When they do a manual test as in an engineer retests the line there is a record of the test.
I'll post any info I get as soon as I get someone to actually do a test on my line in my presence.

Ryaner

I've been checking eircoms online checker on my line pretty much daily since I started the quest to get BB. My aunt was to ask and engineer nicely about getting my line back for BB on monday morning. Just checked it there. tue 4:30am and it's passing again. Now we gotta see if it'll stay passing until it is installed.
Roll on netsource

patrickmooney

My history with BB. I had my line passed about 5 years ago....had BB installed for 6 months (was on an eircom trial). since then it has failed, apart for a one month period last year - I quickly ordered it got it installed. Even though I still have it, without any problems, when I perform the online check, my line continues to fail!!

Ryaner

The online thing only updates every month or so. I've been bugging eircom to test the line and getting people to ask engineers inside eircom. I've ordered my BB so I'm hoping it gets installed. Once its in I'll be happy.