Wires on the outside

[Graasspp]

Live in our pretty late Victorian villa for 15 yeara. When we moved in there were a few wires all around the back.

Now it's getting a mess. Look what Sky did last time to the brick! Compared to what BT were able to do 15 years ago- ie go in through the window frame. Apparently can't do that now.

Instead BT now want to drill another hole right in the middle of the brick for full fibre. As well as trailing it for miles around the house to meet the overhead cabling from the telegraph pole.

Are there any solutions so its not such a mess? Maybe another company who specialises in neat wires etc.... because bt/sky engineers could not care less it seems .......

Who do I call or how can I make this look l3ss awful?

Slightly more of the area in question.....

Until recently I worked for BT for four decades. Most installations are done by contractors, but they can’t perform invisible miracles. Although some are good and some are shit.

you need to consider what is possible and not. If you don’t want loads of external wires and your overhead feed is from a pole at the back you have several options.

install your ONT port at the back near the pole (or UG port), or lift floorboards and chase out walls so they can bring it in the back and take it internally to the front, or have wiring round the house. Consider access for ladders etc if you want them to wire externally at gutter level.

IME, contractors will accommodate if you have done the pre-installation work, but they can’t perform miracles if you don’t want anything visible but won’t lift the floorboards, dig the ground etc in advance you will have visible wiring.

they generally have two hours for an installation, so have a think about what you want it to look like and consider whether you could feasibly fit it in that time frame without it being visible.

if you genuinely believe you can fit it a certain way without it being a mess, tell them, let them discuss with you, don’t allow any work until you’re in agreement.

Personally I'd just put a planter in front of the wires - hide them with plants but they are still accessible if necessary.

Also, did BT fit that white wiring through the window frame? That’s internal cable not external and I have never seen an external feed done with white wiring, ever.

Thanks @TerfTalking - I'm trying to make sense of your first post. What is ONT?

The white wiring pre dates us living here. But yes it just comes out of a junction box on windowsill and goes down in through the cellar window to come up thru floorboards in the office.

@SleepingisanArt I was thinking of a plant/Small tree.
South West facing and exposed so I need to work out what will live.

Sorry, the ONT (optical network terminal) port is the "new" internal socket that is for full fibre installations and is replacing the old white NTE sockets that most people recognise as a BT socket.

This is the new type ONT

I think the white wiring has been done by some previous resident who has either provided an extension into the office or shifted the main socket (they shouldn't have done that).

We also have this problem. Dont want to drill any more hole. For now using 5G broadband, which is fairly weak during office/peak hours.

Can the ONT port be placed where the old BT one is and feed off the connection/ hole thats been already established? Is there any way to reconfigure the existing setup?

The old BT port is nicely chased into the wall and under the fixed desk in the study.

I need an installer who is not BT - the cost is not the object, just someone who understands a period house doesn't want big holes and cables going willy nilly

Does such a service exist? I know interior designers would use people for refurbishments etc, but nothing else needs doing and retrofitting is harder

OP, you need an electrician who specialises in network cables and such like. Or someone who offers a tv/satellite installation service.

Ask around until you find someone.
They can rearrange all your cables inside and out however way you want it and advise on less visually intrusive options.

Unless you chase them into the walls, there is no 100% invisible cabling.

So get someone like that to rearrange all cabling.

Then find a builder who can repair walls inside and outside (holes in bricks can be repaired and you'd never know they were there).

It will depend

The old termination was for copper that can bend easily whereas the fibre may break

You need a telecoms engineer. They'll come and move internal or external cabling to suit, asking for recommendations on local Facebook might yield results.

Thank you @Lizzt2007

You want to find a contractor who will install conduit (basically fixed or flexible tubing - can be plastic or metal, can be painted to match brickwork etc.) in the exact locations you want.

Then, when the Openreach engineer arrives, get them to pull the new fibre through the conduit.

When the new fibre is in place you can't legitimately mess with it as it's Openreach's property. So best to get the cable route in place beforehand.