Removing old coax and telephone wires and boxes from side of house

[anon_ts5cfra6drv7r]

Removed the old coax box, cut the cable and buried it. Very simple and straight forward. However the old telephone land line box is a wired mess inside. I imagine cutting the main lines to the box should do the trick but is telephone wire like coax. Aka no fire/live power risk? Also there is one wire running to my current cable box that I assume is for an old DSL connection? When I unhooked that my internet connection stayed normal. Should I just cut, tape and bury the telephone lines too?

 

[bagdropper]

Removed the old coax box, cut the cable and buried it. Very simple and straight forward. However the old telephone land line box is a wired mess inside. I imagine cutting the main lines to the box should do the trick but is telephone wire like coax. Aka no fire/live power risk? Also there is one wire running to my current cable box that I assume is for an old DSL connection? When I unhooked that my internet connection stayed normal. Should I just cut, tape and bury the telephone lines too?

The phone line should be 4 strand and shouldn't have anything I can think of with power on it.

So, are you ripping out all coax inside the house? To me, I'd leave that in there if all in wall with a common distribution point - considering OTA 4k is coming soon. Believe I read somewhere the Quad Cities is going to have its first station going live soon, and only a matter of a few years until all Iowa markets have it.

Like ATSC 1.0 in the mid 00's...takes a few years for stations to ramp up everything to where the transmission is 100% rock solid.

Free OTA 4k sounds like a sweet deal to me when it gets here. I'd have to bet all those sub-channels will up bandwidth too to at least where many of them will be 1080p.

 

[h-hawk]

Also more info. Hope this is readable.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/life...4f5f48-4cd2-11e9-9663-00ac73f49662_story.html

The third picture shows two boxes and more wire tangles. One box was for phone service, the other for cable. If you’re not using either, you can just “take them down and throw them away,” Williams said. The wiring under the boxes doesn’t have any power, so it would also be fine for you to cut that off and throw it away.

 

[anon_ts5cfra6drv7r]

The phone line should be 4 strand and shouldn't have anything I can think of with power on it.

So, are you ripping out all coax inside the house? To me, I'd leave that in there if all in wall with a common distribution point - considering OTA 4k is coming soon. Believe I read somewhere the Quad Cities is going to have its first station going live soon, and only a matter of a few years until all Iowa markets have it.

Like ATSC 1.0 in the mid 00's...takes a few years for stations to ramp up everything to where the transmission is 100% rock solid.

Free OTA 4k sounds like a sweet deal to me when it gets here. I'd have to bet all those sub-channels will up bandwidth too to at least where many of them will be 1080p.

Nah just one coax line from an old company to a box. I’m keeping the actual coax cables on the house. Just wanted to get rid of the old boxes. 2/3.

 

[Joes Place]

The phone line should be 4 strand and shouldn't have anything I can think of with power on it.

Old school phone lines do have power, to run the ringers on those phones.
But they are only something like 5V or 12V, and should be completely safe to clip, as I doubt many anymore have power on them because there just aren't old-school phones that need the ringer voltages around.

 

[anon_ts5cfra6drv7r]

Old school phone lines do have power, to run the ringers on those phones.
But they are only something like 5V or 12V, and should be completely safe to clip, as I doubt many anymore have power on them because there just aren't old-school phones that need the ringer voltages around.

Cutting, taping and burying probably fine then?

 

[PoopandBoogers]

Cutting, taping and burying probably fine then?

Yes. Couldn't hurt to check em out with a voltmeter to be safe though.

 

[Joes Place]

Cutting, taping and burying probably fine then?

I'd certainly think so. If they do still have any voltage on them, it'll short out whatever local transformer is connected to them, which likely isn't being used anyway.

If you had a voltmeter, you could check the 4 pins/wires and see if there's any voltage on any of them. I don't recall which color-pair ran ringers, but Google probably knows. Not sure that any phone companies support those voltage lines, anymore, anyway.

So long as you don't use DSL, which is the only internet use for those lines anymore.
They connect back to one of those green boxes in your neighborhood; if anyone wanted to run DSL to your house, they would probably need to re-run those lines, though, if you cut them off entirely. That'd really be the only concern/consideration here I'm aware of.

 

[General Tso]

You said box

 

[Joes Place]

Someone bumped this one on me; seems like a good thread to add it to....

There's MOAR here:

Classic Dog Fort Comics

Classic Dog Fort Comics - Comics from around the Web

cheezburger.com

 

[bagdropper]

I'd certainly think so. If they do still have any voltage on them, it'll short out whatever local transformer is connected to them, which likely isn't being used anyway.

If you had a voltmeter, you could check the 4 pins/wires and see if there's any voltage on any of them. I don't recall which color-pair ran ringers, but Google probably knows. Not sure that any phone companies support those voltage lines, anymore, anyway.

So long as you don't use DSL, which is the only internet use for those lines anymore.
They connect back to one of those green boxes in your neighborhood; if anyone wanted to run DSL to your house, they would probably need to re-run those lines, though, if you cut them off entirely. That'd really be the only concern/consideration here I'm aware of.

Yep. His line should be connected to a nearby pedestal. I am assuming there's no longer have land line service of any type.

If your local telco disconnected you from the pedestal that feeds your service line, there should be no voltage running to the (assuming) copper pair to your terminal on the house.

So...no voltage.

 

[anon_ts5cfra6drv7r]

Should I bother calling mediacom (not a customer) and tell them their box was removed since it was damaged in the derecho and the coax is buried since I had to cut it? Or just let them and/or potential new owners figure it out?

 

[Joes Place]

Should I bother calling mediacom (not a customer) and tell them their box was removed since it was damaged in the derecho and the coax is buried since I had to cut it? Or just let them and/or potential new owners figure it out?

My guess is that if you go to sell the house, the buyer's inspector would (should) inquire about the incoming phone service lines, and you'd need to disclose then (ethically you should; legally you'd have to if they asked about it). And if I were the buyer, I'd want that fixed back up, if I wanted Mediacom/DSL service, before buying.

But I don't think you have any legal (or other) reason to bring it up with Medicom if you're not a customer and don't use the line. Next buyer may use Elon Musk's satellite internet service, and not care either.

 

[Joes Place]

Added link above, but here it is again in case anyone misses the edit:

Classic Dog Fort Comics

Classic Dog Fort Comics - Comics from around the Web

cheezburger.com

 

[WorldSeriesChamps2015]

You said box

 

[Rifler]

Should I bother calling mediacom (not a customer) and tell them their box was removed since it was damaged in the derecho and the coax is buried since I had to cut it? Or just let them and/or potential new owners figure it out?

Yes,.. Depending on how their service is installed an un-terminated coax cable buried in the soil could degrade the quality of their signal in your area. At the very least I'm sure they would want to disconnect you at the pedestal...

 

[What Would Jesus Do?]

Old school phone lines do have power, to run the ringers on those phones.
But they are only something like 5V or 12V, and should be completely safe to clip, as I doubt many anymore have power on them because there just aren't old-school phones that need the ringer voltages around.

I wonder if you could charge cell phones or run Alexa devices on the power from the land line. Might not have enough amps, but couldn't hurt to try.

 

[Joes Place]

Yes,.. Depending on how their service is installed an un-terminated coax cable buried in the soil could degrade the quality of their signal in your area. At the very least I'm sure they would want to disconnect you at the pedestal...

That's their job

 

[Rifler]

That's their job

Yes, disconnecting the service at the pedestal is their job,.. and OP letting them know about a potential problem that he may have created for his neighbors, rather than letting them search for it, would be a common courtesy, and the adult thing to do..

 

[Joes Place]

Yes, disconnecting the service at the pedestal is their job,.. and OP letting them know about a potential problem that he may have created for his neighbors, rather than letting them search for it, would be a common courtesy, and the adult thing to do..

If he does not use their service, they should have already done this. It's literally what they do: disconnect your incoming wires at the box and put a 50 or 75 ohm terminator on the connection. This is what the hookup-fee is paying for when you connect service - a guy to physically drive out to the box and switch this around.

 

[Rifler]

If he does not use their service, they should have already done this. It's literally what they do: disconnect your incoming wires at the box and put a 50 or 75 ohm terminator on the connection. This is what the hookup-fee is paying for when you connect service - a guy to physically drive out to the box and switch this around.

They will typically disconnect and terminate the service at the box on the house but leave the connection at the pedestal in place,... When OP removed the box from his house and cut the buried cable he may have created a problem for his neighbors,.. Two different termination points.

 

[Joes Place]

They will typically disconnect and terminate the service at the box on the house but leave the connection at the pedestal in place,... When OP removed the box from his house and cut the buried cable he may have created a problem for his neighbors,.. Two different termination points.

In the "old days" they did it at the box, so that people wouldn't hook up their connection at their own house and pirate the cable. And, because an un-tended line can create problems for other users, it is far safer for the companies to do this at the box, so that when there is a signal issue, they don't need to run around the neighborhoods on non-customer's properties to find the problem. What you're saying here makes zero sense from either a business, or a technical, perspective.

 

[Rifler]

In the "old days" they did it at the box, so that people wouldn't hook up their connection at their own house and pirate the cable. And, because an un-tended line can create problems for other users, it is far safer for the companies to do this at the box, so that when there is a signal issue, they don't need to run around the neighborhoods on non-customer's properties to find the problem. What you're saying here makes zero sense from either a business, or a technical, perspective.

They used to terminate at the box but now they terminate at the box?,.. I can see now why you perceive yourself as the ultimate authority on what makes sense...

 

[Joes Place]

They used to terminate at the box but now they terminate at the box?,.. I can see now why you perceive yourself as the ultimate authority on what makes sense...

Stay on the bus here: YOU stated they let it "terminate at the house".

#TDR_Is_A_Thing_And_They_Do_It_From_The_Box

 

[Rifler]

Stay on the bus here: YOU stated they let it "terminate at the house".

#TDR_Is_A_Thing_And_They_Do_It_From_The_Box

The box on the house dude,.. the box that OP removed,... sheeeeeeesh.

 

[Joes Place]

The box on the house dude,.. the box that OP removed,... sheeeeeeesh.

You argued with me when I'd stated the company will terminate the connection at their central neighborhood box. THAT is what I am referring to. THAT is the location they will run TDR from to locate problems.

Do you even know what Time-Domain-Reflectometry is?

 

[Rifler]

You argued with me when I'd stated the company will terminate the connection at their central neighborhood box.

Yes, that would typically be called a pedestal, and no, termination doesn't typically happen there,... Termination will typically occur at the padlocked box that is mounted on the outside of your house,.. the box that OP removed...

 

[Joes Place]

Yes, that would typically be called a pedestal, and no, termination doesn't typically happen there,... Termination will typically occur at the padlocked box that is mounted on the outside of your house,.. the box that OP removed...

The box on your house is not padlocked.

 

[RileyHawk]

The box on your house is not padlocked.

Hell, I don't even have a box.

 

[Rifler]

The box on your house is not padlocked.

Yes, the cable box on the outside of "my" house is padlocked,... The remote pedestal that feeds the locked box on the outside of my house also has a lock.

 

[Joes Place]

Yes, the cable box on the outside of "my" house is padlocked,... The remote pedestal that feeds the locked box on the outside of my house also has a lock.

Which is probably because YOU have service, and that's to avoid having your neighbor break into your box, add a splitter and "share" service with you.

The company who runs the service does NOT want to have to enter the property of a non-customer to "fix" a poor connection which is reflecting and degrading signal for the rest of the neighborhood. Ergo, they put the 75-ohm terminations at the central box, and it makes no difference what you do on your end, because you're fully disconnected from the network.

#MicrowaveSystemsBasics
#NetworkAnalyzerBasics
#TimeDomainReflectometry

 

[Rifler]

Which is probably because YOU have service, and that's to avoid having your neighbor break into your box, add a splitter and "share" service with you.

The company who runs the service does NOT want to have to enter the property of a non-customer to "fix" a poor connection which is reflecting and degrading signal for the rest of the neighborhood. Ergo, they put the 75-ohm terminations at the central box, and it makes no difference what you do on your end, because you're fully disconnected from the network.

#MicrowaveSystemsBasics
#NetworkAnalyzerBasics
#TimeDomainReflectometry

You are a piece of work...

 

[anon_ts5cfra6drv7r]

Lol this thread turned. And yes I did remove the box because it was half destroyed in the derecho. I hated calling mediacom when I had them. Trying to explain the situation to someone who barely understands English wasn’t on my list of priorities during the clean up. So yes I took the ****er off and threw it away. Didn’t touch the pedestal in my yard.

 

[Joes Place]

You are a piece of work...

Translation: "I learned something today about how telecom signals work"