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DSL faults - and charging if no fault found, and other matters.

SpeedEvil
Dabbler
Posts: 17
Registered: ‎30-09-2007

DSL faults - and charging if no fault found, and other matters.

I have a fault - occasionally around midnight (+-30 mins) maybe 3 days a week, my sync speed drops due to massive noise from around 2.5M to under 512, or even lower - a couple of days ago it wouldn't sync at all for about half an hour.
This occurs on two separate lines coming into the property, with the electricity turned off at the main consumer unit, and one of two routers plugged into the test port of the respective master sockets, running on batteries.
Of course, the BT engineer will never visit at this time Smiley
(OpenReach I should probably say).
Things I'm wondering about.
Is it chargeable if BT find no fault?
The wording in the price list seems to be ambiguous.
Will they ever simply cease to provide broadband on the line, as a way to resolve the fault, against the wishes of the customer?
I noticed while browsing the BT price list 'Total care' and other options - for enhanced repair times, I assume this wouldn't be of any use subscribing to for a quarter.
(I also noticed they still rent phones!)

Any thoughts?
1 REPLY 1
Anotherone
Champion
Posts: 19,107
Thanks: 457
Fixes: 21
Registered: ‎31-08-2007

Re: DSL faults - and charging if no fault found, and other matters.

Yes, several, but how to put them all into words and in some form of sensible order is a touch tricky.  I'm sure it won't be as tricky as solving your problem  Shocked
I assume from the way that you have posted, that you pay line rental to BT Retail and have Broadband with PN.  Now unless this "noise" shows up as audible interference on your phone line, BT Retail will not be interested and will refer you to PN. 'Total care' options will also be of no benefit, it only gets a more speedy response, not one late at night, unless it was some real emergency if defined by the terms, but again only applicable to a phone line fault not broadband.
I assume that this noise appears (you've said on both lines) with either of the routers when run on batteries, in other words you've proven it not router specific. I presume you've swapped filters around to prove them as well.
Is there anywhere locally, eg. a bakery, or anywhere that may switch on electrical equipment at that time?
Have you noticed any interfernce on TV sound/vision analogue or digital? Can you hear anything appear on a MW radio not tuned to a station, between ~ 600 kHz & 800 kHz?
Is there a flickering streetlight nearby, or any suspect equipment at a neighbours, any security lighting coming on?
If you can pick something up on a MW radio, this will help, by using a portable you can wander about to see if you can find where the signal is strongest and hence the possible source..
The fact that you lose sync, on both lines identically? will be on record, and a low sync speed of 512 is probably below the fault threshold, and so you have a proven fault. On the assumption that you've done all the relevant checks at your end there shouldn't be any question of charges.
You mentioned being plugged into the test socket, I'm assumong the situation is identical on both lines. Do you have any extension wiring and any extension sockets? Are they all 'dead' when you have the front plate of the master socket removed and are connected at the test socket?
It will be worth looking to see if you can get RouterStats - http://www.vwlowen.co.uk/internet/files.htm to run with both your modem/routers. Please advise what they are. You could also post some ADSL line stats from each - DS & US sync speed, attenuation, SNRM and power.