Wifi connection problems for no apparent reason

[#1]

---

@flamesong wrote:

... disconnecting the internal phone extensions is not an option for two reasons.

...  BTO would likely say that I have interfered with their equipment

---

Wrong.

BT Openreach only consider the wiring up to and including the TEST socket as theirs.

The home owner can fit any approved master socket faceplate, and is responsible for any phone extension wiring.

---

@flamesong wrote:

... I might add that disconnecting the internal phone extensions is not an option ...

... it's a rented house; ergo not mine to mess about with.

If testing your sync speeds in the hidden TEST socket shows that you get better sync speeds without the extension wiring,  you could ask the landlord about pulling the extension wires off the connector at the back of the master socket faceplate,  you could leave the loose ends inside the socket housing bound together with electrical tape, and you could leave the wiring runs around the house in place so as not to risk damage to the house decorations.

You could point out to the landlord that the phone extension wiring will be useless in the future, as the analogue PSTN phone system will be retired on 31st January 2027, and will never be used again.

Alternatively, you could do @Baldrick1's suggestion, and use an interstitial faceplate that fits between the master socket faceplate and the master socket back box, that isolates the 'ring' wire of the internal phone wiring from the DSL circuit.  This can make considerable improvements with no other alterations to the wiring,  although not as effective as actually disconnecting the extension wiring entirely.

[#2]

---

@flamesong wrote:

There were problems for maybe three weeks, initially intermittent and last week it became near impossible to do anything.

Yes, that is the classic symptom when using a Plusnet Hub Two router, when something on your network increased the total upload traffic of all your networked devices above the bandwidth available on your VDSL upload path.

By using a different router to manage and prioritise the traffic flows, then the VDSL link doesn't collapse (causing the symptoms you describe), but instead time sensitive traffic is more likely to get through, and the entire network feels more responsive.

---

@flamesong wrote:

I don't know how to troubleshoot an intermittent problem when there are no symptoms

---

You use a diagnostic tool such as https://www.waveform.com/tools/bufferbloat 

Run the test, look at the result, and if you got a bufferbloat score that was worse than 'C', then you've got problems.

Use a router with bandwidth or QoS controls, then iteratively adjust the settings and repeat the test, until you get a score of  'A' or 'B", but 'C' would suffice if you don't do online gaming, video calls, or use VoIP phones.

[#3]

---

@ExForce9 wrote:

---

Alternatively, you could do @Baldrick1's suggestion, and use an interstitial faceplate that fits between the master socket faceplate and the master socket back box, that isolates the 'ring' wire of the internal phone wiring from the DSL circuit.  

---

I'd forgotten all about the orange bell wire. As it's no longer used by modern phones that's another connection that needs chopping off from any extension wiring.

The advantage of using a filtered faceplate for the extension is that it removes there being aerial(s) in the form of unterminated extension cabling that's directly connected to the incoming dsl lines being strung around the property picking up EMI. There is a buzz word that's on the tip of my tongue that used to be tested for, caused by old party line cabling being left connected out in the wild.

[#4]

---

@Baldrick1 wrote: There is a buzz word that's on the tip of my tongue that used to be tested for, caused by old party line cabling being left connected out in the wild.

---

'bridge taps' ?

'ring imbalance' ?

[#5]

Bridge tap! Thank you.

[#6]

---

@ExForce9 wrote:

---

You could point out to the landlord that the phone extension wiring will be useless in the future, as the analogue PSTN phone system will be retired on 31st January 2027, and will never be used again.

---

If you already have a few extension phones (I have 2), it's possible to carry on using the phones on the extension wiring by wiring the extension connections to a splitter connected to the router phone connector. There are instructions on YouTube.

Basically, disconnect the BT/Openreach faceplate, connect router to test socket, connect green phone socket on router to the faceplate socket. (If you want to keep a phone connected to the router, you could use a splitter on the router). It won't look pretty, as you will need to keep the faceplate disconnected from the test socket, but it will keep the phones on the extension wiring working.

[#7 · Accepted solution]

Powerline kit installed.

Everything is working fine, thanks.