Why does my broadband only work properly after I complain

[#1]

Now any then my broadband drops off from working properly. I complain, it starts working properly and then I am told (after a 2 week wait) there is nothing wrong with it. Clearly it is them fixing it after I have complained. Based on the timing and frequency it is clearly all on their side. Disappointing. I was originally encouraged by them to upgrade as the only way to avoid these issues. I did and was happy at first but same happening again.
Anyone else experience this.
Plusnet, please give us consistent broadband as we paid for. Thanks.

[#2]

@Mlongb  Welcome to the forum.
There are fellow customers around who are willing to try to advise.

However can I suggest that in order for this to be feasible you should forget your conspiracy theories and explain in detail your set up, your problem and what testing you have done.

[#3]

Thanks but not mentioned a conspiracy. Just fact.
I have run speed test as advised by Plusnet and it does pick up after I have contacted. I don’t want to argue. Just want steady away broadband as agreed, that means I can work from home without blips. I’d not mind if I was told there was going to be occasional drop offs on service. I could make arrangements.
If any non Plusnet employees have a suggestion let me know.
I have to say when it’s working it is great broadband. Can’t fault it. 👍🏻

[#4]

@Mlongb  alas no facts mentioned that can be used to help you.

It could be that when you complain you are asked to reset the router, they reset the line or any number of things.

So it would help if you let people know the results of simple fault finding. Is the phone line quiet, what speeds does the router sync at, how are you connecting - wired/Wi-Fi - what changes when you have issues, how many other devices are connected - are they getting updates at the time? And so on..

[#5]

Thanks for your reply.
Resetting the router is always the first thing I do. I have twice had to replace it because Plusnet have stated “oh, you have an old one, sorry we should have given you a newer one by now”. They do replace it. Fair play there. Resetting is my fist port of call.
I don’t have many devices connected in my house. One TV, one laptop and one phone.

I’ve let Plusnet know results of tests but been told they are fine (no matter what they are).

I am now thinking that I’m best sticking with and moving on if no change. Thanks for support.

[#6]

If you want help/advice from Community members, then, as previously mentioned, we need some concrete evidence that you have a problem We are not physic, do not have crystal balls, and most certainly don't have access to the data which Plusnet staff do.

[#7]

@Mlongb As a start, can you post:- the results of the 'Advanced Diagnostic' from this link: BTW Performance Tester , the detail on this page (obscuring your phone number): BT Broadband  and the Help Desk data (under the Trouble shooting tab on your router), obscuring any personally identifying information.

[#8]

Moderators Note

This topic has been moved from Chat to ADSL Broadband

[#9]

If you have a repeated evidence of there being a fault, you report it, it is tested, the fault goes away but then after a while it fails again, then you most probably have a bad joint issue.  The act of testing the line can "rectify" many such faults, thereby leaving no fault to be registered when the test is run.

Broadband is not going to work well if the "phone" line is not working properly.

Please perform a quiet line test - dial 17070 select option 2 using a corded phone plugged into the test socket behind the face plate of the master socket. It should be silent. A noisy phone line (or no dial tone) will have a marked adverse impact on the performance of broadband.

If the line is noisy or there is no dial tone, then a PHONE LINE fault needs to be raised with your phone provider. If this is PlusNet, you can report a fault on line using the button below.  From the Q&A list, choose the one which matches the problem, 'open' the 'section' and click the trouble-shooter link.  NB: If you receive a failure message (rather than a log-in prompt) then log-in to the user portal in a different browser tab and attempt to use the trouble-shooter again.

• Phone Faults

You need to do this regularly.

Also next time you encounter the issue and report the matter, just politely explain that this is a recurrent intermittent issue.  That should elicit a different response from support.

[#10]

Hello @Mlongb

Thanks a lot for reaching out and I'm sorry to hear that you've been having problems with your service.

however in all honesty, these do appear to be with the wireless signal, and not with the line itself. In fact the line appears to be performing at optimal capacity for the package that you're on, and it has been relatively stable for the most part. I'd therefore recommend taking a look through some other articles on o0ur Community Forum which offer support on improving your wireless connection, including splitting the wireless bands and trying different WIFI channels.

If you rely on a constant connection, you can hook your devices up via Ethernet cable as well. I've popped my test results onto this post for your reference.

KBD

GEA Test Detail
Circuit ID	NA	Service ID

Test Outcome	Pass
Test Outcome Code	GTC_FTTC_SERVICE_0000
Description	GEA service test completed and no fault found .
Main Fault Location	OK
Sync Status	In Sync
Downstream Speed	40.0 Mbps
Upstream Speed	10.0 Mbps
Appointment Required	N
Fault Report Advised	N
NTE Power Status	PowerOn
Voice Line Test Result	Pass
Bridge Tap	Detected
Radio Frequency Ingress	Not Detected
Repetitive Electrical Impulse Noise	Not Detected
Cross Talk	Not Detected
Estimated Line Length In Metres	257.9
Upstream Rate Assessment	Very Good
Downstream Rate Assessment	Very Good
Interference Pattern	Not Detected
Service Impact	No Impact Observed
Home Wiring Problem	Not Detected
Downstream Policing Discard Rate	0.0
Customer Traffic Level	Upstream and Downstream traffic detected
Technology	VDSL
DP Type	External
Profile Name	0.128M-40M Downstream, Error Protection Off - 0.128M-10M Upstream, Error Protection Off
Time Stamp	2021-06-08T12:30:00

Parameters	MIN	MAX	AVG
Down Stream Line Rate	39.9 Mbps	39.9 Mbps	39.9 Mbps
Up Stream Line Rate	9.9 Mbps	9.9 Mbps	9.9 Mbps
Up Time	900.0 Sec	900.0 Sec	900.0 Sec
Retrains	0.0	0.0	0.0

[#11]

@adam945  - just noticed ' Bridge tap - detected' on that report - any significance?

@Mlongb Prior to the very short outage on that VR log at ~2030 on Sunday, you had a solid connection for 65 days, which is very good.

[#12]

Hi @jab1, thanks for getting back to us and highlighting that. Although bridge tap is showing detected, we aren't seeing any errors impacting the connection at all and with the sync speed currently reaching the highest of highs for the product and 1 drop in 65 days then it seems the bridge tap issue isn't impacting the connection.

I'd advise @Mlongb, if you're seeing issue only occur on solely wireless devices to go through the improvement steps below which should hopefully help on this front. If you have a wired connection to try and replicate the issue on then this will help determine if it is wireless that's behind the issues you're seeing.
 

The guide below will show you how to log into the router and change the wireless channel as it's usually another router in the area on the same or similar channel that will be causing issues for both wireless frequencies. Before picking a channel I'd suggest downloading a free app on the android store called "wifi analyzer" (blue and white icon) which will scan your area for all the routers and show what channels they are on between 1-13. Although the above app isn't essential it helps you pick where your router would be best in terms of channels and saves a lot of time doing it via trial and error.
 

1) To connect to your Hub One, you will need to open a browser and go to 192.168.1.254 If you have any issues doing this via Wireless, we recommend trying to do it via Ethernet cable instead.
 

 2) You should come to a page with information about your connection, click 'Advanced Settings' at the top and it will ask you to sign in with a Password. This is located on the back of your router under 'Admin Password'
 

 3) Select the option for 'Wireless' followed by '5 GHz Wireless'. What we want to do to begin with is turn 'Sync with 2.4 GHz Wireless' to 'Off' and update the SSID to be different. The easiest way would be to add '-5G' to the end so it is identified as its own connection. Once this is changed, we will need to keep an eye on it for a day or 2 to see if the issue continues. If it does, the next step would be to change the wireless channel. Keeping in mind the original 2.4Ghz unchanged name network connection would be the best to connect your devices  to for a stronger signal.  
(When deciding which device goes on what frequency keep in mind that the 5GHz is designed for close range stationary devices and standard 2.4GHz the one which gets the wireless around your property further.)
 

4) Following the above guide to get to your 'Advanced Settings' page, you will need to change the settings within the 2.4 GHz Wireless tab and the 5 GHz Wireless tab.
 

5) Under the correct heading, you will need to find 'Channel Selection' on the list and change this from 'Automatic' to any one of the other channels, This can also need doing under '5 GHz Wireless' to cover both signals. Give it 3-4 hours of testing to see if the issue still persists and try to change the channel again if you see little or no improvement.

Let us know how it goes.

[#13]

@BD Yup, I noticed it was apparently having no effect on the connection, but just wondered if might have been affecting anything downstream of the master socket? No problem anyway, it is down to the OP.

[#14]

Moderators Note
This topic has been moved from ADSL Broadband to Fibre Broadband.