Intermittant phone fault and no one has a clue

[#1]

Since moving in to my house in 2010 which is a new build, my DSL has not stayed connected longer than 14 days, normally disconnects on average every 3 days. Two or three times a month, the phone line also goes dead with no dialing tone (tried 3 different phones), and the broadband goes as well. The only way to get it back up is to receive an incoming call (usually from my mobile).
I have been with Plusnet for over 8 years, and every time I report a fault, all they want to do is send out an BT engineer. I HAVE HAD SIX BT ENGINEERS TO THIS PROPERTY already, and none of them have been able to find a fault. The last engineer even told me that if the fault continues there is no point sending another engineer out to the property, since he has done everything he can to ensure there is no fault in the property. I have had both broadband and phone engineers around.
So why when I call customer service and reopen the fault do they insist on sending another engineer around, and then tell me I will have to pay if the fault is in my house, even though the last engineer said there is nothing wrong in the property.
I have had a new NTE installed, the upstairs sockets (which were installed by the builders) disconnected, so I have had no phone/net access upstairs (3 desktop computers with no wireless), tried 3 different phones, 3 routers, and filters. Incidentally, my father lives on the next street is with Plusnet and never has any issues (and I have even borrowed his equipment to test it). And I have tried things in the the test socket (now I actually have one and they got rid of that pathetic External NTE).
I just feel I am wasting my time with this, because no one is looking at the history of my problem even when they are given the ticket numbers, and because it is not a typical fault, I get given the third degree like I don't know what I'm talking about - I've got an MSc in IT, so I'm not computer illiterate.
Has anyone on here got any idea?

[#2]

The general advice would be to report the phone line problem to whoever you pay line rental to - Do not mention the associated broadband fault.  Is your phone service with PlusNet or another provider?

[#3]

Does this problem happen every month without fail or does it only happen while it is raining or stormy/windy?
Have you set up RouterStats to monitor your line and see if there is any pattern to when the problem happens?

[#4]

Hi there,
Sorry to hear about the issue with the line I'l do my best to help out and see what advice I can offer.

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I have been with Plusnet for over 8 years, and every time I report a fault, all they want to do is send out an BT engineer. I HAVE HAD SIX BT ENGINEERS TO THIS PROPERTY already

Its the same for most reported to us, my advice would be to persist with this one and stick with it, I'll even volunteer to keep an eye on how were getting on with the fault ourselves to make sure we're doing absolutely all we can, this may take a little time, a few more engineer visits and some deal of patience is all that's needed.
As godsell4 mentions I have a feeling too that environmental factors could be at play here. So I'd also advise keeping a note book handy to jot down what the weather conditions are like against where you are when the issue happens, it might sound a bit strange but it does help.
I can see that a new line fault is open and that we're expecting a response by the 25th so I've set myself a reminder to check back as to how things are with your service and see if you've got back to us in the meantime.
All the best,
Adam

[#5]

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The only way to get it back up is to receive an incoming call (usually from my mobile).

That sounds like an HR ( high resistance ) fault...

[#6]

Given the nature of the fault the engineer should not have just checked at your house, but checked every single physical connection on the line all the way back to the exchange. As you can imagine that is a tedious process so they don't like doing it.
Not only should you note the weather at the time of a fault, but also record what it was like for the preceding couple of days.

[#7]

Thanks for you replies.
I don't think it is weather related, the weather has been fine here all week, and the last time this problem occurred was yesterday.
Incidentally, other line problems include incoming calls causing the broadband to disconnect, and the router synching at ridiculously low speeds, particularly the upstream, sometimes as low as 39kbps, instead off 800kbps (when it is at this low speed, an incoming call causes a disconnection and it synchs back at the normal speed) . Again these are rare occurrences, once or twice per month, but no set interval.
Here are some recent dates and times when the phone line was dead, there may be more but these are the ones I noticed:
28/03/13 11:30am
15/04/13 11:54am
30/04/13 11:58am
Was on holiday for 3 weeks in May so unable to monitor
21/06/13 08:54am
BT never find any faults, and as stated I have changed out all my equipment and the problem still occurs.

[#8]

From what you've explained, it sounds like a potential problem on the network. On the Local Network you have segments and joints which may be causing the problem here. I would be inclined to go with having a broadband engineer specifically for checking these on the network to ensure that none of the cabling has become degraded.
It doesn't sound like an exchange fault as the fault seems a little too intermittent and doesn't show any real pattern.

[#9]

I live 100 yards away from my son and since moving into my new house last August I have had no problems whatsoever with my connection.  Plusnet is also the phone provider to both our houses.  I therefore cannot see how his problem can be anything to do with the weather. 

[#10]

I'm afraid that there you are jumping to the wrong conclusion. Weather related faults are nearly always water getting in to a poorly sealed joint on the individual line. So if for example you had two telephone lines in to your house it's quite possible one could be affected by the weather and the other not.

[#11]

Hi thrillville,
I've just had a look at your fault and I can see that engineers believe they've fixed a fault discovered on the network today. We'll obviously not be able to tell for a few days if this has helped so with that in mind I'd recommend that we take a look at your connection logs together on Friday.

[#12]

Thanks for the reply Adam
Can you tell me what the fault was that they found?
Also due to the frequency of the fault in the past, I think it will need a month without the fault recurring to be certain it has been fixed. If it has been fixed then that is great news.

[#13]

Hi there,
We're not party to the explicit details I'm afraid but a fault on the "local network" has been fixed that usually means a section of cable or cable joints have been replaced.

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Also due to the frequency of the fault in the past, I think it will need a month without the fault recurring to be certain it has been fixed. If it has been fixed then that is great news.

Do bear in mind that it's quite normal for a connection to drop out every few days or for some even once or twice a day, that in itself shouldn't have an detrimental effects but, just don't want you to expect a month long connection before being satisfied as to be realistic that might not happen
Here's how it's looking at the moment:
<img src="http://ccgi.psmith12.plus.com/visradius/generated/image13722587589857.png"/>

[#14]

Thanks for the additional information.
I actually meant a month long without the phone line going dead which was the original problem I reported. Hopefully though this will fix it and improve the general stability of the broadband.

[#15]

BT have claimed twice to have fixed this problem, and it has now recurred 3 times since. So obviously BT are not fixing this. Are they just checking the line after the fault has cleared and reporting it fixed since they found nothing?
Is there not anyone available who can actually look into this, because every time I report this issue I get the same response: have you done this, have you done that. Yes I have.
The last BT engineer confirmed there were no faults in the house or with my equipment, but you want to send another one round!!! It seems like every time this fault occurs I am back to square one reporting it.
I did manage to call Plusnet whilst the line was dead from a mobile and they found this fault:
Fault Type:NDT
Test Results:Fail - Fault located at exchange (Openreach side of MDF)
Description: FAULT - Dis One Leg in Exchange
However, as soon as an incoming call is received the fault is cleared. Obviously there is something wrong somewhere.