 BoteMan
join:2002-11-11
Fort Lauderdale, FL
 ·AT&T Southeast
| [Connectivity] Sharing drop with neighbor A tech came out to install cable in my half of the duplex apartment where I live. The other half of this duplex got Comcast a few months ago. It is served from a pole about 50 feet from the building and I assume that a new drop was run from the pole to his (closer) apartment eaves, then through his wall.
The tech today looked puzzled about how to run the cable drop to me and indicated that he could just split it at my neighbor's service entry point and then run it another 40 feet along the eaves to my half of the duplex.
I thought each customer drop needed to be a separate cable? If not, what problems can arise from sharing the drop from the pole?
My guess is that I might have half the signal I would otherwise get, but whether or not that would cause trouble I don't know yet. We rescheduled for tomorrow for a number of reasons, so I'd like to be prepared for his return.
Any gotchas to watch out for or ask him about?
Thanks.
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 gar187erI do this for a living
join:2006-06-24
Dover, DE
kudos:4 | cable is all shared so it makes no difference, unless it puts your signal into the red.
since your in a duplex, it is feasible that your system is designed to have 1 drop per house, so this could be the correct way. alot of duplexes around here are like that, it just depends on the layout.
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| reply to BoteMan
I have NEVER seen this...period... Although i never worked for Comcast thank the lord, I worked for another Cable company in my area. Under NO circumstances were we EVER to share a drop on a duplex. (If this is NOT how comcast does it, then i guess you are SoL and must share)
Not understanding why he could not get the drop to your side. Our rule was 99% of the time, the RG6Q drop is supposed to follow your power drop. IF it is a true duplex with 2 addresses? , you should have 2 power drops and 2 meters etc.
What happens when the neighbor dumps his connection?
Something just sounds wrong, but maybe that is just comcast.... |
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BoteMan
join:2002-11-11
Fort Lauderdale, FL Reviews:
·AT&T Southeast
| said by sapreaper:...What happens when the neighbor dumps his connection? Message received. Good point.
I'll see if we can steer the contractor towards running a drop to my apartment tomorrow when the resked shows up.
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| The problem you run into is when you split a cable signal is you weaken the signal after every split. This in turn effects every service you have especially internet and/or voice which should come off the first split to maximize the upstream and downstream signals. |
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| reply to sapreaper
said by sapreaper:I have NEVER seen this...period... Although i never worked for Comcast thank the lord, I worked for another Cable company in my area. Under NO circumstances were we EVER to share a drop on a duplex. (If this is NOT how comcast does it, then i guess you are SoL and must share)
Not understanding why he could not get the drop to your side. Our rule was 99% of the time, the RG6Q drop is supposed to follow your power drop. IF it is a true duplex with 2 addresses? , you should have 2 power drops and 2 meters etc.
What happens when the neighbor dumps his connection?
Something just sounds wrong, but maybe that is just comcast....
I live in an apartment complex. Each building has eight apartments. There is only one power drop and one Comcast cable drop for each building. The power and cable is fed from a common junction box (with separate power meters for each apartment) to each apartment. I don't see why a duplex would require any different treatment. |
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BoteMan
join:2002-11-11
Fort Lauderdale, FL Reviews:
·AT&T Southeast
1 edit | said by One_Drop :I live in an apartment complex. Each building has eight apartments. There is only one power drop and one Comcast cable drop for each building. The power and cable is fed from a common junction box (with separate power meters for each apartment) to each apartment. I don't see why a duplex would require any different treatment.
The trunk hardline will have a splitter up on the pole; this would be analogous to the one serving your 8 apartments. Then if the tech splits it again at my neighbor's service entry that's another 3dB drop on my leg (and my neighbor's). I get that.
I just don't know if he can remove an attenuator up on the pole or somehow adjust the signal level to our split drop to undo the effects of the second split? Or just run the drop all the way from the pole to me and eliminate one potential source of trouble, if it is one. And any additional installation cost because of this drop run (I doubt it based on reading similar threads here).
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| reply to One_Drop
totally different. An apartment complex (typically a building having 4 or more) gets a hard line run to the building, then attached to the tap-plate (up to eight positions), and mounted in a lock-box. This takes place of the connection/tap-plate up on the pole/messenger. Now any new connections or changes can be done in that box. |
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| reply to BoteMan
said by BoteMan:said by One_Drop :I live in an apartment complex. Each building has eight apartments. There is only one power drop and one Comcast cable drop for each building. The power and cable is fed from a common junction box (with separate power meters for each apartment) to each apartment. I don't see why a duplex would require any different treatment.
The trunk hardline will have a splitter up on the pole; this would be analogous to the one serving your 8 apartments. Then if the tech splits it again at my neighbor's service entry that's another 3dB drop on my leg (and my neighbor's). I get that. I just don't know if he can remove an attenuator up on the pole or somehow adjust the signal level to our split drop to undo the effects of the second split? Or just run the drop all the way from the pole to me and eliminate one potential source of trouble, if it is one. Unless something changed, tap plates are installed (measured in loss/ohms etc) based on signal and number of buildings it needs to feed. Sometimes you cannot just change to a different plate as that effects the rest of the resistance etc. If this building is 2 addresses, that tap plate has a port and proper signal to connect both halves. Even Comcast under their policy does not allow 2 modems to be connected via the same drop. Again maybe there is lee-way, but even a Comcast authorized contractor states: "If you have two modems, they must have separate connections to the main line tap plate. They can not both exists on the same RG6 coax building drop."
So, if there is room on the plate (if 2 addresses), than that tech needs to run another drop. Possibly even if he follows the first til it gets to the building.
I still do not understand the issue with him running another drop ?? Did he explain? |
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| reply to BoteMan
said by BoteMan:said by One_Drop :I live in an apartment complex. Each building has eight apartments. There is only one power drop and one Comcast cable drop for each building. The power and cable is fed from a common junction box (with separate power meters for each apartment) to each apartment. I don't see why a duplex would require any different treatment.
The trunk hardline will have a splitter up on the pole; this would be analogous to the one serving your 8 apartments. Then if the tech splits it again at my neighbor's service entry that's another 3dB drop on my leg (and my neighbor's). I get that. I just don't know if he can remove an attenuator up on the pole or somehow adjust the signal level to our split drop to undo the effects of the second split? Or just run the drop all the way from the pole to me and eliminate one potential source of trouble, if it is one. And the eight way split on the apartment building would mean a proportionally larger db drop for each apartment. What's your point? The tech only has to adjust the level before the split to compensate. I have quite acceptable modem stats despite the eight way split (and a two way split inside my apartment).
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| said by One_Drop :said by BoteMan:said by One_Drop :I live in an apartment complex. Each building has eight apartments. There is only one power drop and one Comcast cable drop for each building. The power and cable is fed from a common junction box (with separate power meters for each apartment) to each apartment. I don't see why a duplex would require any different treatment.
The trunk hardline will have a splitter up on the pole; this would be analogous to the one serving your 8 apartments. Then if the tech splits it again at my neighbor's service entry that's another 3dB drop on my leg (and my neighbor's). I get that. I just don't know if he can remove an attenuator up on the pole or somehow adjust the signal level to our split drop to undo the effects of the second split? Or just run the drop all the way from the pole to me and eliminate one potential source of trouble, if it is one. And the eight way split on the apartment building would mean a proportionally larger db drop for each apartment. What's your point? The tech only has to adjust the level before the split to compensate. I have quite acceptable modem stats despite the eight way split (and a two way split inside my apartment). You are not getting it. It is split eight ways on a tap plate! Just like any neighborhood is split. You cannot split 8-ways on RG6 and keep your signal. The tech does not adjust anything. Only if something is wrong with overall signal at the tap plate, can the higher tech-2 or similar come out to change something. They could up the amp setting but that effects the whole tap plate at once (every port) |
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| reply to sapreaper
said by sapreaper:Even Comcast under their policy does not allow 2 modems to be connected via the same drop. Again maybe there is lee-way, but even a Comcast authorized contractor states: "If you have two modems, they must have separate connections to the main line tap plate. They can not both exists on the same RG6 coax building drop."
That would mean that a business class customer who had both Internet and voice services would need to have two drops, because none of the officially approved "modems" that are allowed to be used for a business class account have FXS (voice) ports. That restricted modem list means that two modems are required if a business class customer is a CDV subscriber. I really don't think that Comcast is going to run a separate drop just for the voice modem. |
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| Maybe due to the low bandwidth that VoiP uses. I used "modems" loosely as in used for internet and speeds above 10-15Mbps etc. I do not deal with VoiP, and wish I would never have to get it myself. Low cost garbage.. |
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 not
@comcast.net | Bottom line everyone... the splitting can only happen at the TAP plate. If he splits off somewhere else down the line from there, when your neighbor cancels his/her account, Comcast comes out or remotely cuts off his connection and inturn yours as well. |
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gar187erI do this for a living
join:2006-06-24
Dover, DE
kudos:4 | reply to BoteMan
said by BoteMan:said by sapreaper:...What happens when the neighbor dumps his connection? Message received. Good point. I'll see if we can steer the contractor towards running a drop to my apartment tomorrow when the resked shows up. thats why they make orange tags (multiple downstream connections)
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I'm better than you! |
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| The bottom line is the tech needs to do his job, contractor or not. No the tech can't turn the signal up at the pole, it's not possible. If there are two power meters from two drops from the pole then there need to be two drops for cable service from the pole, enough said. |
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 Anonymous_AnonymousPremium
join:2004-06-21
127.0.0.1
kudos:2
 ·RoadRunner Cable
| reply to BoteMan
said by BoteMan:A tech came out to install cable in my half of the duplex apartment where I live. The other half of this duplex got Comcast a few months ago. It is served from a pole about 50 feet from the building and I assume that a new drop was run from the pole to his (closer) apartment eaves, then through his wall.
The tech today looked puzzled about how to run the cable drop to me and indicated that he could just split it at my neighbor's service entry point and then run it another 40 feet along the eaves to my half of the duplex.
I thought each customer drop needed to be a separate cable? If not, what problems can arise from sharing the drop from the pole?
My guess is that I might have half the signal I would otherwise get, but whether or not that would cause trouble I don't know yet. We rescheduled for tomorrow for a number of reasons, so I'd like to be prepared for his return.
Any gotchas to watch out for or ask him about?
Thanks.
could leave you disconnected if the person turns off the service..
they had to run a new line of RG11 after that happened. |
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1 edit | reply to sapreaper
said by sapreaper:said by BoteMan:said by One_Drop :I live in an apartment complex. Each building has eight apartments. There is only one power drop and one Comcast cable drop for each building. The power and cable is fed from a common junction box (with separate power meters for each apartment) to each apartment. I don't see why a duplex would require any different treatment.
The trunk hardline will have a splitter up on the pole; this would be analogous to the one serving your 8 apartments. Then if the tech splits it again at my neighbor's service entry that's another 3dB drop on my leg (and my neighbor's). I get that. I just don't know if he can remove an attenuator up on the pole or somehow adjust the signal level to our split drop to undo the effects of the second split? Or just run the drop all the way from the pole to me and eliminate one potential source of trouble, if it is one. Unless something changed, tap plates are installed (measured in loss/ohms etc) based on signal and number of buildings it needs to feed. Sometimes you cannot just change to a different plate as that effects the rest of the resistance etc. If this building is 2 addresses, that tap plate has a port and proper signal to connect both halves. Even Comcast under their policy does not allow 2 modems to be connected via the same drop. Again maybe there is lee-way, but even a Comcast authorized contractor states: "If you have two modems, they must have separate connections to the main line tap plate. They can not both exists on the same RG6 coax building drop." So, if there is room on the plate (if 2 addresses), than that tech needs to run another drop. Possibly even if he follows the first til it gets to the building. I still do not understand the issue with him running another drop ?? Did he explain? This is a terrible way to install regardless of the circumstances. Even if there were no tap ports, which is possible the drop should have been split at the pole off the neighbors tap port and ran to your power meter etc. Even then should only be temporary. This is most likely a case of a lazy tech.
Edit: fixed some things lol.
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| @BobJohnson , what is a terrible way to install? Not sure where your reply was directed  |
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Reviews:
·T-Mobile US
·Sprint Mobile Br..
| I edited my post previous to kinda make more sense out of it. I'm not sure what happened on my phone but I thought I shortened the quote the first time. Anyway, all of your post was correct and I was saying that there is not an excuse for not running the drop. |
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