Placing your fiber optic cables below the frost line will help prevent damages due to freezing weather.
Many advantages come with installing fiber optic cables over traditional copper cables, but that doesn’t mean they are invincible. Fiber optic cables are essential for transmitting data significantly faster than copper, as well as carrying data over longer distances without disruption. However, fiber optic cable’s weakness may be that when exposed to freezing-cold temperatures, fiber optic cables may stop working. Fortunately, there are preventative steps you can take when installing your fiber optic cables to ensure that your cables are not affected and that your connectivity is not interrupted.
Interrupted or Blocked Signals
Based on research regarding the effect of freezing weather on fiber optic cables, it appears that fiber optic cables can be affected by cold temperatures when water can enter the ducts carrying the cables and subsequently freeze. This ice that forms around the cables can cause the cables to bend, which affects the signals sent through the fiber optic cables. Sometimes signals will only be slowed down or degraded, but in other instances, signals won’t be able to pass through at all. Loss of connectivity can be hugely detrimental to any business that relies on fiber connectivity for day-to-day operations.
How You Can Prevent Damage
There are ways to prevent the possibility of ice damage to your fiber optic cables. First, when installing fiber cables, you must carefully plan where they are installed. For instance, burying fiber optic cables below the frost line will often eliminate the threat of ice. There are also antifreeze gels and other products available to prevent water from freezing in ducts carrying fiber optic cables across bridges and other large structures. Consulting with the experts at FiberPlus will give you the installation plan you need to prevent the loss of time, money, and work that can come with ice-damaged fiber optic cables.
Get in Touch with FiberPlus
FiberPlus has been providing data communication solutions for over 25 years in the Mid Atlantic Region for a number of different markets. What began as a cable installation company for Local Area Networks has grown into a leading provider of innovative technology solutions improving the way our customers communicate and keeping them secure. Our solutions now include:
- Structured Cabling (Fiberoptic, Copper and Coax for inside and outside plant networks)
- Electronic Security Systems (Access Control & CCTV Solutions)
- Wireless Access Point installations
- Public Safety DAS – Emergency Call Stations
- Audio/Video Services (Intercoms and Display Monitors)
- Support Services
- Specialty Systems
- Design/Build Services
FiberPlus promises the communities in which we serve that we will continue to expand and evolve as new technology is introduced within the telecommunications industry.
Have any questions? Interested in one of our services? Call FiberPlus today 800-394-3301, email us at info@fiberplusinc.com, or visit our contact page. Our offices are located in the Washington, DC metro area and Richmond, VA. In Pennsylvania, please call Pennsylvania Networks, Inc. at 814-259-3999.
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