I'm sorry if this is a horrible question, but here goes:

Friends running a trencher cut my phone line from the street to the house. I never needed it before, but now I'm thinking about DSL.

Can I fix the line? Should I? I saw someone mention street-side wireless; I live in the country, so I think it would be safe. Is it possible?

thank you,

atchafalaya

 

It's not typically yours to fix. Your wiring begins at your NID, which is on your home.

If its been cut for a while, it would likely need replaced.

 

Call the phone company. It's their problem.

 

you could get it up and running in a pinch but it won't last. moisture,corrosion, etc. mine got hit by lightning. when it was dug up there was a 1/4" hole burned through the solid copper shielding. tough to repair that type of jacket.

 

Well, so far it sounds like a bummer.

I don't know if it's the phone company's problem or not, though...my buddies cut the line.

 

you would want to replace it rather than repairing it

if I understand you you dont have phone service now . so call order phone service , its the telcos resposiblity to provide it to the NID .

cut ? you dont know how it got cut

 

its not the phone company's responsibility.the wire from the house to the street underground, is the customers.if you find where the cut is, you can call them and they can splice it together with proper equipment. or you can get a contractor to run a new one for you.if the wires were going to a pole then the phone company WOULD have to replace it.

 

if that where the case then the demark/NID would be at the pedistal and not on the side of the house .

the phone company is responsible up to the demark/nid customer is responsibe form the nid in , so buried cable being on the telco side of the NID certainly is their responsiblity.

 

unfortunately, you all missed the big picture... when you are going to dig in your yard, you are supposed to call the utility companies and request a locate.. this will alleviate the problems of "who is responsible" when you cut the cable.. whether your friend cut it or you cut it.. if you don't call for the locate, and the cable gets cut... it's your expense to have the cable replaced or spliced.. sometimes, if you dig a foot or so, cut the cable, and find out that the code for burial of telephone cable should be 4', then "maybe" they will come take care of it.. if you have it spliced, make sure it is a good burial splice and the person doing it knows what they are doing.. otherwise, you'll have moisture problems and have to dig it up again.. if its a short run, I'd have it replaced.. do the trench work, call the phone company, and they'll drop it in and connect it..

 

The run's about 300 feet. How would I find someone who could splice it?

Thank you for all your answers, by the way; I really appreciate it.

 

Call the phone company first. If they want to charge you then compare their rate against others you can find. I still say they will fix it for free, but perhaps not. At least find out their charge.

 

most likely, they will fix it for free... just really depends on which phone company, and who you get on the phone... cross your fingers... they would be the best to fix it for sure.. that's what they do for a living, so hopefully they would be most proficient...

 

Well, the point is moot. I called the phone company, and they don't even offer DSL where I am. Which is why I wanted the service in the first place.


I'm kind of surprised. I should have clued in when their website was slow, and only worked in IE 5.5...

Thank you for all the answers.