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Our internet goes out every time it rains.

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gindi88
Level 3
We'll have to try other providers if this continues. We have NBN and would like internet which stays connected during the rain.

Is there a process for tracking down the problem?
1 ACCEPTED SOLUTION

Accepted Solutions
gindi88
Level 3

You can close our case.

The problem was the pit outside floods during the rain. The NBN guy came, and didn't actually fix it. A few emails later and I was informed the pit is owned by Telstra and they'd have to fix it.

Telstra have not come to fix it. It would still go out during the rain.

So I covered it myself - with some old plywood covered in stucko (although corflute and liquid nails would do), and I spray painted to looks neoliberal (diagonal aqua stripes) - like the cover of a train seat. It stops the rain, so stops the pit flooding, so our internet stays on during the rain.

This is really where this country is at. If your pit floods, cover it with something official looking. Still no word from Telstra, but we're renters, and we're being kicked out in August so it's not my problem.

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5 REPLIES 5
ptdafool
Level 3

Hi Gindi88,

 

There are a number of causes that can cause an Internet service to drop out whether it's weather related or not.  Yours being correlated to rainfall suggests it may be a line issue.  Do you by any chance have FTTN at your premises?  (You'd have a setup similar to ADSL - i.e. you have a cable running to a normal phone socket).

If you're on FTTN/FTTC, then that means the last 'mile' (i.e. the run of cable) to your house will be copper cabling, and can be susceptible to faults.  The single easiest way to tell if its a physical problem is whether your DSL light on your modem flashes during the time you're experiencing dropouts.  If it does, it usually (in my experience) points to a line fault which would be best diagnosed by calling TPG support to lodge a line fault with NBNco.

Be prepared for it to take a while to resolve though, as if it only happens when it rains, it can be notoriously difficult for a tech to test for a fault condition at the exact moment you're experiencing the problem (i.e. the tech appointment could be when it rains which would help as it's when you're having the problem, or the tech appointment could be when it's fine, and the problem is not happening - thus they find no problem).

This kind of issue isn't going to be solved by moving to another ISP.  You'll experience the same problem regardless of your ISP as line faults stay with you no matter where you go - just like if it were a problem with the modem or something physical along those lines.  I say this not so that you stay with TPG, but to prepare you for the fact that no matter where you go, the fault will go with you.

On that same note, the problem could also be with internal cabling in the home as well.  If you have multiple phone sockets in the house, particularly if joins are external (i.e. physical cable connections may be outside exposed to the elements) then this too can cause the problem which an NBNco technician will not be able to solve.  Why?  Because unfortunately that falls within customer premises and equipment and they are only responsible up to the first entry point to your home (the first phone socket essentially).  It may be helpful to get a cabling specialist to disconnect all other sockets that you no longer use and (ideally) just have the single socket that your modem connects to.  That way there are no exposed cable joins that can potentially interfere, or they could repair those joins so they no longer cause a problem.

A lot of this is speculation as I don't know your setup, just giving you a few ideas that may be of help.

If you've run through a few of these things and still experience the issue, I'd recommend lodging a line fault with TPG as an NBNco technician will need to be called on to rectify any problems that exist in cabling from the node up to your first socket.

Best of luck!  Hopefully you can get this problem sorted in short order!

Shane
Moderator

Hi @gindi88,

 

Welcome to the community!

If you're having issues with NBN service, we recommend the best thing to do first is check if there's an outage on the NBN network.

We have created this article that can guide you on How to Check for NBN Network Outage

If there are no known outages in your area you may perform basic troubleshooting, we did an article that you may find helpful see this link below.

 

Troubleshooting no internet connection

In this particular case, there was a known issue in NBN Co's network causing the service not to work. The issue was escalated by our Engineering Team to NBN Co. Updates will be provided via SMS or Phone call when it becomes available.

 

Regards,

 

 

We'll have to try other providers if this continues. We have NBN and would like internet which stays connected during the rain.

Is there a process for tracking down the problem?
gindi88
Level 3

@Shane 

The outage map isn't showing any outages - and I've tried trouble shooting the connection.

It rained last night, and our internet has gone out - so there's still a problem.

It's been out since early in the morning.

This is the first big lot of rain since the NBN guy came out.

So it's still not fixed at all. Can you mark it as needing an NBN guy to come out again?

The last guy said the connection box had fallen into the pit, he said he got it out and strapped it up higher.

Is there a way to get another NBN guy out to check it?

Need help.
Thanks,
-gindi88

gindi88
Level 3

Through the hole in the top of the pit up the street a couple of houses, I can see water. Could it be a drainage issue? Can you guys get someone out to check the drainage?

gindi88
Level 3

You can close our case.

The problem was the pit outside floods during the rain. The NBN guy came, and didn't actually fix it. A few emails later and I was informed the pit is owned by Telstra and they'd have to fix it.

Telstra have not come to fix it. It would still go out during the rain.

So I covered it myself - with some old plywood covered in stucko (although corflute and liquid nails would do), and I spray painted to looks neoliberal (diagonal aqua stripes) - like the cover of a train seat. It stops the rain, so stops the pit flooding, so our internet stays on during the rain.

This is really where this country is at. If your pit floods, cover it with something official looking. Still no word from Telstra, but we're renters, and we're being kicked out in August so it's not my problem.