Question about getting cable internet in older home.

May 12, 2018
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Hey everyone, I’ve decided to get cable internet at my place, as Comcast has started offering pretty high speeds at my address. My current internet is coming in to the house via telephone line at 15Mb/s which isn’t cutting it for me.

My question is this: Will a house built in 1992 have the proper coax cable needed to get the speeds that I am going to be paying for? I’ve done some reading on RG59 and RG6, but I have no idea what a house built in the 90s would have had installed. If I do end up requiring RG6 cable, would there a temporary solution to getting my internet up and running? For example, could I run new RG6 cable from the cable box to my modem without having to rewire my house? Can the cable be run outside?

Any info would be appreciated.
 
Solution
Our Comcast/Xfinity installer simply drilled 3/4" holes at the entry points, pushed the coax through, and terminated into a coax wall jack. No outlet boxes or other supporting structure. (Wanted to charge us $20.00 per hole but "waived" that when I got my drill out.... Seems that he was really supposed to do that work per the initial contract agreement.)

Depending on your skills and abilities you might consider pre-drilling the holes at the desired location(s).

Must be careful doing so, of course, as to not drill into electrical wires, water pipes, sewer connections, duct work, etc..

Also you must have a drill and bits suitable to go through masonry, metal siding, wood, or whatever materials are in the way. And after the cable is...

kanewolf

Titan
Moderator
You could run a single RG6 to your new cable modem without redoing all the coax. It can be run outdoors. Your TV reception may also suffer if you have badly installed coax. If you have many splitters or four-way splitters with only two ports used, etc your TV reception may also suffer.
 
May 12, 2018
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Well I don’t have cable TV and don’t plan on getting it any time soon as I consume all of my shows and movies via Netflix, etc. I’m only concerned about internet performance at this point.
 

kanewolf

Titan
Moderator


Most of the time, on-premises wiring is the responsibility of the home owner. The installer will get a signal to the demarcation point. You could pay them to fix your wiring, but they usually have no obligation to do so.
 

USAFRet

Titan
Moderator
Generally, they will wire from the street to the demarc, and then ONE location inside, where the modem/router is. Even if that involves drilling holes, etc. Just not too extensive. They won't fish through walls all over.
Verify it works on ONE PC, wired.
Done.

After that, it's all on you.
Is there currently coax in the house?
 
Comcast will be responsible for installing the cable modem and the cables required from your cable box to your house.
The cable from your modem to your pc will be an Ethernet connection, not a coax connection.
You can run that yourself for perhaps as much as 50 feet.
Most cable modems will also have current gen wifi if that suits your need for a more remote pc.

You might have the Comcast installer run a bandwidth test to verify that you are getting the speed you are paying for.
 

USAFRet

Titan
Moderator


The issue is....the house coax is only for TV. Unless you're going to use MOCA devices, that coax won't be used for PC's/ethernet. That would be your own Cat5e wiring, or (shudder) WiFi.

The install tech will create whatever wiring is necessary from the box on the side of the house to the modem/router.
After that, it's all on you.

And...don't expect him to run that coax all through the house to where you want the modem.
But also...don't just accept his default location. You want the modem/router in a central location. And especially NOT in the basement.
 
May 12, 2018
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Gotcha. At the moment i only have my desktop connected via Ethernet to my modem/router. All other devices are going to be connected via WiFi. Planning to do the same thing with the new setup.

Good to hear that they’ll take care of wiring from the box to the modem. That’s really all I was concerned about. The house isn’t huge so I’m not too concerned about location of the modem for optimal WiFi coverage, however I do know that each bedroom and the living room have a coax outlet(?). Would they run the wiring to the modem through those outlets or new wiring all together?
 
May 12, 2018
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Those two locations would be fairly close to each other if they let me choose.

Thanks for the info! I’ve got a tech coming out to my place later this week, so I’ll see how it goes. I’ll report back with any questions/updates.
 

USAFRet

Titan
Moderator


Talk nice, have all your stuff ready, know what you want.
You'd be surprised at how accommodating they might be.

My last install, Verizon FiOS...he ended up giving me a free MOCA device for ethernet signal upstairs.

And don't let him leave without verifying performance on your hardware.
 

Ralston18

Titan
Moderator
Our Comcast/Xfinity installer simply drilled 3/4" holes at the entry points, pushed the coax through, and terminated into a coax wall jack. No outlet boxes or other supporting structure. (Wanted to charge us $20.00 per hole but "waived" that when I got my drill out.... Seems that he was really supposed to do that work per the initial contract agreement.)

Depending on your skills and abilities you might consider pre-drilling the holes at the desired location(s).

Must be careful doing so, of course, as to not drill into electrical wires, water pipes, sewer connections, duct work, etc..

Also you must have a drill and bits suitable to go through masonry, metal siding, wood, or whatever materials are in the way. And after the cable is in place and secured, the opening must be sealed and caulked to prevent water and bugs from getting inside.

Generally very straight forward if you are into any sort of DIY. Or have a DIY type family member or friend who can help you.

Overall, the tech may be more than happy to just "go with the flow" and bring the coax cable into the location you desire and have pre-drilled the opening accordingly. Especially if that minimizes the work he (or she) needs to do. They are often overworked and pressed for time.

Note: I usually beg an extra splitter or two whenever I can. Having a spare splitter on hand has been very helpful a couple of times.

 
Solution