I recently installed a garden office phone line, and thought I’d share some observations and findings. I’m a telephone engineer , and used to getting cables both into and out of unusual places!
The customer was coping by dangling her cordless base station out of an open house window to get a signal, whilst managing multi-million pound engineering accounts for a multinational. Not ideal.
So, it was a case of “just” running a cable from the existing cabling to the garden office, a converted double garage, “just” across the patio from the kitchen. (In doing this work, I never like to hear the word “just”…!)
Why? Because with cabling work in homes, some of the shortest distances can be challenging. Especially when everything is neatly-built, and finished. Which leads me to my first suggestion.
Plan Ahead! Install a Duct! A services duct (a pipe!), installed at a very early stage, is ideal. It’s what the professionals use. In there, you can put power, data, telephone cables, and even, if big enough, plastic bendy water-pipe. And know exactly where it is. After all, If you are supplying power to the office, you are going to have to “dig” anyway, either to bury a cable (according to Part “P” Electrical Regulations of course) or install a duct. Now, if the term “duct” sounds expensive, fear not. A 25mm diameter heavy-gauge plastic conduit can suffice, although a little on the small side. It’s freely available, cheap, and has lots of fittings to get around obstacles. Bigger is always better, however. Imaginative use of 40mm waste pipe is even cheaper and effective. There’s even the Openreach/BT-specification 52mm grey duct available on-line.
Persevere with Wireless. If cabling is out of the question, would a relocated cordless base station, cordless repeater, or different type of cordless give you a service into the office? Some cordless phones give good range. However, some will show “five bars” then mysteriously drop the signal. Appliances, steel work, and random interference can cause irritating intermittent problems. A number of years working in the radio paging industry taught me a healthy scepticism towards all things wifi and cordless. But, if it works for you, then bravo! You didn’t need to get the spade out.
If You Use Cable, Then Use Proper Cable. There can be a world of difference between cables. Do not use internal-grade (white sheathed) cable for outdoors, unless you want to have to replace it in a few years time. The sheath is not weather-proof. It will eventually crack, and your line may become hissy and crackly. Your broadband will slow to a halt long before this. Decent-quality external cable has a black sheath, and will last for years. Openreach use “No. 10 Drop-wire”, to hang from poles into your house. It’s available on-line, and there’s plenty for sale in pre-cut lengths on eBay. You will, however, need to to joint it to your existing cables with a Scotch lock Jelly-filled connector, as the copper core is slightly larger than internal-grade cable. Don’t direct-bury it – the cable is not designed for throwing straight in the ground. Use steel-wire armoured BT-specification 5-pair cable, also available on-line. Again, these professional-grade items are available cheaply on-line. However,If you are considering burying armoured cable (hence digging), then put in a duct…
Use Overhead Cable. The aforementioned drop wire is designed to span from pole to house, not to be slung in the ground. You can get a kit on-line that will allow you to do this. It’s the quickest and easiest way to get a cable to a building, which is why BT use it when a duct is not present. If it won’t be obtrusive, then overhead cable is perfect. However, this may be slightly beyond the scope of even an advanced DIY-er. Time to find an independent local telephone engineer.
Take Professional Advice and Use Your Imagination! I routed my cable along a house wall, cable-tied to existing cable, in conduit under a path, under some huge timber raised flower-beds (with a convenient gap underneath!), along a horizontal fence rail, under another path via more conduit, and into the office. Years of hiding cables (and trying to find them) have taught me some good routing tricks. You may be able to find your own. But, when you hire a telephone engineer, you get a head full of experience, as well as a box full of tools and someone to use them.
Please drop us a line! It was actually quite fun installing a garden office phone line. The customer was delighted when she first heard the dial tone. And it didn’t rain.
We are based in Teesside/North Yorkshire, but are prepared to travel as required. We also know of similar independent engineers across the UK.
You talk about using No.10 drop wire for overhead cables, and you talk about using ducting if going underground, but what cable should be used if burying telephone cable under ground.. presumably since there is risk of it sitting in water the No.10 is not the cable for burying?
Thanks
Thanks for your comment. Strictly, for underground applications, a petroleum jelly-filled cable should be used, spec. BT CW1128/CW1198. Google will take you to some!
There’s also an armoured version which is the ideal one for direct burial. However, both are less readily-available in shorter lengths than dropwire 10, and more expensive, particularly the armoured one. Dropwire 10 is more or less CW1128 without the jelly, and with steel weight-bearing strands. Also, it is extremely tough, with a very thick sheath that will certainly resist water. It is designed to sit in rain, wind and snow, as well as spanning 100 metres or so. If you route it well, Dropwire 10 should be fine for the job. But be aware that, due to it’s design, it’s pretty hard to strip back. It’s best to practice on a spare piece first.
And, of course, if you are doing a “grand project”, I would always put a service duct in to your garden office. You’ll never regret it!
Hello Rob,
Very interesting read, thank you for sharing!
I’m yet another ‘office in back garden’ person. At the moment though I was thinking of this:
Situation: House is nearest road, back of garden is furthest from road (end of terrace).
Plan: To have new telephone line installed (No. 10 Drop wire below ground) and have it connected directly to outbuilding. Have Cat 6 connecting from outbuilding (where router will be) to house, which is then connected to an Access point. The house doesn’t need a voice line, only my new office building. So this means that the house will share my business fibre connection. Once this is in place, I’ll cancel my home fibre connection. If needed I could have a network switch in a cupboard in the house, in case some items want a wired connection.
I wouldn’t completely remove the house’s telephone line, so the next owner has an easier with a conventional telephone/internet config.
Look forward to any comments you might have!
Cheers,
Chris
Thanks for the kind words.
I doubt if Openreach would consider installing direct to your shed. They are only required to terminate their line where they find it convenient. However, an independent telephone engineer would be able to intercept this and connect to your pre-installed cable. I would recommend installing a BT-spec 54mm duct from the house to the shed and using external grade black-sheathed CW1308 cable. I have recently changed my mind on using drop wire – it works well in duct, but it’s not quite the right spec., and hard to terminate. Likewise, the data cable needs to be external-grade black-sheathed stuff.
The rest of your proposal seems imaginative and practical.
Meanwhile, if you are able to leave a mini-review of the content you’ve found useful via Google, Facebook, or both, that helps me to keep providing free advice via a site which is deliberately low on adverts! Here are the links.
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Wow, thank you so much for replying so promptly Rob, very kind indeed.
That is a shame about Openreach, but I do understand. The building is going to be fairly solid (SIP with timber joists under flat roof), so perhaps that would sway them. Otherwise I would do as you say and get an independent out, though at least I can put the duct in myself. That’s very commendable to admit altering your decision – very few people are that brave, so fair play to you. I will certainly take heed of your advice though.
I would be more than welcome to do a mini-review, I felt bad that I had ad-blocker on when I initially visited your site, but I soon turned it off once I saw the pop-up!
Thank you again,
Chris
You’re welcome. Thanks for the Trust Pilot review!
With Openreach, you may occasionally encounter an engineer who is prepared to be flexible and cooperative, providing a clear run for a cable is made, and there’s no height/confined space issues.
However, if you’re at the construction/refurb stage, now’s the time to install some CW1308 external-grade cable to where the service enters the building before boards, walls, etc., get finalised. The dropwire from the pole/cable from the ground will have a spare “pair” in it, and it will be that which they will probably use. so the closer you can get your cable to that, the better, and the easier delivery of the service to the outbuilding will be.
And you’re very welcome too!
That’s yet again very useful information, thank you. I’m still at planning stage, though the application has gone in and there’s no complaints as yet, which is nice. So far my intention is to excavate at some point and put in several conduits with tails ready for pulling through whichever service is needed. I can certainly do CAT and get the CW1308 cable you mention, along with the right BT approved duct. Ideally I’d like to put a 110mm pipe set within the slab to allow all cables to come up within the build. Fingers crossed it’ll go well!
This sounds like a diligent, forward-thinking approach, and one that not everyone takes. Much of my time is spent trying to route cables after everything is completed, to it’s refreshing to read this!
Hi there
Thanks for the article. Was wondering if signal drops over distance. My garden office is about 25metres from the house. I intend to string no 10 drop wire from the house. Will this be ok for multi person video calls?
Thanks for visiting, and your kind words. Are you moving your router to your garden office, and the drop wire is for the incoming broadband service? If you are running the video call via your router in the main building, and the office is served by a data cable attached to the router, then you’ll need external-grade Cat5e or Cat6 cable.
To answer your question, the loss over 25M for broadband will be minimal, providing good-quality voice cable (such as Dropwire 10/11, or external-grade CW1308) is used.
For data, over Cat5e/Cat6, the maximum runs are 90m.
I hope that this helps. Rob.
That’s very reassuring to hear, thank you very much. I certainly do want to think ahead as much as possible – I don’t like doing a job and then having to re-do it!
I have a large garage that is converted to a music room where I run my teaching business, I cant get WIFI in there from the house even with a “booster” so I am considering a whoole new router/phoneline as I am using all my 3 and 4 g allowance every month plus I cannot use online teaching easily without WIFI.
Would you go to say BT and ask for advice or is there a cheaper way to do it??
Hello,
You will spend many hours getting through to the “right” person in BT, and a few more explaining what you need.
Instead, I would recommend the advice of an independent engineer. Doncaster is a bit far for me. I will see if there is anyone more local who may be willing to help.
Rob
Hello, I am in Salisbury and am converting my dethatched garage into a granny annex. its literally a couple of feet between my bungalow and garage. I don’t use my landline phone so happy for my mum to have that in there. Is there an easy way to get this sorted? (I was considering also using a TP-Link extender to plug a smart TV in for her and hoping this would work).
Do you have any contacts down this way, when ever contacting BT its a painful process that I do not wish to do. I would rather use the expertise of an independent engineer such as yourself.
Hello,
I will email you directly regarding local contacts. You are right in your assessment of providers. Once you do manage to get through to them, then find the right person to handle your issue, they recommend that you approach an independent engineer! Rob.