topic Re: Engineer visit necessary? in Broadband & Landline

Engineer visit necessary?

Phenoplastic — Wed, 01 Jun 2022 16:03:31 GMT

Hi all

I've signed up for EE fibre max. I'm already on FTTC ADSL (getting 76Mbps) with Plusnet. Have a landline but hardly ever use it.

They've scheduled an engineer visit in a week's time, but I'm not convinced one is necessary. I've already received the new hub/router. What might the engineer actually have to do?

Re: Engineer visit necessary?

XRaySpeX — Wed, 01 Jun 2022 16:21:37 GMT

Switch you from an FTTC VDSL2 (it's not ADSL) connection to G.Fast, at the cab. It probably won't need a home visit.

Re: Engineer visit necessary?

Phenoplastic — Wed, 01 Jun 2022 16:38:48 GMT

Is it worth me phoning them? I would like to avoid the £50 engineer visit charge, I've read elsewhere that they might be needed to change the master socket maybe.

Re: Engineer visit necessary?

XRaySpeX — Wed, 01 Jun 2022 16:51:21 GMT

There is no reason to change master socket if VDSL2 has been running OK from it. Anyway an engineer has been booked to do the changeover.

Re: Engineer visit necessary?

Mustrum — Wed, 01 Jun 2022 17:06:32 GMT

@Phenoplastic have they quoted you £50 for an engineer visit or are you assuming it will apply?

Fixed Landline Broadband installs are Free Setup, so if you have been told its £50 I would be giving them a call as soon as I can.

Re: Engineer visit necessary?

IT-4BusyPeople — Wed, 01 Jun 2022 17:37:53 GMT

EE Fibre Max is FTTP - you are currently on FTTC.

An engineer visit will be necessary to run the fibre from the cabinet to your home and potentially route the fibre to a different place in the house - specifically one which has twin mains power outlets for the termination unit and router.

Re: Engineer visit necessary?

XRaySpeX — Wed, 01 Jun 2022 18:01:17 GMT

@IT-4BusyPeople : EE Fibre Max is usually FTTC G.Fast but EE will provide an FTTP variant based on the G.Fast profiles.

Re: Engineer visit necessary?

IT-4BusyPeople — Wed, 01 Jun 2022 18:37:27 GMT

@XRaySpeX Thanks, I just assumed from a look at the website Fibre Max (FTTC G.fast) had been dropped and only Full Fibre Max (FTTP) is now being sold and given the pricing...

This article clearly states what the engineers' visit is for with a G.fast deployment.

https://ee.co.uk/help/help-new/broadband-and-landline/home-broadband/what-are-fibre-max-145-and-fibre-max-300-broadband-plans

Just look at the sections titled "How are Fibre Max 100 and Fibre Max 300 plans installed and set-up?" and "What will the engineer do?"

Re: Engineer visit necessary?

XRaySpeX — Wed, 01 Jun 2022 18:57:04 GMT

@IT-4BusyPeople : G.Fast Fibre Max will still be sold in areas that don't have FTTP but do have G.Fast.

The eng will "first disconnect your old service and connect your new one at the street cabinet" but nowt about the far bigger job of laying fibre cables, drilling holes thro' walls & affixing a box (ONT) on interior wall.
"These plans work on our current Smart Hub routers, but you will also require an additional Openreach modem to be attached to the router via an Ethernet cable" & its pix is hardly a good description of an ONT.
Similarly "We'll also upgrade the master phone socket (the white box on the wall) and remove any unnecessary wiring". With FTTP they wouldn't bother to touch the phone socket. With G.Fast they could upgrade the phone socket but it's not essential.

All in all a good description of FTTC G.Fast but nowhere near for FTTP.

Re: Engineer visit necessary?

XRaySpeX — Wed, 01 Jun 2022 19:00:38 GMT

@Phenoplastic : To check which Fibre Max you can get there, what does BT Wholesale Broadband Availability Checker estimate for your phone number? Post just the whole table and the line above it, blanking out your phone number. If it doesn't recognise your phone number or you don't have one, use the Address Checker.

Re: Engineer visit necessary?

Phenoplastic — Wed, 01 Jun 2022 22:11:56 GMT

I really don’t think that they’ve sold my an FTTP connection, as it’s a tenement flat and I know there’s no FTTP around here. Even if there was, it’s a big big job running cables from the street and up and into 4 floors of a communally owned area and a building with all sorts of hidden challenges. Just not going to happen. I have to presume this is G. Fast and that any installation is basically going to involve some switchover of cables in the property.

Re: Engineer visit necessary?

Phenoplastic — Wed, 01 Jun 2022 22:15:36 GMT

OK, here’s the results table. Looks like it can’t be FTTP, which is reassuring.

Re: Engineer visit necessary?

XRaySpeX — Wed, 01 Jun 2022 22:16:25 GMT

The main switchover will be at the cab. For the home they will bring an OR G.Fast modem unless EE send you the white Smart Router which has an integrated G.Fast modem.

Re: Engineer visit necessary?

Phenoplastic — Wed, 01 Jun 2022 22:50:13 GMT

OK, here’s the results table. Looks like it can’t be FTTP, which is reassuring.

Re: Engineer visit necessary?

Phenoplastic — Wed, 01 Jun 2022 22:18:01 GMT

I’ve already received the white ‘smart’ router, so that’s good.

Re: Engineer visit necessary?

Phenoplastic — Wed, 01 Jun 2022 22:19:33 GMT

The £50 is specified when signing up. They say “it may be necessary” and they have texted and emailed me to say one is needed. I remain unconvinced, but looks like I have no choice.

Re: Engineer visit necessary?

XRaySpeX — Wed, 01 Jun 2022 22:20:55 GMT

Have you chopped off the top of that table? It doesn't even show VDSL or G.Fast available there, let alone FTTP. But it does show you've been getting 80 Meg VDSL.

Re: Engineer visit necessary?

Phenoplastic — Wed, 01 Jun 2022 22:51:54 GMT

Have fixed the table now, so all the data is above.

Can’t delete my duplicate post though…

Re: Engineer visit necessary?

XRaySpeX — Wed, 01 Jun 2022 23:01:17 GMT

Ah, that's more like it. There's no consumer FTTP there but there is G.Fast. So that's what you'll be getting.

Currently EE offer free set-up on all Fibre. I don't see you should be paying £50 for installation. Yours is a straightforward move from VDSL to G.Fast by the book. You don't even need the OR modem.