c/cable-installers

Noticed a ton of new fiber pedestals going up in the new subdivision off Route 9

Honestly, seeing them all pre-labeled for a single provider makes me wonder if anyone else has dealt with getting access to run lines for a different company in these locked-down developments.

An old guy in a Daytona Beach condo showed me his original 1978 cable bill

He said 'Son, this used to cost me $8 a month and they sent a man in a tie.' Makes you think about how much the job has changed. Anyone else run into customers who remember the very early days?

Got a call back to a job I did six months ago and the difference in signal quality was wild

I ran a new drop for a customer last fall, just a standard RG6 quad shield line off the pole to their house. At the time, their signal levels were okay, not great, but within spec. I got called back there yesterday because they were having pixelation on a few channels. I hooked up my meter and their downstream power was a solid 8 dBmV higher across the board, and their MER had jumped up too. The only thing that changed was the weather. It's been super dry and hot here for weeks, which I guess tightened up the cable on the strand and maybe even shifted the pole a tiny bit. It made the whole run just a bit more direct and clean. I had to redo the fitting at the ground block because the change actually stressed the old compression ring. Has anyone else seen seasonal weather swing levels that much on an aerial run?

A chat with a retired lineman at the hardware store made me see our job differently

I was picking up some new fish tape at the local supply house last week, and I got talking to an older guy in line. He saw my work shirt and said he'd been a lineman for the phone company for 35 years, retired about a decade ago. I asked him what the biggest change was. He paused and said, 'We used to build things to last. Now you folks are just patching a system that's always changing. The skill isn't in the install anymore, it's in the customer.' He meant dealing with people's frustration over bills and signals, not just the wires. It hit me because I'd just come from a house where the lady was mad about her bill, and I couldn't fix that, only her connection. Has anyone else felt that shift, where the people part is becoming the real job?

Just saw the wildest cable run at a house in Tempe

I was doing a service call at this older ranch house over there. The previous installer had run the coax line straight through the middle of the living room ceiling, just stapled it across the drywall like a decoration. It was maybe 30 feet of cable just hanging out in plain sight. The homeowner said they were told it was 'the only way' to get signal to the back bedroom. I've seen some shortcuts, but that one was new. What's the most ridiculous install you've ever had to fix?

My fish tape snapped inside a conduit run yesterday

It was a 100-foot pull through a 2-inch PVC that had a sharp 90-degree bend. I had to cut the conduit open to get it out, which added like 2 hours to the job. Anyone have a go-to brand for a more flexible tape that can handle tight turns?

Had to choose between fishing a line or cutting a new hole in a finished ceiling yesterday

Customer's old coax was stapled tight behind crown molding in their living room, no slack at all. I could either try to fish a new line through the same path for an hour, or cut one small access hole in the drywall to get a clean pull. I went with the hole, patched it with a California patch, and it took 20 minutes total. They were happy with the speed and the patch is invisible. Anyone got a better trick for dealing with stapled cable in finished spaces?

Remember when a drop meant climbing a pole? Had a new guy ask what a 'butt set' was last week.

PSA: I lost a full day's pay on a 'universal' coax crimper

Bought one of those cheap crimpers from a big box store for $25, thinking it would handle all the connectors. Got to a job in the new Maplewood subdivision and the thing just mangled every F-connector. Had to drive back to the supply house for the right tool, which cost me about $180 in lost time and gas. What's your go-to crimper brand that actually works?

Warning: I found a weird way to fish a line through a finished wall in an old Boston brownstone.

Honestly, I had this impossible run from the basement to a third floor bedroom with zero chase. Tbh, I ended up using a cheap borescope camera from Harbor Freight taped to a fiberglass rod, and I could see the whole path on my phone. Ngl, it took about 2 hours of wiggling, but I got it through without cutting a single access panel. Has anyone else had to get that creative in a historic building?

Had to pick between a new fish tape or a fiber push rod for a tricky apartment run

I was working on a job in a big, old building downtown last week, and the path for the new line was a real mess of old pipes and tight corners. My old steel fish tape just kept getting stuck. I had to choose between buying a new, more flexible fiberglass fish tape or trying one of those newer fiber push rods that are supposed to bend better. I went with the push rod, a Klein one, and it was the right call. It snaked through a 90-degree turn in a conduit I thought was a dead end. Anyone have a favorite tool for really tight, old building pulls?

Had a chat with a plumber that changed how I think about wall fish jobs

I was working a rewire in a 1920s house in Portland and got stuck trying to drop a line down a plaster wall. The plumber on site saw me struggling and said, 'You guys always try to force it. We use a magnet on a string to find our pipes first, saves hours.' He showed me his setup, a simple $5 magnet tied to some braided fishing line. I tried it, found the old metal lath behind the plaster in minutes. Has anyone else picked up a trick from another trade that made your job easier?

Question about using a fish tape on old plaster walls

Everyone says to avoid them because you'll crack the lath, but I carefully fed mine through a drilled hole above the baseboard in a 1920s house last month and it slid right through a cavity. Has anyone else found a specific spot where plaster is more forgiving?

I remember when we had to carry a separate meter for every signal, now my Fluke does it all

Switched to a combo unit about 18 months back after a job in Cincinnati where I was juggling three tools on a ladder. Anyone else find the single device saves more time than they expected?

Appreciation post: A customer in Phoenix once told me my wall fish looked like a toddler did it

I started practicing with a piece of scrap drywall and a bucket of spackle at home for a month, and my lines are way cleaner now. Anyone have a better trick for keeping those low voltage rings nice and flush?

Got called out for a messy attic run in a 100-year-old house

I was in this old place in Cincinnati, pulling coax through a tight attic space. The existing lines were a total rat's nest, and I just shoved my new line through the same hole to save time. The homeowner, an older guy who used to be an electrician, came up and said 'son, that's how fires start.' He was right. I spent the next hour clearing out the old junk and using proper clamps. Anyone else get called on a shortcut by a customer who actually knew their stuff?

Pro tip: Saw a crew in Denver using zip ties for everything, even coax runs

I was working near a new build in Denver and watched another team secure a whole 50-foot coax drop with just zip ties to a chain link fence. It looked quick and clean, but I've always been told to use proper clamps or lashing wire for anything outside. What's the real move here for a permanent install?

Rant: The old guy in the apartment building on Elm Street who called me a 'wire wizard'

I was running a new drop to unit 4B in that old brick building on Elm Street last Tuesday. This elderly guy, Mr. Henderson, watched me fish the line down the wall chase for like twenty minutes. When I got the signal locked, he just smiled and said, 'Son, you're a regular wire wizard.' It was such a small thing but it made the whole sweaty crawl space thing worth it. Anyone else get a random compliment that just made your day?

A simple coax run in an old house turned into a two day crawl space hunt

Got a call for a new drop in a 1920s house in the historic district. The wall they wanted it on had zero access from the attic or basement, so I had to find a path through the balloon framing. I spent about six hours over two days fishing lines through a maze of fire blocks and old insulation before I finally got it. Anyone else have a trick for spotting those hidden chase ways in really old builds?

PSA: I just passed 1,000 feet of coax pulled in a single attic crawl

Happened yesterday on a rewire job in a big old house in Springfield. The attic was basically a furnace and I had to snake around three different chimney stacks. I kept the counter on my measuring wheel going just to see. When I finally dropped down into the living room wall and saw 1,012 feet, it hit me how much physical work this job actually is, not just the technical side. Anyone else ever track their numbers like that and get surprised?

My fish tape snapped inside a conduit yesterday and it was a mess

I was pulling some new RG6 through a tight 1-inch conduit in an old apartment building. The tape (a Klein one I've had for a while) just gave up about 15 feet in. I had to cut the cable, pull the broken tape out from the other end, and start the whole pull over with a fresh tape. Has anyone found a brand that holds up better in those tight, old metal pipes?

PSA: A customer in Denver showed me a trick with zip ties I'd never seen

I was running a new line through a tight attic crawl space and the homeowner, an older guy who used to work for the phone company, asked if I had a second. He took two zip ties, looped them together to make a long, stiff pull line to get past a blocked joist. It worked on the first try and saved me a trip back to the truck for my glow rod. What's the best 'field fix' you've ever been shown on a job?

Question about using a fish tape on old plaster walls

My uncle, who did this job for 30 years, always told me to just push the fish tape hard on old plaster and lathe walls. Last week in a 1920s house in Columbus, I tried that and the tape got stuck behind a wood slat. Another installer at the supply house said you should always use a glow rod and a magnet in those walls to feel for the studs first. Who was right? What's your go-to method for those tricky old walls?

TIL I had to pick between a Klein crimper and a cheap generic one for a big apartment complex job in Tempe.

I went with the Klein, and it held up through 40 units without a single bad connection, so what's your go-to crimper brand for heavy use?

I used to think fish tape was a waste of money

For the first three years on the job, I just used a straightened coat hanger and a lot of patience to push lines through walls. A guy on a crew in Phoenix told me to try a real steel fish tape, but I figured it was just a fancy tool for the same result. Last month, I had a run in an old house with blown-in insulation and the hanger kept bending. I finally bought a Klein fish tape for about forty bucks. The difference was huge. I got the line through a tricky fifteen foot run in under ten minutes, where the hanger would have taken me half an hour of fighting. It just glides. Anyone have a favorite brand for those really long pulls?