Condo Internet wire RUST after 3 years, possible ?

[thailandbeachisland]

Hello,

One condo Internet was suddenly down and the building told me to change the wire from the ground floor to the condo.

They showed me the cable and it has rust / corrosion (if it's copper it cannot rust actually, only corrode)

They told me that it's normal to change it every few years.

Do you think that the reason is poor quality cable ?

I don't recall having to change it in the west for 10 years.

Thank you for your help.

Edited February 26, 2014 by thailandbeachisland

[chiang mai]

Rust on copper wire!

[thailandbeachisland]

Rust on copper wire!

Maybe copper is not real copper in this country 555+

I know it should corrode and not rust but what I have seen is not green like the French Statue of Liberty but reddish like rust.

Help <3

[h90]

poor quality copper, close to the sea which makes everything rust faster and air pollution....

[lormakmak]

You falang.... You must pay!!!

[chiang mai]

poor quality copper, close to the sea which makes everything rust faster and air pollution....

Nah, copper doesn't rust, oxidize yes, rust no.

[ABCer]

Copper does not rust only gets a greenish oxidized film on its surface.

But being where you are (TIT) your wires are possibly not copper, only copper plated. Could be steel or aluminium.

Than they corrode, much faster at the seaside where you have moisture, salt and iodine in the air.

Check your wires. If 'springy' - it's steel. If soft but break easily after a few bends - it's aluminium. Sorry, mate, TIT.

And forget the 'farang' song, the bloody bastards do this equally to locals.

If the condo is yours - you will have to cough it up. If not - you don't have to pay, just live without internet.

Edited February 26, 2014 by ABCer

[ChristianBlessing]

Copper-coated Cat5 is popular in developing nations, and is susceptible to corrosion, but only where it's PVC coating has been removed, such as the end terminations. You may be able to snip off the ends, expose some bare wire and re-terminate them.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[attrayant]

the building told me to change the wire from the ground floor to the condo

That's a talented building you have there.

[attrayant]

When you say internet wire, are you talking about coax? I don't think there is any steel in them. It's supposed to be an inner copper wire surrounded by an aluminum foil and/or aluminum or copper braid:

That's RG-58 standard. I would think it'd be highly impractical for some company to go through the expense of engineering a cheaper version made with steel just to save a few satang on each hundred meters. Copper patina is usually only a dozen microns thick and is easily scraped away through the act of unplugging and re-plugging the connector a few times.

[KittenKong]

I would think it'd be highly impractical for some company to go through the expense of engineering a cheaper version made with steel just to save a few satang on each hundred meters.

You would, wouldn't you. But they do:

Anything that saves a few cents/satang/pennies will always attract some people.

[attrayant]

I'm aware of copper-clad aluminum, used mainly at high frequencies because those signals tend to propagate along the surface of a conductor. At microwave and above, conductors are often hollow because of this "skin effect".

I'm still skeptical about steel in coax. Yes steel is cheaper than aluminum, but much heavier. There might be such a thing, but I've not come across it. Even if there is such a thing, I'd think the patina would serve to protect the copper from actual corrosion (the same as aluminum oxide does for aluminum).

Edited February 26, 2014 by attrayant

[KittenKong]

I'm aware of copper-clad aluminum, used mainly at high frequencies because those signals tend to propagate along the surface of a conductor. At microwave and above, conductors are often hollow because of this "skin effect".

Back in Europe copper-clad aluminium coax (and just plain aluminium coax) was quite often used by cheap electricians because it was cheap.

The nice thing about solid copper, as mentioned, is that a quick scrape with a Stanley knife gets it back into full functionality for another x years.

I'm still skeptical about steel in coax.

You are right. That probably doesn't exist (but if it did it would probably be here).

[h90]

poor quality copper, close to the sea which makes everything rust faster and air pollution....

Nah, copper doesn't rust, oxidize yes, rust no.

yes oxidize...I recall I put speaker cables, they oxidized away to dust, from the connection 1 cm down inside the plastic...

[ChristianBlessing]

The photo is coaxial, used for TV/cable. Is cable internet available in Thailand?

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[JesseFrank]

I think the OP is talking about the thin yellow telephone cable wit 2 or 4 wires inside, which is normally used for indoor telephone installation.

And yes there is cheap rubbish on the market that just " evaporates " . I know as my constructor cut some corners and purchased that kind of cable for some low voltage circuits, it probably was 10 Baht cheaper for a roll, and after a year it just rusted away.Had to replace it all.

[KittenKong]

The photo is coaxial, used for TV/cable. Is cable internet available in Thailand?

Absolutely. I have it.

[ABCer]

You guys are absolutely right about coax. But I'm not as advanced here in Rayong. My condo has no cable. I use ADSL via normal phone land line. Cheap. But with all the disadvantages.

If OP is talking about cable connection - what I said is irrelevant. Just ignore it.

[thailandbeachisland]

I think the OP is talking about the thin yellow telephone cable wit 2 or 4 wires inside, which is normally used for indoor telephone installation.

And yes there is cheap rubbish on the market that just " evaporates " . I know as my constructor cut some corners and purchased that kind of cable for some low voltage circuits, it probably was 10 Baht cheaper for a roll, and after a year it just rusted away.Had to replace it all.

Exactly ! Thank you.

[RandomSand]

I must say that the actual cable and lighting protection I've seen True use is high quality. Perhaps contractors doing custom installs might use cheaper spec cable.

Buy some decent cable and get them to install it.

You need CW1308 cable.

CAT 5, external spec would be fine too. You might not be able to source external spec cable. It has a jelly inside with the wires and tough outer sheathing.

Edited February 27, 2014 by RandomSand

[KittenKong]

I think the OP is talking about the thin yellow telephone cable wit 2 or 4 wires inside, which is normally used for indoor telephone installation.

Exactly ! Thank you.

If you are talking about a simple phone line for ADSL then yes, the answer is just to replace it. It wont cost much and the building handyman should be able to do it. You could pay a bit more for better cable if you like, but you may not get it.

[Thaiready]

When you say internet wire, are you talking about coax? I don't think there is any steel in them. It's supposed to be an inner copper wire surrounded by an aluminum foil and/or aluminum or copper braid:

That's RG-58 standard. I would think it'd be highly impractical for some company to go through the expense of engineering a cheaper version made with steel just to save a few satang on each hundred meters. Copper patina is usually only a dozen microns thick and is easily scraped away through the act of unplugging and re-plugging the connector a few times.

should be Cat 5e or better yet cat 6....solid copper not stranded cable....my former company in Chang Mai "Black Box" can supply you with solid copper cabling

[Muhendis]

Copper-coated Cat5 is popular in developing nations, and is susceptible to corrosion, but only where it's PVC coating has been removed, such as the end terminations. You may be able to snip off the ends, expose some bare wire and re-terminate them.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Additionally protect the bare metal terminations with a coat of varnish.

[jackflash]

With telephone cable, the problem is electrolysis, not rust.

Because phones have 50V DC across the pair, the DC causes electrolytic corrosion very quickly if the slightest amount of water gets in.

There are two categories of telephone cable. The black Polystyrene covered cable is relatively impervious. It can be used outdoors or underground (or even underwater) without problems as long as there are no breaks in the sheath. The joins of course have to be well protected from the weather unless they are hermetically sealed in epoxy.

The lighter (white or cream coloured) PVC cable is strictly intended for indoor use. It must be kept away from dampness as its jacket is relatively porous. Sunlight will also destroy the jacket eventually.

Likewise, TV Coax and Computer cabling comes in similar grades for either indoor and outdoor use.

BTW, coax cable is definitely available with copper clad steel cores.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copper-clad_steel

Edited February 28, 2014 by jackflash

[Johnnie99]

Welcome to Thailand! Are you new here?

[Dogbreath]

I had this problem in my first condo in LOS. An independent contractor told me that most condo builders use the cheapest cable they can buy that will carry a signal. After a few years this rubbish will fail or produce very poor quality images. I was told to replace it.

When I told my Thai landlady I would pay to replace it if she contacted the condo manager with her permission, she said I make too much trouble and asked me to leave. Love Thai landlords. Some are really ting tong.

[ryanmacl]

Wow, I'm surprised nobody has mentioned this. Around 50% of all failed cable runs I've seen have been caused by rodents chewing on them. A run inside a building doesn't have UV degrading the sheath, is relatively climate controlled, and dry. The other 50% is some kind of mechanical disturbance, which is usually some jerk running a new cable, it gets stuck, he pulls too hard and your cable breaks. This literally happened to us 3 times in the past 3 months as our condo recently changed cable providers. Easy to see, the installers working on another room on our floor, as soon as they leave our cable is out. Call them back up, they try to make us pay 100 baht for a new cable. Regardless, cable is cheap, labor is cheap in Thailand, when it breaks its easier to pay them then to argue.

[Guitar God]

I'm not surprised the coax is corroding. In dry, inland climates I've seen corrosion on both the shield and inner conductor on cable less than 10 years old. Here my guitar strings ( brass, copper&zinc) start to corrode within a few weeks compared to months in temperate climates.

[robertson468]

I have used a whole variety of ISPs over the last eight years and in my experience, many use fibre optic along their main track (usually the main road) and then use "copper" to connect from the fibre optic to the reuter. Over a couple of years they have all lost capacity and finally failed. I am now with an ISP who uses fibre optic from the local nodule to my reuter and I would say the service is about 80% efficient which in my mind is far better than any others.

[tomyumchai]

Rust on copper wire!

Maybe copper is not real copper in this country 555+

I know it should corrode and not rust but what I have seen is not green like the French Statue of Liberty but reddish like rust.

Help <3

55555 that sounds like mig welder wire to me! i lose a reel every year as it rusts away in my damp garage while im over here..........trying to get a good internet connection.