Working in a new condo building in Phoenix, I saw every unit had the fiber drop coiled in a 2-foot loop behind the wall plate.

Some guys say that extra slack is a lifesaver for future repairs, but others argue it's just asking for a signal reflection problem down the line, so what's your take on pre-installation service loops?

4 comments

4 Comments

emmaclark2mo ago

Is signal reflection actually a real issue with fiber in a normal home setup? I've seen miles of fiber coiled up in telecom boxes without problems. That little loop behind a wall plate seems like a tiny amount compared to what's already on the spool. The chance you'll need to re-terminate that connector seems way higher than having a reflection issue from a two foot loop. Maybe this is just techs overthinking something that works fine in practice.

emmahayes2mo ago

Yeah, telecom spools are wound right. A kink is totally different.

jason_lewis32mo ago

Seen it cause problems on gigabit links when the loop was too tight. Had a customer with constant packet loss that went away after we redid their wall plate with a bigger service loop. Those telecom spools are wound with a specific bend radius in mind, but a kinked loop behind a plate is different. For most people it's probably fine, but I wouldn't ignore the spec just because it often works.

the_lee1d ago

C'mon, are we really acting like a tight loop is gonna break the internet for most people? I've seen those spools with like a thousand feet of fiber coiled up tight as can be and it works fine. Yeah sure, maybe in some super edge case with gigabit and a perfect storm it matters, but 99% of home users aren't gonna notice a thing. Feels like techs love to find these super specific problems that almost nobody will ever run into. Just don't kink the damn thing and you're good.