Disconnected
I discovered the problem on Thursday, April 26, at 5:00 AM. Each morning I connect to my computer at the University and work for an hour before breakfast. On this morning the connection was sluggish for a while then became intermittent and finally failed. I assumed the phone company had a problem and gave up. On Thursday night we could not connect to the Internet. The following morning we had problems with phone calls.
Last Fall we installed a cell signal repeater that gave us cell signal throughout the house and enabled us to access the web through a wireless hotspot. The system worked flawlessly for months. When I realized the problem wasn't with the service provider I began checking the repeater, cables and both antennas, internal and external. All appeared normal.
Fortunately I had not uninstalled the antenna that we used for several years. I found a pigtail and connected it to the hotspot and was able to access the Internet. Next, I phoned the manufacturer and a service agent determined an omnidirectional antenna would probably fix the repeater. One was shipped to me and arrived last Thursday evening. I installed it but the problem remained.
On Friday I phoned the manufacturer a second time and was instructed to return the repeater for exchange. Hopefully, tomorrow or Thursday we'll get the replacement and service will return to normal.
On the bright side there was no charge for the new antenna nor for the exchange of the repeater. We've had Internet access using the old antenna but haven't had phone service for two weeks. It hasn't been an inconvenience. It's easy to get by without phone service but not having Internet access would be problematic since I wouldn't be able to work from home a few hours each week.
What would I do if I absolutely had to make a phone call before I receive the replacement repeater? A simple solution. Walk to the top of a hill south of the house. I've done it a few times over the years. The signal is weak but a call will connect.
Last Fall we installed a cell signal repeater that gave us cell signal throughout the house and enabled us to access the web through a wireless hotspot. The system worked flawlessly for months. When I realized the problem wasn't with the service provider I began checking the repeater, cables and both antennas, internal and external. All appeared normal.
Fortunately I had not uninstalled the antenna that we used for several years. I found a pigtail and connected it to the hotspot and was able to access the Internet. Next, I phoned the manufacturer and a service agent determined an omnidirectional antenna would probably fix the repeater. One was shipped to me and arrived last Thursday evening. I installed it but the problem remained.
On Friday I phoned the manufacturer a second time and was instructed to return the repeater for exchange. Hopefully, tomorrow or Thursday we'll get the replacement and service will return to normal.
On the bright side there was no charge for the new antenna nor for the exchange of the repeater. We've had Internet access using the old antenna but haven't had phone service for two weeks. It hasn't been an inconvenience. It's easy to get by without phone service but not having Internet access would be problematic since I wouldn't be able to work from home a few hours each week.
What would I do if I absolutely had to make a phone call before I receive the replacement repeater? A simple solution. Walk to the top of a hill south of the house. I've done it a few times over the years. The signal is weak but a call will connect.
posted by Paul at 8:34 PM
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