Before installing fiber optic cable, you must follow some essential guidelines. This article will look at Specs and Pre-survey, and tests before and after installation. In addition, we’ll cover safety precautions. If you follow the following fiber optic cable, installation should be efficient. Read more!
Specs of fiber optic cable
The Specs of fiber optic cable describe the characteristics of the optical cable itself. Single-mode fiber has a core diameter of nine microns and 125 um cladding. It is either made of OS1 or OS2 graded glass. Multimode fiber has a core diameter of 62.5 um and cladding made of OM1 graded glass. This type of fiber is not compatible with 50/125 multimode fiber.
There are several differences between the specifications, which include the break strength and aerial tension requirements. Different applications call for other break strength requirements. Aerial tension requirements vary greatly, for example, in New England. A saggy cable can lead to damage when a semi-truck snags it, and it can even pull the line off poles. To avoid such a catastrophe, specifications for fiber optic cable should differ from those required for telecommunications cable, which typically requires two thousand five hundred pounds of break strength. To learn more you may consult with fiber optic installation companies Huntsville.
Pre-survey
A pre-survey must determine the best way to install the cable if a direct buried optical fiber cable project is planned. A pre-survey for fiber optic cable installation ensures that the path will be cleared of obstructions and conflicts before the building occurs. In addition, the survey will determine the preliminary splice points and overall route transmission design. This is essential because it allows the placing supervisor to identify potential pitfall areas that will need to be compensated for in the final placing process.
The pre-survey should include a site visit to determine the best place for installing the cable and tie-down locations. A site survey should also look for intermediate-feed maintenance holes, where the cable will be pulled and fed into the conduit system. Once these details are known, the installation can begin.
Safety precautions
There are several safety precautions to take when installing fiber optic cable. First, fiber optic cables should be marked as fiber optic cables and preferably in an easily accessible location. Second, steel messenger wires should not be dodged from pole to pole and should be tied to one side of each bar. Third, follow local, national, and building codes when installing fiber optic cable. Finally, avoid handling bare glass fiber, which can be dangerous and lead to splinters.
Workers should never touch glass-fiber scraps while working with fiber optic cables. The fibers are tiny and can easily penetrate the skin. Workers must wear safety glasses and side shields to protect themselves from potential splinters. If they get a scrap piece in their eyes, they should immediately wash their hands and put them away. In addition, a disposable lab apron should be worn when working with fiber optics.
Tests before and after installation
Before installing fiber optic cable, ensure you have performed various tests before and after the installation. To determine whether your lines are working correctly, conduct continuity checks. To check for proper continuity, use a visible light “fiber optic tracer,” which resembles a pen-like instrument. It mates with a fiber optic connector and produces a beam of light that travels through the fiber’s core. If no light appears at the end of the thread, then a short cable segment is present.
Before the installation process, conduct loss measurements. This is often done manually with an optical meter or certification tester. The latter performs these tests automatically, calculating the amount of loss a link can absorb based on the length of the association and the number of connections. The certification tester will also record the information for a professional test report. The tests performed before and after fiber optic cable installation should be accurate to the specified loss levels.
