NANOG Digest, Vol 43, Issue 53

Sat Aug 13 15:58:48 UTC 2011

On Sat, Aug 13, 2011 at 11:41 AM, Greg Ihnen <os10rules at gmail.com> wrote:

> On Aug 13, 2011, at 7:23 AM, Dorn Hetzel wrote:
>
> > I live on a farm and I have a number of data runs between buildings that
> are
> > copper ethernet pulled through buried conduits.  (It was what I could
> afford
> > when I put it in).  We have trouble from time to time with damage from
> > lightning. (I've taken to using an intermediate "throwaway" 5-port switch
> > after the surge suppressors on the cable after building entry, but still
> > stuff gets blown up now and then.  The longer runs of outside ethernet
> have
> > one or more toadstools with small switches used as repeaters in the
> middle.
> >
> >
> > Well, I would like to convert the whole outside mess to fiber to
> eliminate
> > this problem, and the per-foot price of 6 or 12 strand single mode cables
> is
> > pretty reasonable nowadays...  But, I'm not very current on the most
> > economical methods for splicing and terminating the fiber, which of
> course I
> > would need to do on a "personal" sized budget.  Any suggestions?
>
>
> This is somewhat off topic but have you tried any ethernet surge
> protectors? I use them here in the jungle with lots of lightning and it
> works good if your overall install is sound. Also you have to have your
> electrical ground tied to the conduit so it all stays at the same potential.
> But still fiber is the way to go. You could also go wireless with a pair of
> Ubiquiti Nanostation M2's
>
> Greg

Greg,

Yes, that's the part about "5-port switch after the surge suppressors on the
cable after building entry".

Immediately after building entry I use HyperLink HGLN-CAT6 Lightning
Protectors  (See: http://www.l-com.com/item.aspx?id=22171 )

Then I connect to a "throwaway" 5-port switch (whatever was on sale last
time I ran out).  This switch is connected to it's own throwaway UPS, which
is plugged into a separate power circuit from everything else.

[[[ Note: If I could find cheap enough switches with an optical interface I
would be switching to optical at this point! ]]]

Then I connect from the throwaway switch to the real switch.

But STILL I lose ports on the real switch from time to time.  So converting
the outside plant to fiber is a real goal.

And the fiber prices are darn reasonable nowadays for 6 or 12 strands of
9/125:  (Example http://www.showmecables.com/viewItem.asp?idProduct=10493  )

But outside plant fiber was never my thing, and I have no decent idea about
how to get it spliced and terminated for reasonable costs, or really even
what would be reasonable.

Regards,

-Dorn