22
September
2020
|
09:28
Europe/Amsterdam

Second-hand TV wipes out broadband for entire village

Summary

Openreach’s most experienced engineers turn detectives to solve 18-month mystery that’s plagued the broadband connections of residents living in the rural village of Aberhosan near Machynlleth, Wales. (Fersiwn Cymraeg isod / Welsh version below)

Openreach’s most experienced engineers had to turn detectives to solve an 18-month mystery that’s plagued the broadband connections of residents living in the rural village of Aberhosan near Machynlleth, Wales.

For months the inhabitants of Aberhosan – along with some neighbouring communities – have endured poor broadband connectivity and slow speeds every morning at 7am despite repeated visits by engineers to fix the fault. Frequent tests proved that the network was working fine and local engineers even replaced large sections of cable that served the village, but the problems remained.

Local Openreach engineer, Michael Jones, was determined to find the Aberhosan broadband smoking gun – so he decided to call on the assistance of colleagues from Openreach’s Chief Engineer team – the company’s telecoms equivalent of the ‘SAS’.

Michael picks up the story: “As a team we’d been facing an ongoing issue in Aberhosan for months. Not being able to solve the fault for our customers left us feeling frustrated and downbeat, but we were determined to get to the bottom it.

“As a final resort we decided to bring in a crack squad of engineers from the Chief Engineers Office who were based in other parts of the UK to investigate. Accommodation was understandably hard to find due to the Covid-19 lockdown but we did eventually manage to find a guest house with a field near Llandrindod Wells, so the team camped there and made the 55-mile journey to Aberhosan early the next morning.

“Having exhausted all other avenues we wanted to do one final test to see if the fault was being caused by a phenomenon known as SHINE (Single High-level Impulse Noise) where electrical interference is omitted from an appliance that can then have an impact on broadband connectivity.

“By using a device called a Spectrum Analyser we walked up and down the village in the torrential rain at 6am to see if we could find an ‘electrical noise’ to support our theory. And at 7am, like clockwork, it happened! Our device picked up a large burst of electrical interference in the village.

“The source of the ‘electrical noise’ was traced to a property in the village. It turned out that at 7am every morning the occupant would switch on their old tv which would in-turn knock out broadband for the entire village.

“As you can imagine when we pointed this out to the resident, they were mortified that their old second hand TV was the cause of an entire village’s broadband problems, and they immediately agreed to switch it off and not use again.”

Since locating the cause of the fault that has dogged not only the residents of Aberhosan but also properties surrounding the village, there have been no further reported issues with the network.

Openreach Chief Engineer’s Lead for Wales, Suzanne Rutherford, said: “Our team were delighted to have been able to solve the broadband mystery in Aberhosan and it’s testament to their determination and commitment.

“Sadly this isn’t quite as a rare as people may think. Anything with electric components – from outdoor lights to microwaves to CCTV cameras can potentially have an impact on your broadband connection. We’d just advise the public to make sure that their electric appliances are properly certified and meet current British Standards and if you have a fault, report it to your service provider in the first instance so that we can investigate.”

In further good news for the Aberhosan community, the rural village will be connected to fibre later this year as part of Openreach’s work with Welsh Government to further expand the fibre broadband network in rural Wales.

 

Teledu ail-law yn effeithio band eang pentref cyfan

Peirianwyr Openreach yn gwersylla ar lawnt gwesty er mwyn taclo problem band eang

Roedd peirianwyr mwyaf profiadol Openreach wedi gorfod troi’n dditectifs er mwyn ceisio datrys problem oedd wedi effeithio cysylltiadau band eang trigolion pentref Aberhosan ger Machynlleth am 18 mis.

Am fisoedd roedd trigolion Aberhosan - ynghyd â rhai cymunedau cyfagos - wedi dioddef gyda chysylltiadau band eang gwael ac araf bob bore am 7am er bod peirianwyr wedi ymweld sawl gwaith i geisio datrys y broblem. Roedd profion yn dangos fod y rhwydwaith yn gweithio’n iawn ac roedd peirianwyr lleol wedi adnewyddu rhannau helaeth o’r cebl sy’n gwasanaethu’r pentref, ond parhau oedd y problemau.

Roedd peiriannydd lleol Openreach, Michael Jones, yn benderfynol o ddatgelu achos y broblem yn Aberhosan - felly gofynnodd am help gan dîm prif beiriannydd Openreach - sy’n cyfateb i filwyr SAS y cwmni.

Dywedodd Michael: “Fel tîm lleol roeddem wedi wynebu problem barhaus yn ardal Aberhosan am fisoedd. Roedd methu ei datrys yn rhwystredig iawn i ni a’n cwsmeriaid, ond roeddem yn benderfynol o’i thaclo.

“Yn y pen draw, penderfynwyd gofyn am help tîm peirianwyr arbenigol o swyddfa’r prif beiriannydd sy’n dod o bob rhan o’r Deyrnas Unedig. Roedd cael hyd i lety ar eu cyfer yn broblem ynddo’i hun, oherwydd cyfnod clo Covid-19, ond llwyddwyd i gael hyd i westy gyda maes gwersylla ger Llandrindod. Trefnwyd gwersyll yno, gyda’r tîm yn teithio’r 55 milltir i Aberhosan yn gynnar y bore canlynol.

Ar ôl dilyn pob llwybr arall, roeddem am gynnal un prawf terfynol er mwyn gweld os oedd y broblem yn deillio o ffenomen SHINE (Single High-level Impulse Noise) ble mae offer yn achosi ymyriant trydanol (electrical interference) sy’n gallu effeithio cysylltiadau band eang.

“Cerddwyd i fyny ac i lawr y pentref yn y glaw am 6.00am yn cludo dadansoddydd sbectrwm er mwyn gweld os oedd ‘sŵn trydanol’ a allai achosi problem o’r fath. Ac am 7.00am, dyna a ddigwyddodd, gyda’r ddyfais yn datgelu ymyriant trydanol sylweddol yn y pentref.

“Dilynwyd y ‘sŵn trydanol’ i gartref yn y pentref. Mae’n debyg roedd y deiliaid yn troi’r teledu arno am 7.00am bob bore, fyddai wedyn yn effeithio band eang y pentref cyfan.

“Pan esboniwyd y sefyllfa i’r trigolion, roeddent mor siomedig o glywed bod eu hen deledu ail-law yn achosi problemau band eang y pentref, gan gytuno’n syth i’w droi i ffwrdd a pheidio ei ddefnyddio eto!”

Ers cael hyd i achos problem oedd wedi effeithio trigolion Aberhosan a chartrefi eraill cyfagos, nid yw’r rhwydwaith wedi bod yn destun unrhyw broblemau.

Dywedodd prif beiriannydd Cymru Openreach, Suzanne Rutherford: “Roedd ein tîm mor falch o daclo’r broblem yn Aberhosan; mae’n brawf o’u penderfyniad ac ymrwymiad i wneud eu gwaith.

“Yn anffodus, nid yw’r broblem hon mor anghyffredin â hynny. Mae unrhyw beth gyda chydrannau trydanol - fel goleuadau allanol, microdonau a chamerâu CCTV yn gallu effeithio cysylltiad band eang. Byddwn yn cynghori pobl i sicrhau bod offer trydanol yn destun tystysgrifau dilys a safonau cyfredol Prydain. Ac os bydd nam, hysbysu eu cwmni gwasanaeth yn y lle cyntaf er mwyn ei ymchwilio.”

Ac mae newyddion da arall i gymuned Aberhosan, oherwydd bydd y pentref yn cael cysylltiad ffeibr yn ddiweddarach eleni fel rhan o waith Openreach gyda Llywodraeth Cymru i ymestyn y rhwydwaith band eang ffeibr mewn ardaloedd gwledig y wlad.