Wiring for fibre

When you are building a new house or rewiring an existing property it is the ideal time to ensure you can use the full potential of broadband.

To make sure your wiring isn’t holding your broadband back, then you should:

• Install Cat5e cable – at a minimum. This is a high quality copper cable designed to deliver Ethernet-based services, including ADSL2+, VDSL2 or GPON. Cat6 or Cat7 cabling are other higher standard cable types now available.
• ‘Star wire' cable through your home. This means the cabling travels from a central point (a star wiring box) with dedicated cabling to most rooms. In contrast, a traditional ‘daisy chain' cable installation is unsuitable for Ethernet (ADSL2+, VDSL2 or GPON) services.

We have prepared some material to assist you with ensuring your home wiring allows you to make the most of copper and fibre-based broadband:

Installing future-proofed wiring makes sense when you're building or renovating because you can install cabling at the same time as other services, such as electrical wiring and plumbing, and before wall linings restrict access.

The telecommunications industry has published a voluntary Code of Practice for Premises Wiring. If a contractor is installing wiring for you, make sure they are familiar with it. The Code is available on the Telecommunications Carriers Forum (TCF) website along with further information on wiring for a smart home.

Lead-ins are the connections from the telecommunications network to private premises.

We have developed information detailing installation requirements for telecommunications lead-ins connecting urban and rural premises. This information is important because sub-standard lead-ins may be unable to be connected to a network provider.