c/cable-installers

Tone vs. continuity testing: which is actually more useful on a rough-in?

I keep seeing guys at my shop in Nashville grabbing the tone generator for every single cable pull, even when we're just checking for a basic short or open. Meanwhile, I still use my old Fluke continuity tester for 90% of residential rough-ins because it's faster and tells me what I need without the extra setup. But then we had a job last month where a neighbor's buried cable was causing noise, and tone tracing found it in 15 minutes where continuity was useless. So which do you rely on more day to day, and why?

That one attic run that took me 5 hours instead of 30 minutes

I had a job last week in an old house in Richmond where I needed to run a line from the basement to the second floor attic. Looked simple on paper, but the fire blocks were placed in the worst spots ever. I spent a solid 2 hours just trying to find a path through the walls with my glow rod. Then I hit a nail plate that stopped me dead for another hour. Ended up having to drill three extra holes in the drywall and patch them after. My boss was not happy when I rolled in 4 hours late to the next job. The whole thing took me from 9am to 2pm and I didn't even have lunch. Has anyone else dealt with those old balloon-frame houses that seem designed to make you suffer?

Just picked up a trick from a veteran installer at the supply house

I was at the supply house grabbing some RG6 yesterday and an old timer showed me how he strips cable with just his teeth in a pinch. Said it saves him 10 minutes per job when his crimper is buried in the truck. Anyone else got a weird shortcut like that?

That Tuesday in Pittsburgh where everything that could go wrong actually went right for once

I had a day last month where I pulled up to a job in Pittsburgh and the customer had already run all the lines through the attic for me. Found out later he used to be a sparky and just wanted to save some cash. Finished 3 hours early and got paid for the full day. Anyone else ever have a customer actually make the job easier instead of harder?

My crimper died mid-job on a big commercial run in Atlanta yesterday

I was halfway through terminating a 48-port patch panel when my Klein crimper just snapped at the hinge. Had to drive 20 miles to the nearest supply house to grab a replacement while the client's IT guy stood there tapping his foot. Anyone else had a favorite tool quit on them at the worst possible moment?

Overheard a customer say 'the wire's sticking out the wall' and yeah.

Was doing a service call in a condo building and the neighbor was complaining about a cable jack that got pushed back into the drywall. Guy said his installer just shoved it in and left. Makes me wonder how many guys are skipping the low voltage bracket step. You ever get called back for something that just got tucked behind the wall instead of mounted right?

Just realized most guys don't pre-bend their coax before terminating

I was working a new build last Tuesday up in the attic and watched another installer yank his RG6 straight into a compression fitting. Three seconds later the center conductor snapped off inside the connector. I've seen this exact thing happen at least 15 times on different jobs. A quick 90 degree bend with your fingers before you strip the jacket saves you the headache. Any of you guys run into this on your crews too?

Old supervisor told me to stop using compression fittings on outdoor runs

He swore by leaving a drip loop and using weatherproof silicone tape instead. Six months later, none of my connections have corroded like the ones I did before.

Serious question... do you go straight through drywall or do you fish around the stud every time?

The difference in trunk slams after switching to fiber runs is wild

I did my first all-fiber install in a new subdivision near Austin last spring and now going back to old copper houses feels like I'm wrestling a snake in a bucket, has anyone else noticed how much cleaner fiber jobs look start to finish?

Finished a massive panel cleanup today. Night and day from last month.

We had a 400a panel that looked like a rat's nest of cables after three different crews touched it. 8 hours of labeling and rerouting later, I can actually trace every line without pulling my hair out. Anyone else deal with panels that got handed off too many times?

Warning: that cheap cable tester from Amazon just cost me a whole afternoon

Picked up a no-name cable tester for $18 because I figured it would speed things up on a new build in Aurora last Tuesday. Got through 60 feet of Cat6 runs, terminated everything, and the tester said all pairs were good. Hooked up the gear and nothing worked. Replaced terminations, still dead. Finally busted out my Fluke and found the 4-5 pair was shorted inside a wall plate. That Amazon special never caught it, and I lost 4 hours of time and 3 service calls. Anyone else trust a cheap tester and get burned?

Overheard a homeowner say 'I could've done this myself' while I was fishing a line in his attic

I was running a line through a tight attic space near a house on Maple Street last Thursday, and the homeowner's comment got under my skin. He watched me fight with spider webs and 130 degree heat for 45 minutes and still thought his YouTube video made him an expert. Has anyone else had to bite their tongue when a customer downplays the actual labor involved in this job?

Pro tip: Use a toner probe before drilling into drywall on big jobs

After I punched through a hidden gas line on a new build in Denver last month, I finally listened to the old timer who said toner probes save time over trusting blueprints, has anyone else been burned by wall cavities that don't match the plans?

Snapped a fish tape mid-pull in a client's attic in Phoenix last July

It was 115 degrees up there and I was on my third pull when the tape just gave up and broke inside the conduit. Had to leave the whole job for the next morning because I couldn't even get the broken end out without sweating through my shirt. Has anyone else had a fish tape fail on them like that?

Got stuck on a simple CAT6 run for 3 hours yesterday

I had to fish a line through a finished basement ceiling for a new outlet. The first bay was wide open but the second one had a solid fire block I didn't see. Took me 3 hours and a flex bit to get through it. Has anyone else hit surprise blocking that turned a quick job into an all day thing?

Old timer told me to stop using my impact driver on coax fittings

Back in 2019, a guy named Jerry who'd been installing since the 80s watched me zip a compression fitting on with my impact. He said I'd be back to fix that drop in under 6 months. I laughed it off. Three months later I was on that same apartment complex swapping out 22 fittings that had all loosened up. Jerry was dead right. Anybody else still see new guys cranking down connectors with power tools?

That old foreman who swore by leaving slack on every drop

Back in 2008, my first foreman, Mike, kept telling me to leave at least 3 feet of service loop on every residential drop, even if it seemed like overkill. Last month I had to go back to a house I wired in 2010 and that extra slack saved me from having to run a whole new line when they moved the TV 2 rooms over. Anyone else have an old timer's advice that actually held up years later?

Realized I was stripping coax cable wrong for 5 years

Saw a guy at a job site in Phoenix just zip through it with a Klein coax stripper in one pass while I was still picking at the foil and dielectric with my fingers. Has anyone else had that moment where you find out you've been adding 15 minutes to every drop for no reason?

Saw a new guy splitting coax with a utility knife instead of a proper cutter

I was on a job site over by the old shopping center on Elm Street last Tuesday, helping a crew run lines for a new office. This kid fresh out of training, maybe 6 months in, pulls out a utility knife to strip the outer jacket on a RG6 run. He nicked the braid in three spots before I even said anything. That little mistake causes signal loss you won't catch until the modem keeps dropping sync. The right tool, a simple coax stripper, costs like 15 bucks and gives you a clean cut every time. I showed him how to use my Klein one, and he finished the rest of the run without issues. Why do people think a knife is faster when it just creates more problems down the line? Has anyone else had to fix work from guys who skip the proper tools?

Wasted $150 on that fancy Klein cable toner and regret it

I bought the Klein VDV501 one last month thinking it would make my life easier on the job. Paid like $150 at the supply house. First week it worked fine for tracing lines in a new build. Then I tried it on an older house with a mess of splitters and it just gave me false readings all over the place. Ended up spending 2 hours chasing a line that was actually dead. My coworker has the same one and says his works great but idk maybe I got a dud. Has anyone else had issues with those Klein toners on older coax setups?

What I learned about coax prep after 8 years on the truck

I used to strip coax with a standard utility knife and always had trouble with braid fraying... then an old timer showed me his $12 cable prep tool and it changed everything. The difference is night and day, my signal readings went from borderline to solid in about a week of using it. Has anyone else found a simple tool that just makes your job way faster?

Had a customer watch me fish a cable for 45 minutes then ask why i didn't just use the attic

I was doing a new install in an old house in Nashville last month, nothing but thick plaster walls and lathe everywhere. Spent almost an hour trying to find a clean path from the basement to the second floor den. The homeowner, this older guy, just stood there watching me the whole time without saying a word. Soon as i finished he goes "you know there's an open attic above the garage right?" like it was obvious. Has anyone else had customers wait until the very end to drop some obvious tip they knew the whole time?

I finally stopped using cheap coax connectors after a nightmare job in Phoenix

Pulled a 200 foot run through a crawlspace in 110 degree heat. Connector failed the signal test three times. Switched to compression fittings that same week and never looked back. Anyone else switch brands after one bad job?

Talked to an old Bell guy about pulling fiber through conduit last week and he dropped a trick about using dish soap instead of lube that I can't get out of my head

He said the soap dries out and leaves no residue so you don't get that sticky buildup inside the conduit over time, but I'm wondering if anyone else has tried this on a long pull without it gumming up the cable jacket?