Cable Signal Leakage

Hi everyone, I thought I would write this short article to inform you about something important when it comes to your cable or broadband services.  You may or may not know this, but I'm going to share it anyways, because I think that if this topic was known by more cable subscribers, it could bring down the cost of broadband products and services.  This would be the topic of cable ingress/egress, otherwise called more often in the cable industry, leakage.  Cable signal leakage, to put it simply, is similar to a leak in your plumbing.  If something isn't tight, or is defective, you start loosing water, costing you money in lost water, and eventually in repair costs.  In cable, the problem might not be as obvious as seeing water dripping, or a rotted floor, but the seriousness of it should be looked at the same way.  Cable companies spend a lot of time and money every year trying to control leakage (egress) in their systems, and they are watched very closely by the FCC to make sure they are doing it diligently.  This is because cable signals leaked into the air, may be strong enough to interfere with communications between airplanes and their control towers.  If you have ever had a big enough leak, (usually over 80 decibels) you have probably already received a visit from a cable technician/s, claiming that you have a leak, and that it needed to be repaired.  You probably noticed a piece of equipment they were using to track down the leak, called a leakage gun, or sniffer, and I'm sure the problem was found and fixed.  90% of the time, leaks are corrected by tightening connectors.  The connector behind your tv, cablebox, or modem are usually not tightened down with a wrench.  This is because if you overtighten the connections, you can cause serious damage to your tv, or cable equipment, which could result in the need for professional repair of your tv, or the cable company having to have their equipment serviced by the equipment's manufacturer.  So because these connections are only hand-tightened, over a period of time, the connections naturally work themselves loose.  When they get to a certain point of loosness, they start leaking signals.  Not only do they leak, but the reverse happens as well.  Signals from radio stations or cb are able to enter the cable signal flow (ingress), and can produce interferences in your cable services.  It is possible that a defective or damaged cable is resposible for leakage, but again the most likely cause is loose connectors.  If everyone could become more conscious of possible loose connections in their home, from the back of their tv (if you have basic tv with no cable box), the back of their modem or cable boxes, to the connections in their basements or utility rooms, it could save the cable companies a lot of time running around finding and fixing these problems, and give them more time to fix the many problems that arise outside, from old, weather-beaten drop cables, to replacing drop cables that have been chewed on by squirrels or other animals.  Saving them time saves your cable company money, which in turn may decrease how much your future increases of your cable bills will be.

If you have any questions about this or any broadband cable topic, just post them in the response below, and I will be happy to post a response to your questions. 

Wes