The speed and stability of any fibre internet connection can be affected by many different factors. Anything from the number of users in your building or area who access the internet at the same time, to the type of fibre connection you have. But the one variable you might not consider is the weather. Does weather affect fibre internet? The answer is yes. Read on for more.
Why Does Weather Affect Fibre Internet?
The way an internet connection is made involves different physical links, including fibre optic cables and in some cases copper wiring previously used in the old phone network. Some fibre internet plans Australia wide, despite being connected to the NBN, are still partially run via the old copper wires (fibre to the node and fibre to the cabinet connections). Wireless connections on the other hand utilise WiFi, satellite radio and microwave technologies, which also have their weaknesses – as anyone who has tried to use WiFi during a major storm will testify.
How Does Weather Affect Fibre Internet?
During heavy rain, moisture can cause physical damage to cables. The old copper wiring network is particularly vulnerable to this type of damage. When flooding occurs, the moisture seeps into the ground where the vast majority of cabling is located, which can short-circuit systems or block and slow down signals, resulting in slowed or lost internet connections. Wireless signals can be hampered by the humidity caused by rain and moisture, even after the rain has stopped. Extreme heat can also physically damage cabling.
Does Weather Affect Fibre Internet All The Time?
Yes and no. It has to be pretty extreme weather to cause any noticeable difference in connection speeds and stability. However, extreme weather, especially in Australia, is becoming the norm. So we can expect fibre internet services to be affected more and more by these weather events.
Is There a Way to Avoid It?
This is where dark fibre comes in. Dark fibre describes the fibre optic cables which have been laid down but are yet to be activated and used. No internet traffic runs through them. Dark fibre service providers have been attracting interest from businesses for a while now due to the advantages that dark fibre can give. The main benefit of dark fibre is the users ability to completely bypass the cables used in the main network. You can make your own point to point connections with dark fibre, essentially building your own network and bypassing the switching and routing involved with the main networks. This in turn means that dark fibre avoids all the pitfalls and outages caused by damage to cabling and power supply problems often caused by extreme weather events. Dark fibre Australia offers potentially the most secure, reliable and scalable internet connections to businesses across the country. Enterprise fibre offered on the NBN is a comparable option in terms of speed and reliability with a near 100% network availability target.
Does weather affect fibre internet connections? It does. Will this become more of an issue in the future? Probably. Future proof your business by considering a dark fibre network.
