How To Quickly Build Your Fiber Optic Network

What is the most consuming work in building a fiber optic network

There are two works are usually the largest line items in an fiber optic network installation budget: pulling the fiber optic cables and terminating or splicing the cables.

When pulling the fiber optic cables, you must comply with the minimum bending radius of the cable, prepare the cable ends with a pulling eye kit, and filling the conduit with lubricant to minimize the damage risk to the cables.

That’s not all, termination of the fiber optic cable can be a daunting task if you install a large fiber optic network. The time needed for different optical fiber cable termination is different. Therefore, the choice of the optical fiber cale is a key decision to reduce your fiber optic cable cost.

Loose tube gel-filled vs.tight buffered fiber optic cable

Choose the cable type is one of the biggest cost drivers in the cable terminal. There are two basic types of cable used for system installation:

1. Loose tube gel-filled cable

2. Tight buffered fiber optic breakout cables

Loose tube fiber optic cable

Traditionally, loose tube fiber optic cable has been used for outdoor long-haul links. Due to the fragile bare fibers and gel filling, which must be cleaned prior to termination, loose tube gel-filled cable is the most difficult to splice and terminate and also has the highest termination material costs.

Loose tube fiber cable type must normally be terminated or spliced close to the cable entryway of a building to switch to indoor-style cable, as it is generally incompatible with indoor fire codes.

Tight buffered fiber optic breakout cables

Tight buffered cables require less care to avoid damaging fibers when stripping back the cable. Each fiber is protected with its own 900 um diameter buffer structure, which is nearly four times the diameter and six times the thickness of the 250um coating.

This structure leads to the excellent performance of moisture and temperature of indoor outdoor cable tight buffer, lets them directly to terminate connector.

Tight buffered breakout fiber optic cable, has individual subcables within a primary outer cable sheath. This cable is the cable of choice for direct connectorization, as each fiber has its own aramid strength member for connector tie-off.

The connectorized subcables may be directly connected to equipment without fear of fiber damage of connector/fiber interface damage in most situations. Fiber optic breakout cable is by far the least expensive and easiest cable type to terminate and requires the least experience on the part of the installer.

Price comparision between two type of optical cables

Optical cable price is typically lower for breakout fiber cable than for loose tube cable when fiber counts are fairly low. Loose tube cables are lower in price for higher fiber counts. However, higher splicing and termination costs of loose tube cable over moderate-to-short lengths can far exceed the additional cost of tight-buffered cables.

The advantages of breakout fiber optic cable

A typical case in which termination costs dominate is an interbuilding (outdoor) cable entering a building where the required termination point of the cable is some distance from the building
entryway, and it is necessary to switch from outdoor to indoor cable.

Outdoor loose tube gel-filled cable is typically required to be transitioned to indoor cable within 50 feet of the cable entry point to comply with fire codes. However, a tight-buffered indoor/outdoor cable can be used throughout the link, requiring no transitions at the building entryway.

FiberStore have many types of outdoor loose tube cables, such as All-Dielectric Loose Tube Cables, Gel-Filled Loose Tube Cables, Double-Jacket Loose Tube Cables, Central Loose Tube Cables. They offer the best protection in an outdoor environment.