Fiber optic internet is the newest form of residential cable that is run either to your local distribution cabinet or to your house. Because the maximum bandwidth that can be put down a fiber cable it enables greater speeds along greater distances thanks to its physical properties (light).

A fiber optic cable can in some cases be used at 10Gbit/s but for residential its more likely 1Gbit/s or less.

Many ISPs will allow you to take advantage of fiber optic but limit the speeds for a reduction in price.

How Long Does it Take to Install Fiber?

Fiber optic cable will require physical replacement of the cable itself, if the ISP is installing fiber to your home they will need to set up and plan which route they will take to your property.

In most cases, they will be able to attach the new cable to the old media and pull it through to your property, but if they hit snags or can’t do that, it can take much longer.

A best-case scenario can be 10 minutes, a worst-case can be up to three months, especially if you have ordered fiber where it was not originally offered or you paid extra for installation. A typical installation can be 2 to 4 hours.

Will They Dig Up my Garden?

If you have ordered Fiber to the Home, they may require access to your property to install the Fiber, which may mean routing your cable from the street to a jack in your home.

If they need to install a brand new cable they will indeed need to bury the cable and will therefore, do some digging.

Is Fiber the Fastest Home Medium?

Yes, for residential installations fiber is the fastest. There also exists DOCSIS 3 and 3.1 which is also capable of 1Gbit/s speeds however it is not used as much.

If you do get fiber installed at your home, it may be a good idea to ensure you aren’t bottle-necking your connection by ensuring your router, any switches you have or the computer you are using is capable of the speeds you expect, and wherever possible use an Ethernet cable.