Welcome • User Guide
ToS • Privacy • Canary
Donate • Bugs • License

©2026 Poal.co

298

I have the Google fiber service and am placing a large, 16ft2 concrete (4' x 4' x 4') base for a self-supporting tower. As is my luck, the place on the side of my house that I can place said tower, and base, has the fiber cable running on one side, about 6" into the area and about 6" deep.

Thoughts/Options:

  1. rerun the cable.. Literally have someone come out and add line or help rerun the cable to go around the base.

  2. Use some sort of cable wrap and just pour around the cable - the wrap will protect the cable perhaps?

  3. Take some sort of PVC conduit, use a saw to rip a kerf along the length, feed the cable into it, wrap the kerf so as to prevent concrete/water, cover the ends outside of the area and then pour around the conduit as though it was meant to be there in the first place.

I have the Google fiber service and am placing a large, 16ft^2 concrete (4' x 4' x 4') base for a self-supporting tower. As is my luck, the place on the side of my house that I can place said tower, and base, has the fiber cable running on one side, about 6" into the area and about 6" deep. Thoughts/Options: 1. rerun the cable.. Literally have someone come out and add line or help rerun the cable to go around the base. 2. Use some sort of cable wrap and just pour around the cable - the wrap will protect the cable perhaps? 3. Take some sort of PVC conduit, use a saw to rip a kerf along the length, feed the cable into it, wrap the kerf so as to prevent concrete/water, cover the ends outside of the area and then pour around the conduit as though it was meant to be there in the first place.

(post is archived)

[–] • 4 pts

Have the fiber optic company extend the cable. There may be a foot or two coiled up in the wall or box, maybe you can do it yourself. Don't bury it in concrete, they may fine you or deny you service.

[–] • 2 pts

And in 10 years when the concrete eats through the fo, you will be breaking the slab. Always run through conduit.

[–] • 1 pt

I honestly didn't even think of that - probably because that would mean they got good contractors, LOL! We even have the "micro-trenching" that Google got in trouble for.

Going to check with moving the line, it really is best option.

[–] • 1 pt

Good cable guys will leave extra wire coiled up in the outlet box, take a look.

[+] [deleted] • 0 pt
[–] [deleted] • 3 pts

Hearing nightmare stories about people with plumbing running through/under a concrete slab I'd say running anything that may need repairs in the future through a slab seems like a bad idea.

[–] • 1 pt

1 is probably the best way. Plastic fiber cable isn't going to like being embedded in concrete, it could break due to stresses, or any one of a number of problems could develop. Running it through a slotted PVC pipe is sub-optimal, you're going to have to pray you get no concrete ingress during pour.

[–] • 1 pt

Consider foam pipe insulation matched to your fiber. Get some foam wrap from a plumbing supply and wrap the fiber a bit below and above the slab. Is 4" enough for the tower? Are you going to preset your anchors for the tower in the concrete?

[–] • 0 pt

The slab is 4 feet by 4 feet by 4 feet. About 4 feet of tower will be 'submerged' in the concrete with the last 6" being surrounded by gravel and sand to allow water drainage.

The conduit, if I go that route, would be about 4" deep from the very top and about 4" into the side - very top quadrant that runs parallel through the top.

[–] • 1 pt

Disconnect, coil in large coils to not damage the internal glass too much, pull string through your freshly laid conduit, pour the slab, then just pull the fiber through with the string you put in (assuming everything went smooth, no leaks), and reconnect. It'd be up to code, or somewhere near it lol.

[–] • 1 pt

I vote for add line and re-route. Wrap the cable and pour sounds like you'll get a mystery result that might compromise your concrete in some way and who knows if the cable will be protected. PVC....doesn't that crumble and get brittle from ...age and chemical reactions? Then you'd compromise your concrete.

[–] • 1 pt

Yeah, thats what I came to conclude too. It was all the internet search skill I could muster.

I'll give their customer service a call and see what the deal is - thanks!