Any idea what these garden cables are for?

[loply]

Hi folks,

Dug through these two cables with a digger in a garden, just wondering if anybody has any ideas what they might be for?

You'd think garden lighting, but, the cables were underneath some concrete outhouses which have been there since the 50s, so that seems unlikely.

They're 4-core inside a see-through plastic sleeve with a thin blue strand of string in the middle. Each core is about 1mm square.

They eventually enter a clay pipe near the edge of the garden and are heading out towards the street.

Nothing appears to have gone off, haven't touched them to find out if they're live

Any ideas?

Cheers,
Rich

 

[securespark]

Have you stripped that one back?

Are both cables severed?

How deep are they?

Can you get some close up hi res pics?

It could be telecoms.....

 

[loply]

I stripped that one back, they're about 0.5m deep, both cables are severed in two locations (once at each trench!).

I cut a section out and took the pic below. You can see it's two black, two see-through and a blue plastic chord, they're solid core and quite stiff. It's not live AC.

There is a telegraph pole at the side of the garden but the cables are not heading towards it in any way and are a good 7-8m from it.

 

[endecotp]

Strip it further and see if they are twisted i.e. twisted pairs.

Are the cores like tv coax central conductors?

 

[loply]

They aren't twisted, they're far too thick and are solid core. The pics make them look quite small but they're probably 1-1.5mm square each, ie about the same as typical domestic twin and earth.

Way too heavy to be coax or aerial type cable.

 

[JohnW2]

Way too heavy to be coax or aerial type cable.

I think you were being asked whether the insulation, particularly the translucent stuff, is similar to that around the central conductor of coax (i.e. 'cellular', with 'air holes' in it).

Kind Regards, John

 

[securespark]

So it's a four core cable?

Two black, two whiteish?

Has the cable got any other covering other than the sheath over the cores?

I still think it might be telecoms, but the cable I have seen that is similar is armoured.

 

[loply]

Turns out I was wrong, they are twisted, just cleaned the cable up and cut a piece off. The two lighter cores are sort of translucent, not white, can't really tell if it's got air bubbles in the insulation.

Does that mean it's off some old TV aerial or something? Bit confused why there would be two of them buried in a garden if so...? And why do they head towards the street?

I guess they aren't put there in modern times due to the age of the buildings they went underneath...

Better pic:-

 

[HERTS P&D]

Is it your incoming BT cable, your phone is still working due to you being on a different provider?

Andy

 

[JohnW2]

Is it your incoming BT cable, your phone is still working due to you being on a different provider?

... or maybe a neighbour's incoming BT cable?

Kind Regards, John

 

[loply]

Don't have a land line, but the house has an overhead connection from a telegraph pole, as do seemingly all the others on the street, so wouldn't expect any underground phone cables?

They don't appear to be heading towards the house either, they're alongside it, I've marked them on the map below with Xs where we crossed/cut them:-

 

[bernardgreen]

They may be old cables used by Rediffusion ( Radio Relay ) cable network.

http://www.rediffusion.info/Wired_Vision/

 

[JohnW2]

They may be old cables used by Rediffusion ( Radio Relay ) cable network.

We are told that the cable has been there (covered by concrete) since the 50s, if not before. I must say that I thought it was 60s before the Rediffusion cable network appeared, but I may be wrong.

Kind Regards, John

 

[endecotp]

Are they twisted PAIRS, or are all four twisted together? Looks like the latter in one of the photos.

 

[endecotp]

thought it was 60s before the Rediffusion cable network appeared, but I may be wrong.

http://www.rediffusion.info/cablestory.html

That redifusion site talks about quad and squad (shielded quad?) cables.

It does seem rather chunky, though. Lots of copper. Is that necessary to get a 50 ohm impedance? I know the maths for coax; presumably twisted pair is similar.