I finally visited that fancy new apartment complex downtown and spotted a nightmare installation

So I got a call to check out some signal issues at The Grand in Austin last Tuesday. Place looks all modern and sleek, stainless steel everything. But when I popped open the comms closet on floor 8, I nearly choked. Someone had run the coax cables right next to the main electrical panel, like less than 2 inches away. You could see interference pattern on the signal readings. Plus they used these cheapo crimp connectors that were already starting to rust after only 6 months. The building manager said they hired the lowest bidder for the buildout. I spent 4 hours re-terminating and rerouting just that one floor. Has anyone else run into this kind of shoddy work in new builds around their area?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_kevin18d ago

At least the signal interference matches the "rustic" aesthetic they were probably going for.

anthony_lane5518d ago

Did the building manager even CARE when you showed him the rust and the interference readings, or was he all "it passed inspection so it's fine"? I swear these new builds are just slapped together with the cheapest materials and zero thought about how things actually work. Did you happen to check if they used proper grounding on those cable runs too, because that's usually the NEXT corner they cut. Makes me wonder what OTHER horrors are hiding behind those sleek walls.