Getting Fibre in a rural location -- fools errand?

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flapjack

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#299417 5-Sep-2022 20:52

So I am trying to sort out getting fibre installed at my rural property. I'm finding it incredibly difficult to find information on how a fibre install could be done, what's possible, what's available, that kind of stuff. All the information is really high level, but I'd love to actually understand what I'm asking for here.

I'm on the only road between a state highway and a school, and the school has fibre installed to it. I figure this means there is fibre on my street, but I know it's more complicated than that, and am trying to figure it out, since Chorus won't help explain it to me, or my internet provider (Skinny actually just told me to flop off completely, wouldn't even bother asking Chrous)

Some vital info:

No map shows us in the fibre area (but somehow the school just up the street has fibre, so I know it's near by)
I am close to this cabinet https://gis.geek.nz/map/chorus/site/jzvnjogz
Theres a tube and a box at the end of the driveway allegedly the fibre line runs through it according to an anonymous source I have
I already have some decent conduit installed to it (pictured https://photos.app.goo.gl/iv5PpJ54bt9jakgN9)
I already have decent VDSL
Chorus said it will be more than $10,000 to install, and I must agree to pay it before they will provide any details or information or itemized at all (what the heck???)
It's about 80m from the box to the house

Questions I'm trying to figure out:

How much does a fibre install usually cost? How much should I expect to pay completely at my own cost?
Is it really complicated to run an additional fibre line? What would I be expecting them to actually do here?
Where can I find information about what's actually involved in this kind of install so I actually can have some bargaining power, or some reasonable expectations about costs?
- Will I be paying to run lines from the up the road cabinet, or just from that terminal in my driveway?
- Any idea how much the crown is actually subsidizing per install? Or what information I should OIA to find that out
- What does it actually mean to be in the fibre area? Is that just 'subsidized zone' or is it actually where Fibre exists? If it's just where Fibre exists, how is the school just up the street on Fibre?

Thanks heaps. I'd really love to get some fibre out here and join the information age :)

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quickymart

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#2963713 5-Sep-2022 21:21

flapjack:

I guess the question could be simplified and summed up like this --

Does the fact that the school up the street got fibre mean that some additional infrastructure has already been installed that I would not need to pay for myself? Is there any hope I might get a more cost-effective fibre installation that's under $10k?

Because I'll pay thousands... but not 10s of thousands.

It really depends - whether it passes your property or not but no, usually it will cost you quite a lot. $10k is probably a lower end estimate, I would say...but what area is this in?

Edit; just saw the area. It may be tap-into-able but honestly you'd be better sticking with your VDSL if it's that good and saving your money.

Answering your specific questions though:

How much does a fibre install usually cost? How much should I expect to pay completely at my own cost? - every custom install is different, and yes you will be paying for the lot
Is it really complicated to run an additional fibre line? What would I be expecting them to actually do here? - again depends on the property, every situation is different. A tech would need to inspect your property to answer that question
Where can I find information about what's actually involved in this kind of install so I actually can have some bargaining power, or some reasonable expectations about costs? - bargaining power? The price will be provided and there isn't much room to negotiate it - if any.
Will I be paying to run lines from the up the road cabinet, or just from that terminal in my driveway? - most likely from the nearest location to your house
- Any idea how much the crown is actually subsidizing per install? Or what information I should OIA to find that out - where you are? $0. You're outside the rollout area.
- What does it actually mean to be in the fibre area? Is that just 'subsidized zone' or is it actually where Fibre exists? If it's just where Fibre exists, how is the school just up the street on Fibre? - it's where the installation is subsidised. You're outside of the rollout area (quite a bit, if the map I'm looking at is accurate), so as above, you'll be paying 100% of the cost. There was a Government programme a few years ago for all schools to get fibre; totally separate to the nationwide rollout. That's most likely why the school would have fibre.

Wheelbarrow01

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Chorus

#2963760 6-Sep-2022 00:34

quickymart:

Most providers don't offer NGA quotes however, as when people find out how much it's going to be (half the time they think it's only going to be "a few thousand"), 99% of the time once they get the actual amount they simply don't want to proceed as it's far higher than they were expecting. If you're still keen on getting one, you'll need to call around and see who does them.

From memory @myfullflavour might do them?

This is probably fairly common nowadays. As Spark's SDM, I know they used to offer NOA (aka price on application), however for commercial reasons they stopped offering it to residential/consumer customers a couple of years ago. They now only offer it to business/corporate customers (and it's subject to additional credit checks).

Skinny is a subsidiary of Spark with a primary focus on consumer customers, so that is possibly why you got a lukewarm response from them. As a Chorus employee I can't steer you toward any particular RSP, but there are still several RSPs large and small who offer this service. If you are applying under a business name, Spark may also assist (subject to the aforementioned credit checks) Again this is just general information, not a recommendation or endorsement of any particular RSP - I just know about Spark in particular because I am part of their Chorus account team. Ultimately it's up to you to make some enquiries with a few different RSPs who offer this service, and choose the one you like best.

The process is the same no matter who you choose - you provide the address information to your chosen RSP, they will contact Chorus and ask for an estimate. A Chorus network planner will complete a desktop scope and provide an estimate back to the RSP, who will then advise you the estimated price. If you are happy with the estimate and wish to proceed further, your RSP will then place an order for you. Upon receipt of the order, Chorus will do a full network design and a fixed price quote will be generated and passed back to the RSP, who will then advise you of the quoted price - which is valid for 90 days. If you accept the quote, Chorus will proceed to build the network to your gate, and will then schedule the final installation in your house. Once complete, your RSP will bill you for the full cost of the installation. The whole process generally takes from 3-6 months.

You can cancel at any point prior to quote acceptance and you will not be charged anything. But once the quote has been accepted by you, you are liable to pay up to the full quoted cost for the connection, even if the work doesn't get completed in full due to the cancellation.

In terms of how easy it is to tap into a backhaul fibre down your rural road, imagine that it's one of those massive high tension electrical pylons carrying 220,000 volts that you're trying to connect to. You can't just wire your house directly into that pylon - your lines company would first have to install a sub-station and step down transformers etc before you could connect a 240 volt retail connection. Backhaul fibre is a similar thing - to get a retail GPON fibre service, Chorus would likely need to install a cabinet (the sub station if you will) and a splitter (the step down transformer) to enable you to connect. It's certainly not impossible but the process is more complicated and usually costs a lot more than most people imagine.

I've seen it all in my time - I've seen nationally branded businesses reject $10k quotes and I personally quoted a residential customer over $100k and he emailed me back with the signed quote literally 5 minutes later. I've seen estimates significantly lower than the final quote and vice versa... It all comes down to what it would mean for you to have that fibre connection - be it a better home life through happy connected kids, or the ability to host those web sites and run that business from home. Getting that estimate is the first step.

This page on the Chorus website may give you a bit more information.

The views expressed by me are not necessarily those of my employer Chorus NZ Ltd