Enclosure Request When Upgrading ONT
dexman
Community Leader
Community Leader

A friend of mine upgraded her FiOS Internet this past week. Like me, her ONT was a Tellabs 611.

When Verizon swapped the ONT, the technician removed the guts of the 611, lowered the chassis down on the backboard, mounted the new Al-Lu ONT above the chassis, mounted the power supply on an adjacent wooden support beam and reconnected the house cabling.

At my request, she took "before" and "after" pictures and sent them to me.

I tend to gravitate towards the "neatness" side in my work, so, the after picture looked a little disconcerting.

When looking online at pictures of the Al-Lu ONT, I've seen photos of the unit mounted inside an enclosure. Some enclosures contain just the unit while others contain the unit and power supply.

Despite my 611 being mounted in the basement on a good sized backboard, Verizon included an enclosure back in 2007 when I signed up for the service.

Would it be possible for me to request an enclosure be supplied with the new ONT when the time comes for me to upgrade? 🤔

My 611 was installed inside an enclosure and I much prefer to have connections covered and protected rather than out in the open.

I can attempt to post pictures if desired. 🙂

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Re: Enclosure Request When Upgrading ONT
gs0b
Community Leader
Community Leader

You have a really nice backer board there.  They will likely be happy to mount the ONT and power supply on it.

If you can even get an enclosure, it will most likely be the indoor model.  You currently have an outdoor enclosure on that old BPON ONT.  It wasn't unusual for the techs to use outdoor enclosures for indoor installs a decade or so ago.  Know the indoor enclosures aren't sealed.  They have lots of vents, so I'm not sure it would satisfy your requirements for dust reduction.  The indoor enclosures provide little more than a neat way to keep everything organized.  Which doesn't seem to be a need for you, as your install is already quite neat.

The ONT is no more sensitive to dust than your router and UPS.  In fact, it's probably less sensitive as it's designed for outdoor temperature and humidity extremes (in an enclosure, of course).  If your basement is very dusty, you should protect all your electronics, not just the ONT.

If you really want everything in a sealed enclosure, I suggest you buy one yourself and be prepared to mount it on your board when the tech removes the old equipment.  If you work with the tech and don't slow them down, they are likely to use your enclosure.  If not, you can always remount everything after they leave.  I wouldn't let any of this stop you from upgrading.

I've also seen pictures where the tech stuffs a GPON ONT into that BPON enclosure.  These were outdoor installations and the results were not pretty, as they use zip ties to hold the GPON ONT inside the enclosure since it was designed for a completely different ONT.  You could ask the tech to re-use your enclosure, but I doubt you'd like the results.


Note: To make the tech's job even easier, move that shelf out of the way so they can walk right up to the backer board.  The easier you make their job the more likely they will be to work with you.

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Re: Enclosure Request When Upgrading ONT
gs0b
Community Leader
Community Leader

Verizon doesn't seem to install enclosures anymore.  They really aren't needed for indoor installs, either.  But you can always ask the tech to use one.  If they have one on the truck, they might just use it.   But there's a good chance they don't have one.

Re: Enclosure Request When Upgrading ONT
dexman
Community Leader
Community Leader

I suppose when I place my order, I could try to ask for a note to be sent along asking for an enclosure. While it might not make too much of a difference, I'll try to upload a few pictures shortly.

Re: Enclosure Request When Upgrading ONT
dexman
Community Leader
Community Leader

imageMy Verizon FiOS equipment.imageThe Tellabs 611.imageClose-up of the 611.image

Re: Enclosure Request When Upgrading ONT
dexman
Community Leader
Community Leader

imageMy FiOS Equipment.imageTellabs 611 ONT.imageClose-up of the 611 ONT.imageRemaining Equipment.

Re: Enclosure Request When Upgrading ONT
dexman
Community Leader
Community Leader

Sorry for the rotated pictures.

I couldn't find a way to delete the first set. I reposted them in a smaller size. Either way, the primary reason for wanting an enclosure is the ceiling in the basement is wood lathe but, the material is crumbling.

I'm afraid that the dust and dried out particulate will get into the ONT and cause problems, thus, my desire to have the Al-Lu unit & power supply placed inside an enclosure. 

Re: Enclosure Request When Upgrading ONT
gs0b
Community Leader
Community Leader

You have a really nice backer board there.  They will likely be happy to mount the ONT and power supply on it.

If you can even get an enclosure, it will most likely be the indoor model.  You currently have an outdoor enclosure on that old BPON ONT.  It wasn't unusual for the techs to use outdoor enclosures for indoor installs a decade or so ago.  Know the indoor enclosures aren't sealed.  They have lots of vents, so I'm not sure it would satisfy your requirements for dust reduction.  The indoor enclosures provide little more than a neat way to keep everything organized.  Which doesn't seem to be a need for you, as your install is already quite neat.

The ONT is no more sensitive to dust than your router and UPS.  In fact, it's probably less sensitive as it's designed for outdoor temperature and humidity extremes (in an enclosure, of course).  If your basement is very dusty, you should protect all your electronics, not just the ONT.

If you really want everything in a sealed enclosure, I suggest you buy one yourself and be prepared to mount it on your board when the tech removes the old equipment.  If you work with the tech and don't slow them down, they are likely to use your enclosure.  If not, you can always remount everything after they leave.  I wouldn't let any of this stop you from upgrading.

I've also seen pictures where the tech stuffs a GPON ONT into that BPON enclosure.  These were outdoor installations and the results were not pretty, as they use zip ties to hold the GPON ONT inside the enclosure since it was designed for a completely different ONT.  You could ask the tech to re-use your enclosure, but I doubt you'd like the results.


Note: To make the tech's job even easier, move that shelf out of the way so they can walk right up to the backer board.  The easier you make their job the more likely they will be to work with you.

Re: Enclosure Request When Upgrading ONT
dexman
Community Leader
Community Leader

Thank you for the compliment gs0b! I've spent quite a bit of time getting the wires & cables clean. I guess being a Central Office technician for 23 years has me looking at backboard layouts for cleanliness.

I will attach the pictures of what Verizon did with her upgrade.  It might explain why I'm nervous about not having an enclosure.

I'm hoping that, if I make the request at the time I place the order, that it will trigger the technician to include an enclosure when getting supplies ready for the day's jobs.

The shelf on the right should be an easy move. The one on the left will have to stay because the TrippLite UPS is extremely heavy (I could barely lift it up from the floor onto the shelf).

Anyhooo....I will upload the two pictures.

Re: Enclosure Request When Upgrading ONT
dexman
Community Leader
Community Leader

image

Friend's old Tellabs 611 base & Al-Lu ONT.

Re: Enclosure Request When Upgrading ONT
dexman
Community Leader
Community Leader

image

Power supply on adjacent wooden surface.