Intermittently scratchy phone line and unstable internet

[RJ110]

My phone line is intermittently scratchy since Jan. 2020.

DSL internet can be good on some days up to 2 Mbps. (Sept. 15-19, 2020 were good. -No disconnects).

On other days I can lose the internet up to 23 times in a day and restart the modem 23 times in a day (happened Oct. 5, 2020)

This has been going on since May 2018.

The DSL internet also usually disconnects after the phone rings (since Sept. 2019).

[smith6612 · Accepted solution]

Hey there! 

This behavior (unstable Internet) is normal if you are having audio problems with the voice service. Call in for Voice repair, and do not mention DSL service. The tech should be able to track down where the fault is.

When the tech arrives, ask them about whether your copper line has been conditioned for DSL service, and has something called a bridge tap, removed. This is excess copper attached to a phone line which is reserved for expansion reasons. They're supposed to be cut off when DSL is installed, and often times they are the source of Static and DSL troubles. 

Something else to consider is the age of the phone lines in your area, and whether water is getting in the lines. If you find weather affects your phone and DSL Servics, such as rain and snow, it may be water getting into a damaged part of the cable, or a bad splice box. If you find the wind affects service instead, it might be a tree rubbing against the lines, or a loose splice or connection. 

But regardless, focus on getting your phone service fixed first. In order of repair, Verizon will fix phone faster than they will DSL, simply due to regulatory obligations around POTS.

In a final note, make sure your home is properly filtered for DSL. Alarm systems need to be behind a filter as well. When you have a tech visit, have them check your NID and consider wiring your DSL to a "home run" or, a dedicated wire pair that is unfiltered for the DSL modem, while the rest of your house is filtered at the demarc. This will help. Also, have them remove any half ringers from your phone line. These are unneeded diagnostic components which often fail, and cause issues with the DSL service. 

[RJ110]

Thanks for the recommendations Smith6612.

I read the article "DSL works only with phone off-hook, known as High Open AT&T Midwest/Ameritech FAQ" on dslreports.com/faq/11821.

Since Dec. 20, 2020, I have taken the phone handset off the hook every evening at around 10-11 PM, and put the phone back on the hook the following morning at around 7-9 AM.

Leaving the phone off the hook for around 9-11 hours per day has stopped the DSL disconnects. No DSL disconnects even when the phone rings.

[smith6612]

That would definitely sounds like corrosion on the line somewhere. Likely at a splice point. The flow of electricity through the line by leaving the phone off the hook is what is breaking what is a corrosion induced short.