Fiber cleaning and inspection
Inspect before you connect: use a scope to judge end faces, clean them with the right method, never mate APC with UPC, keep dust caps on, test links with a light source and power meter, and stay safe around invisible laser light.
- Level
- Beginner
- Length
- About 45 minutes
- Contents
- 3 lessons · 1 video · final exam
- Status
- Published · updated 1 Oct 2026
Skills you'll practise
- Judge an end-face view for contamination in the core, cladding and contact zones
- Choose and apply dry or wet-then-dry cleaning, then re-inspect
- Tell APC from UPC connectors and explain why they must never be mated
- Calculate link loss from a reference and a measured power reading
- Work safely around live fiber and lasers
Course outline
- 1.Fiber cleaning and inspectionVideo · 2 min
- 2.Inspect before you connectLesson · 14 min
- 3.Cleaning methods and connector typesLesson · 14 min
- 4.Testing links and staying safeLesson · 12 min
- 5.Fiber cleaning and inspection: knowledge checkKnowledge check · 19 questions
- 6.Fiber cleaning and inspection: practical exerciseKnowledge check · 1 question
- 7.New 10G link won't come upScenario
- 8.Final exam9 questions · passing it completes the course, so people who already know the material can test out
Sources it draws on
The lessons and questions are written from these references, so learners can go back to the original.
- IEC 61300-3-35: Fibre optic connector endface visual and automated inspection (zones and pass/fail criteria)
- IEC 60825-1 / IEC 60825-2: Safety of laser products, including optical fibre communication systems
- ANSI/TIA-568 series: Commercial building telecommunications cabling
- Your equipment vendors' installation and service guides (rail kits, PSU and BMC documentation)
- Fluke Networks: APC connectors (green APC / blue UPC single-mode convention; verify the connector type)
- Corning single-mode patch cord specification (8.2 µm core, 9.2 µm mode-field diameter at 1310 nm)
See it with your own jobs and topics
Tell us about your team and we'll walk you through setup, from choosing jobs to your first skills check.