Fiber basics for low-voltage installs

Skills you'll practise

• Tell multimode from single-mode by core size, wavelengths and TIA-598 jacket color, and read the jacket print to confirm
• Choose between pre-terminated assemblies and field termination (pre-polished splice or fusion splice-on connectors) for a job
• Pull and store fiber cable without exceeding its tension and bend limits, and protect fibers in closed enclosures
• Set up and interpret a Tier 1 loss test with a one-cable reference, and explain what an OTDR adds
• Keep duplex polarity so every transmitter reaches a receiver
• Work safely with fiber shards, cleaning chemicals and invisible light

Course outline

1. 1.Fiber basics for low-voltage installsVideo · 2 min
2. 2.Fiber types, colors and connectorsLesson · 14 min
3. 3.Pre-terminated or field-terminated, pulling and enclosuresLesson · 16 min
4. 4.Polarity, testing and safetyLesson · 18 min
5. 5.Fiber basics for low-voltage installs: knowledge checkKnowledge check · 21 questions
6. 6.Final exam11 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.

• ANSI/TIA-568 series: Commercial building telecommunications cabling (90 m permanent link / 100 m channel; T568A and T568B)
• ANSI/TIA-598: Optical fiber cable color coding
• Fiber Optic Association: fiber optic color codes per TIA-598 (jacket and connector colors; exceptions exist)
• Fiber Optic Association: optical fiber types (multimode 50 or 62.5 µm core, singlemode 8–10 µm; wavelengths; OM3/OM4; bend-insensitive)
• Fiber Optic Association: prepolished/splice and fusion splice-on connectors
• Fiber Optic Association: prefabricated (preterminated) fiber systems
• Fiber Optic Association: manual and mechanical cable pulling (strength members, swivels, lubricant, figure-eight, check tension and bend limits first)
• Fiber Optic Association: premises cabling installation (supports, firestopping at penetrations, labeling, documentation to the customer)
• Fiber Optic Association: insertion loss reference methods (one-, two- and three-cable references; OFSTP-14 / OFSTP-7)
• Fiber Optic Association: OTDR (launch and receive cables, dead zone, not a substitute for insertion loss testing)
• Fiber Optic Association: fiber polarity (transmitters connect to receivers)
• Fiber Optic Association: fiber optic safety (shards, eye protection, never look into a fiber)
• Fiber Optic Association: inspecting connectors with microscopes (check power first; video scopes preferred)
• Fluke Networks: learn about fiber testing (basic loss/length testing, OTDR, inspection first)
• Leviton Basic Residential Installer Guide: category cable bend radius at least 4x cable diameter, coax and fiber 10x; service loops (24 in category, 36 in fiber, residential guidance)