Fibre optic cables
You should have heard about fibre optic cables by now. They are used in internet, telephone and other means of communications that requires a wired connection. They have major advantages over other wires and cables that were used in the past.
What Are Fibre Optic Cables
Fibre optic cables are made from glass. Ideally it is composed of pure glass. This makes it unique from other types of cables and wires that were used in the past which were mostly made from metals such as copper. Metals were used because they were good conductors of electricity and they were malleable and flexible. Those qualities allowed the wires to be bent.
The glass fibres are very thin; in fact they are as thin as human hair. This allows them to be even more flexible than metal wires. Each glass fibre has its own protective coat and they are all sheathed in protective material similar to the ones used for metal wires. There are actually layers of protective cover that protect the cable.
What Fibre Optic Cables Carry
Fibre optic cables do not carry electrical current like metal wires. They transmit light instead which is used to carry digital information. They are more efficient in carrying these data than wires and could carry it for long distances without any loss.
Each cable can carry hundreds of optic fibres. This means that a single cable can have the same capacity as that of a bundle of wire cables that were used in the past. The capacity of these cables are so big that only a small portion of the cables that have been laid are actually being used right now.
Strength of Fibre Optic Cables
The modern fibre optic cable is very strong and can withstand a great deal. The problem is that the manufacturing process can create some flaws in it which could greatly weaken the fibres. The handling and the installation process could also add some stress to the cable which greatly weakens it. Natural aging can also lessen the strength of the fibre over time.
Danger of Use
The only danger posed by the use of fibre optic cables is to technicians who are handling them during repair. The IR light which is used on the cables can potentially cause eye damage to someone doing an inspection. Because it is not visible light, it might only be noticed once it starts causing damage.
These are just some of the things that you should know about fibre optic cables.
How to lay electrical cables
For any DIY enthusiast, laying down electrical cables at home is probably one of the ultimate tasks to be performed. Generally, handling electrical jobs at home, especially when it involves installation and wiring should be left to professional electricians, but it would help to have a solid understanding on how it is to be done properly. There are cases where you might really have to do it on your own and it could help tremendously if you know the right steps to do so.
Here are the steps that you can follow:
- The first and most important thing to keep in mind is safety. Remember that you are dealing with electricity and it can cause not just injury but death. Make no mistake about that. So if you are unsure about anything, then just leave it alone and call in an electrician.
- The first step is to shut off the flow of electricity in the circuit that you are going to work on. You can turn off the switch, remove the fuse or trip the circuit breaker for that line. DO NOT FORGET TO DO THIS STEP.
- Study the diagram of the wiring first. You should have an idea of how the wires are connected before you start to change anything.
- Usually for home installations No. 12 or 14 gauge wiring are used. Make sure that you are going to use the same gauge of wiring for any connection that you are going to make.
- You can add new connections to a junction box just as long as there is a space for it. You should always stick to the .limits of the parts and components that you are going to use.
- For connecting a new wiring to a ceiling light, you have to switch off the main and match the same coloured wires with the new ones that you will be installing. Be careful when you are splicing the wire. You should make sure that the insulation will not be damaged on the parts that you are going to connect, as well as with the way that you connect the wires to the boxes. See to it that no stray piece of wire will connect the terminals.
- There are boxes that have their own connectors built in. You should check before you start working so you can be sure to use the right type of wire for the connector. You should always leave some extra length of wire inside the box so that future connections can be done with ease.
- Never make an open line splice. In order to stay safe, your connections should all be done inside junctions boxes.
These are some tips that you can follow when doing your own electrical connection, but remember it is better if you were to leave it to professionals.
Best way to clean cables
These days we live in a world of gadgets and devices. Mostly we use them for entertainment, but now they are quickly becoming essentials in our daily lives and a lot of people are becoming increasingly dependent on them. One characteristic of some of the devices that we now have is the great amount of cables that are used to connect them to each other. Computers for example use multiple cables in order to connect the different cables in order for it to work. It’s virtually a spaghetti-like jungle of wires when you look at it.
Cables- It’s not just computers that are dependent on cables in order for them to work properly. Home theatre systems would also need them in order to connect the different devices that make it up. While there are some new technologies that are coming out now which can connect the devices without the use of wires, it’s still a couple of years away from completely replacing the use of physical connectors. The quality of signal and the reliability delivered by physical conductors is something that can not be replaced by wireless connections.
Even if the wireless connections are perfected, the use of physical wires would still not be completely phased out. There is still no effective means of replacing physical conductors for electricity today. Devices would still be dependent on power cables.
Organizing- What you need to do then is to organize the jungle of cables that you are using for your devices and see to it that they are orderly. The problem with having too many wires without any order is that you might get confused with them. There is also a certain degree of danger with getting all the wires jumbled together. Remember that electricity passes through those wires and in case their insulating material has some break on its surface that can cause a fire, which will not only cause damage but can be dangerous to your safety and life as well.
You should also organize it, so it would be easy to disconnect and reconnect it all again. For organizing cables you should use cable ties which can bundle the wires that go together. That would prevent the wires from being everywhere.
Best way to clean cables- How do you go about cleaning the cables? The usual cleaning methods might not apply because those are wires used for carrying electric current and signals. Using the cleaning materials might not be applicable. The best way is to just use a piece of dry cloth and wipe away the dust that accumulates on the surface. You should just place the wires so that they will not gather as much dust.
Steps to repair a broken radio
With modern technology, new devices can do a lot more than their older counterparts. They are also smaller, lighter and cheaper. So in some ways repairing an old broken down device would not make sense at all. It would just be better to buy a new one.
Repairing Old Radios- Even though there is no intense need for repairing old radios today, there are a lot of people who engage in it. Most of them do it as a hobby. Many old radios are easy to repair, mainly because they all followed the same design concepts regardless of the manufacturer. So to have a working understanding of one brand of radio would mean understanding most of the other brand from the same period.
Another reason why this activity is gaining a lot of following today is because most of the parts used for the old radios are still available. It might take some looking, but generally they could still be bought. There’s nothing like the feeling of getting an old radio to work again.
Steps to Repair a Broken Radio- When they say that repairing an old radio model is simple, that wouldn’t mean that you can do it right away. Simple is a relative term. If you have some understanding of basic electronics then you should be able to do it.
Try to get a schematic diagram of the particular radio model that you want to repair. A schematic diagram contains all the parts of a device written down in symbols, even if you do not understand all the symbols, you could still use it because it would contain a lot of important information about the radio model.
If the radio that you are trying to repair still has some vacuum tubes to it, don’t go and replace all of them right away. They won’t deteriorate simply because they are not used. You should only replace vacuum tubes or any other part, for that matter, if you believe that it is defective.
Tools- You need the following tools:
- A multitester
- Pliers
- Wire cutters
- Small knife for stripping insulation
- Screwdrivers
- Soldering iron
These are the most basic tools that you are going to need for repairing an old radio. There are other stuff that you can get as you learn more, but these would be enough to get you started. A tester for example could be used for zeroing in on the problem in a radio, by various methods if you know how to use it properly.
Start your radio repair hobby now and explore a whole new world.
How to fix broken cables
If you have a typical home then you would have several devices there that uses cables. There’s no going about the need for having cables if you want to use these devices. Maybe in a few more years they could come up with appliances that are completely cable free, but right now we have to put up with them.
Cables can be a lot of trouble. First of all they could be everywhere. Multiple cables being grouped together can be a technician’s nightmare. They know what they’re doing, so imagine how that can be to a typical homeowner. Frustrating wouldn’t start to describe how one feels about trying to figure those cables. It can really be a headache when you have to disconnect something and you can not figure out which is which.
Almost all electrical appliances uses cables for drawing power, even the portable gadgets that we carry around are still dependent on power cables in order to get charged. The ones that have most cables are the home theatre system and the desktop computer. These two uses up a lot of cable connections between the different components that make them up. The cables are for their power supply and for the signal of both audio and video.
If you just let the wires connecting these two devices lying around, there’s the potential that one could trip on them or if you have pets, they might get tangled up. You must organize the cables so that they can be grouped together which would make it easy to disconnect, reconnect and to clean them. The best way to do that is to tie them together with a cable tie. You should group the cables that go together and put them together with a cable tie. That would keep your connections neat and orderly.
Repairing Cables- If any of the cables that you are using seems to be broken or if there are signs that the insulating cover has worn away, you should have it replaced right away. Cables are not really reparable items. There are instances however when getting a replacement is not possible immediately and you need to use the device. You can just cover the damaged part with a piece of electrical tape. This kind of tape is made from a highly insulated material which can cover the damage part. That method could only be used if the device is still working with the damaged cable. If it stops working, then that means the conductor inside has been damaged already and you would really have to get a replacement.