Fibre Tester

[petben]

Hello, can anyone recommend a fibre cable tester. Something simple like:

 

- Am I looking at the right cable?

- Is the fibre completely broken?

- Is the fibre partially broken?

 

 

Thanks for any ideas.

[Warwick_Tech]

As silly as it sounds I think even a torch or laserpen will let you know which cable is which, just don't look down it, instead hold a piece of paper across and see if you get any light

 

My old manager used to look down them, which just terrified me tbh (shh, he still posts here)

[Davit2005]

As silly as it sounds I think even a torch or laserpen will let you know which cable is which, just don't look down it, instead hold a piece of paper across and see if you get any light

 

My old manager used to look down them, which just terrified me tbh (shh, he still posts here)

 

Yeah 2nd the don't look down it. I normally use a phone camera to see if there is light coming out, one connector is normally rx the other is tx so will only get light at one end out of one in that scenario.

 

We have a cheap fibre tester at work, it gives an idea of the quality of the link but not much more, cannot remember name. Anything we are still unsure of or need better check we use a cabling contractor.

Edited April 20, 2021 by Davit2005

[mdrabble]

You could always arrange to borrow a demo unit for evaluation and do your tests and then send back.

[EddyAllen]

If you are using single mode fibre they usually use a wavelength of 1310-1550nm which you wont be able to see and some cameras wont pick up especially given the core size of Single Mode cables.

 

However you are most likely using MMF which operates around 850nm which IS infrared but most people will still be able to see it (if you've ever used night vision equipment this is the wavelength most IR lamps use and you can see a faint red glow on them). The transceivers you are going to be using on a single site are going to be in the 1-3 watt range which really isn't going to any damage to your eye from a quick glance (you get far more energy dumped on your eye from inadvertently glancing at the sun or even some strong lightbulbs such as in a security light). Most people will be able to comfortably see the 50 micron dot at half a meter and by the time it reaches the eye in the air, the signal will have attenuated and dispersed even further.