The Cable Tracer
Right next to the Multi-meter, this is the most important tool of all. It allows you to trace a cable, determine if its faulty or not, and even tells you other things. In the olden days, (like 8 years ago) when I needed to trace a cable, I would have to go to one end and short it. Then I return to the other end and use a Multi-meter to test it. So, if there are about 23 cables, I have one out of twenty three to get that cable. Once I get what I think is the correct cable, I would have to run to the other end and release the short. Then I come back and test that suspected cable again. By the time I am finished, my watch would have shown that about forty minutes have passed. And it the cable is long, is on the other floor or there are a lot of them, it would have taken hours. But once I use this tool, it would just take me minutes.
The tool, which I would call it the cable tracer, for simplicity, consists of two components. One is a small box with some cables and the other, looks more like a giant pen. You place the box on the pair of cables you want to trace and then use the amplifier (the pen) to trace it. As the box generates the signal on the cable, the pen will pick it up and you would have identified your cable. But sometimes, it is not that simple. Strong signals from nearby cables, especially where it is long or the cable was laid next to an electrical cable, you would have a weak signal. And if the cable is shorted or there is a problem, it would make the job even more difficult. So, this is where experience comes in. Once you have known how to use it, you WILL know what the problem is.
Right next to the Multi-meter, this is the most important tool of all. It allows you to trace a cable, determine if its faulty or not, and even tells you other things. In the olden days, (like 8 years ago) when I needed to trace a cable, I would have to go to one end and short it. Then I return to the other end and use a Multi-meter to test it. So, if there are about 23 cables, I have one out of twenty three to get that cable. Once I get what I think is the correct cable, I would have to run to the other end and release the short. Then I come back and test that suspected cable again. By the time I am finished, my watch would have shown that about forty minutes have passed. And it the cable is long, is on the other floor or there are a lot of them, it would have taken hours. But once I use this tool, it would just take me minutes.
The tool, which I would call it the cable tracer, for simplicity, consists of two components. One is a small box with some cables and the other, looks more like a giant pen. You place the box on the pair of cables you want to trace and then use the amplifier (the pen) to trace it. As the box generates the signal on the cable, the pen will pick it up and you would have identified your cable. But sometimes, it is not that simple. Strong signals from nearby cables, especially where it is long or the cable was laid next to an electrical cable, you would have a weak signal. And if the cable is shorted or there is a problem, it would make the job even more difficult. So, this is where experience comes in. Once you have known how to use it, you WILL know what the problem is.
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Using the cable tracer, the signal went to this
conduit and died at the crack.
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Opening the conduit, the suspect cable
is broken
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So, since I do not have the time to lay a fresh cable
(and I will not be paid for it), I decided to repair it
on the spot
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It looks horrible, but this is the best I can do since
the main-con will not want to lay any cabling
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In total, three wires had to be repaired
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