Fios customer wants to remove old twisted pair service cable

[donles1]

   I'm having exterior work done on my home and in addition to my electrical service attached to the house, I have three tv/phone/internet service cables.  One is an old Comcast coax, one is the current FIOS cable and the third is the old Verizon POTS cable.

   I'd like to remove or have someone else remove the Comcast coax and the old POTS line.  I did have Verizon DSL prior to FIOS but was told I could never go back to DSL, therefore, the cable would seem to be pointless.  Am I correct?  

   I don't imagine Verizon would send a tech to disconnect the old line.  They could or should have done it when FIOS was installed.

   Any problem with me or a siding contractor disconnecting the old cable?

[donles1]

I tested the POTS line. Pulled the test plugs and checked my phone - no dial tone.  I guess the cable stays but I don't understand why my voice service is not over the optical line?

Does every FIOS data/voice/video customer have a separate service line (two twisted pairs) for voice?

[lasagna · Accepted solution]

I've seen installations where the installation tech backfeeds the connection from the ONT to the old copper DMARK so that you don't need to move your house wiring over to the new ONT connection points.   It's possible they did that and internally disconnected the ends of the twisted pair from the original POTS into the DMARK (which would explain "never being able to go back").  

Easy enough to test ... take a phone, unplug the jumpers in the old POTS DMARK and plug the phone directly into the connections in the ONT customer side -- if you get dial tone there, then they backfed the connection.  If not, then for some reason you are still on POTS.   It ispossible for you to have this setup -- some individuals which specialized medical equipment, etc. who need always on telephone service can have this setup (since the FTTP setup for phone, while it has the battery backup, doesn't meet the always on requirement since the battery can die if the power is out for too long).

If you are certain you are still on POTS, should be simply enough to get Verizon to move your phone service over to FTTP.  This is where they want everyone anyhow.

As for pulling out the Comcast and old POTS cable back to where they connect to the carrier infrastructure -- that's not likely to happen as the right of way -- even if you don't have service on these lines presently -- allows for them to be there from the utilities -- you don't own them, so you can't remove them.     You can however remove anything which runs from the customer side of any DMARK into your house if it's no longer in use.   That cable you "own".

[donles1]

Yes, you are correct.  The phone is backfed out of the ONT.  The incoming copper at the DMARK is disconnected.

Thanks!