Optik TV install - How many physical outlets will be installed for free

[grandmaster]

Good day,

Very recently I had Optik tv/phone/internet installed, in my condo unit. Every room has a telephone jack, with cat5 wire, along with a separate coax jack. All wires lead back to the utility area in my condo, where Telus installed their modem/router. I have two tv's, in separate rooms. In one room, the technician installed a physical cat5 jack in an existing telephone jack, and hard wired the optik tv box. In the second room, he connected the optiv tv box via wireless. I asked to have the second room hardwired, and he said they can only do one physical port install, any additional TV outlets will cost $100. 

According to the Telus terms and conditions, it is stated:

https://www.telus.com/en/ab/support/article/terms-and-conditions

"Service installation, a $300 value, includes connection of up to 6 TVs and is free with a service agreement or purchase of a digital box or PVR ($100 for month-to-month service with no equipment purchase). If new or upgraded outlet/phone jacks are required, the charge will be $75 for each outlet/phone jack."

My question is, when Telus states free connection of six TV's, is that hardwired - assuming there is a wire/jack in the room? What does "If new or upgraded outlet/phone jacks are required" imply for $75? 

I would love to have the second room hardwired, and based on what I read, i figured it would be at no charge, but perhaps I am misreading their terms.

Thank you for any help.

[NFtoBC]

Usually only the PVR is hardwired, though the new ones are wireless as well. All other TVs are connected to the gateway / router wirelessly. Only required ethernet / phone jacks are included in the install, not optional ones.

EDIT: changing an Ethernet jack is a do-it-yourself project if you wish.

[grandmaster]

NFtoBC, 

Thanks for the reply. Both optik boxes I received are identical, and very small. I assume the pvr function is stored on a telus sever?

I have installed a lot of cat5, so replacing the rj45 jack in my second room would not be a problem. What I am more concerned with is unhooking the cat5 running from that room, at my utility room where it is hooked up to the existing phone line(s). I'd have to see how it is hooked up. Then, the optik tv box which is wireless, can an end-user easily change the setting such at it runs over the cat5? 

Thanks again.

[NFtoBC]

Is there a device number on either of the devices you have?  The PVR function is always local.

If I recall, the new 4K PVR can be set up as a wireless device, but not the HD ones.

Once connected to Ethernet, there should be no settings needed for the second device you wish to connect, the change to Ethernet should be automatic.

[grandmaster]

NFtoBC,

The two Optik tv boxes provided are Technicolor UIW4001, with an Actiontec 3200 gateway/router. Not sure if the technicolor are pvr devices? I have a technician coming out to hardwire the second box. I feel a wired connection is superior to wireless, but i have nothing to back that up, and then I can disable the wireless radio on the telus router. Thanks again for your help. 

[NFtoBC]

@grandmaster

According to this manual, the UIW 4001 is the version without the hard disk for the PVR. The UIW 8001 includes a 1TB hard disk.

I agree a hardwire option is the better choice, though my TVs are amongst the few devices which could be hardwired, but ar on Wi-Fi. Before switching off the wireless on your router, remember phones cannot be connected to Ethernet, and guests may wish to access wireless.

[Nighthawk]

The wiring within your residence is owned by you and under your control. If you want electrical work done on the other jacks, there will be a charge. 

Are you sure all of the jacks are phone jacks and not that some are network jacks? If they are phone jacks additional wiring work would be needed at the panel in your unit as well as the jack. If you have ethernet jacks installed already, you would just have to connect the modem to them in the panel and then connect whatever devices you want in the rooms.

[grandmaster]

Hi Nighthawk,

The outlets in each room are phone (rj45) using a cat5 wire which runs back to my utility/laundry room where the Telus modem/router is placed. No existing network ports in any room. In the one room, the technician removed the phone jack, and replaced it with a cat5 jack to hardwire the optik tv box (both optik boxes I was given are identical, and very small). I assumed this could be done in the second room as well (included with the installation), but sounds like there is a cost ($75?) involved for more than one installed physically port. 

Thank you for the reply.

[Nighthawk · Accepted solution]

Phone jacks are RJ11 / 4 wire / smaller plug. They may be using cat5 or cat5e to wire them as is quite common in anything built in the last many years. Ethernet jacks are RJ45 / 8 wire. 

The tech likely swapped out the existing RJ11 plate for an RJ45 one and then had to rewire where the modem is to detach that phone line from the rest of them. The larger amount of work is likely going to be where the modem is located versus swapping the faceplate on the phone jack. Depending on how the builder wired up your unit it may be fairly easy to rewire things or it may be difficult. Some builders more recently used smart panels which make it much easier.

Example of a smart panel:

[grandmaster]

Nighthawk,

Thank you for correcting me. RJ11 plugs in each room (with cat5), and one was swapped out for a RJ45 ethernet jack. Unfortunately, where my utilities are wired, they did not install a panel. It is literally a mess of wires, with the cat5/telus line all crammed into a small electrical junction box behind a face plate. Without knowing which wire runs to what room, and seeing how they are all crimped together, I decided to simply have a technician come back and hardwire the additional box, for $100. Worth it. Thanks again for all your help.

[Nighthawk]

Ouch. Some builders did resort to that and it's a huge pain to rewire things. My brother's place is wired that way. Best of luck!

Please drop by again if anything comes up. 🙂

[NFtoBC]

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@Nighthawkwrote:

Ouch. Some builders did resort to that and it's a huge pain to rewire things. My brother's place is wired that way. Best of luck!

Please drop by again if anything comes up. 🙂

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Yes, as a phone system, they would have been ganged together! With the right tools, it is pretty quick to sort them out. Since the tech will likely need to check a few lines to find one which can be re-purposed, ask that they be labeled so you can make use of them in the future. Having a bit of masking tape with pre-written room names handy will generate good will.