Hacker News Reader

Funny. Your first sentence had me wondering whether you're south african. Then you followed up with lighting strikes :-) Agreed, I think your best option is fibre. A few Mikrotik's (reasonably priced) and SFP modules will work perfect for you. I think just getting your own splicing kit will make this easier for you and allow some experimentation.

View on HN

Don't forget that outdoor cable oftentimes has a metal strength member in it so it can be run from poles. The underground direct-bury kind of cable has metal armour for rodent-proofing and protection when the ground settles. Just because it's fiber cable doesn't mean you can forget about lightning protection and proper grounding. If the airwaves aren't too congested wireless might be a better option here.

You can always blow metal-free fiber in pipes. I'd use PE pressure pipe of suitable size, pull a string into it with a vacuum cleaner and pull fiber in... Hopefully the fiber survives.

Joburg :)

Reply on news.ycombinator.com