We have Comcast Cable. It has been intermittently going out, then coming back on. When I called Comcast they said it would be a week to come out, and if the problem was inside the house or they didn't find a problem they would charge me. This has been going on since December. When I called it was over a hour on the phone, talking to people asking me "canned" questions, a real waste of time. They must think their average customer is a high school droput.

I decided not to let Comcast come out. Their entire service call procedure is a complete headache- and with an intermittent problem I can see them charging me for no trouble found.

Today I decided to check for the problem. Started at the modem and worked to the cable box outside. What I found was an outside splitter that had corroded so bad it was opened up and you could see the inside of it, including a resistor and other tiny electronic parts.

Below is a picture of what I found outside and what a normal splitter looks like. Have to draw the conclusion that Comcast uses very cheap parts. No reason for the splitter to corrode outside- it is less than three years old.

I can imagine where Comcast came out, didn't find a problem, send me a bill, and then when problem returned they would state problem not related.

I wouldn't blame cheap parts yet.

With my RF background and seeing many RF/High voltage failures in communication lines and equipment, I wonder if your line suffered lightning damage and that'* basing it off of the looks like burnt label/heat damage. I've NEVER seen aluminum RF enclosures corrode like that.

Take pictures. Replace it. Its a normal splitter. Just find one for the GHZ band.

And remember, the more splitters you have, the "worse" the signal is by the time it gets to its destination(cable box/modem)

I actually eliminated the splitter, as they went "all digital" for tv, so no need for the outside spliiter. Installed an inline coupler to replace the splitter.

Good commentary Mike. Maybe I should be looking for what caused the corrosion.

i have had intermittent issues but normally its a branch or something pulling on the cable. i have had good people come out, they always act like they own everything and do line tests for signal strength. the one guy replaced all the splitters in the house until he said it was good. never said anything about money. the call center on the other hand is like you say set up for kindergarten rejects. you are guaranteed an hour of dumb crap before you get to someone who can help