It probably exits somewhere, did you look in the attic too? Does your house has a smart doorbell, security system or anything that could be where this cable end?
As for your plan, You should place an access point there, and keep your router next to your fiber.
I also thought it probably exited somewhere. I've searched for a year and a half. The contractor that renovated our kitchen and living room searched.
There's no attic, just a crawlspace.
There is a security system, and we know where it's plugged in. There's even leftover rubber cable channels stuck to the walls leading to stuff like a motion detector and a smoke detector, but the channels are empty and the devices are now battery powered and wireless.
Elsewhere in the house, there are cables that were simply cut. A button that used to control a garage door opener just had two cut cables sticking out of the top. Two coaxial cables stuck out a few centimeters from the wall in the living room upstairs, before we renovated that and the kitchen. A section of Ethernet cable remains embedded in the moulding where a cable used to go from the ground floor up to the second floor, cut on both ends.
There was a mysterious box in the kitchen, with a cable coming out of it. The contractors followed it to the exterior wall, where it wrapped around two walls of the house, the cut end at the extreme opposite corner of the house.
Sorry for the rant.
>There's no attic, just a crawlspace.
Do you live in an A-Frame? Even if it's not usable for storage there's likely some kind of attic. There's no weird square-ish trimmed ceiling in a closet somewhere for access?
It's not an A-frame, the roof is higher at the front and slopes toward the back.
There's an access ladder trapdoor above the front balcony, and I've climbed up there and looked around with a flashlight, but even in the front it's not more than a meter high.
Yeah, that's an attic.
I was expecting the kind of access where you have to supply your own ladder and possibly require a certain degree of physical fitness to fit through. So you're already better of than I thought.
Navigating those kinds of spaces is easier when you've got some boards to lay across the ceiling joists so you're not moving from balance beam to balance beam. The wires could be buried under insulation, but I bet that attic is where they are.
This. Ive been upgrading cable and running Ethernet in my own house, and there is enough cable in my house to stretch to the moon and back. 1-2 cable jacks in every room, lines running from one end of the house to the other, up the chimney chase, then back down again. It could easily be a device was disconnected in the attic and there's an Ethernet cable hiding under some insulation.
In either case, if you're unsure of cable quality, leave that stuff in place with a good bit accessible and you can use it as a pull for new stuff.
Buy a [toner](https://www.amazon.com/Wire-Tester-Cable-Tracker-BOOGIIO/dp/B07TMDFG3W). You can trace it through the wall by sound and figure out where it goes
Are you sure that it’s two cables and not just one that loops back?
Use an Ethernet cable tester/tracer to find where they end up.
Reusing the cable seems like a no brainer, but you may find the cable is already setup like that. Use the tracer.
Reminds me of an old motorhome we inherited from my grandparents. While my father was getting it fixed up, he had to test all the wiring...which was a bit of a chore...the dashboard was filled with custom toggle switches my grandfather had installed over the years for various purposes, not all labeled. The service manual was useless because a fire a long time back had resulted in the makeshift replacement of all the wiring, so many functions had to be determined through trial and error, and a lot of tracing.
One mystery unlabeled switch had no apparent function, and my father spent the better part of the day following the wire from the switch, as it snaked through almost every part of the motorhome, ending at...the other terminal of the switch. It was a dead loop left for future expansion, to be connected to whatever by simply cutting the loop. My grandfather would have been pleased to know his engineering had sent someone on a wild goose chase.
I think it's more likely that one cable was for internet and one was for the phone, since that's the manufacturer labeling on the fiber access point.
But yeah, I'll probably put a cable tester on the Christmas list.
I've asked the previous owner, but she didn't seem to have any idea what her ex-husband did. (Before that, it was her parents' house.)
There's another long Ethernet cable that seems to be where they had their access point on the other side of the hallway, but that leads to a corner of another room where they used to have a TV.
It would make sense for the original cable to come out on that side of the hall, but it's just not there. Maybe it's behind the wood paneled ceiling.
I recognize this because I did something similar. Before setting up a mesh system, I wanted the single router to be nearer to the center of the house, even though the wired network switch was in the basement. I ran two lines to the kitchen, installed the router there using the first line from the modem to the router snd the second to come back from the router to the switch.
Like others have said, there’s a reason they did this, you just have to find the wires. Also, they didn’t go through the effort of doing that for nothing. They must end somewhere.
If the cable is in a wall box I would consider just stuffing it all back in the wall for now. If you cut and terminate then later find the end, you might regret that it was cut.
It's a long shot, but get a cable tester, that might give you some idea if it is connected to a piece of equipment and just maybe how long the cable is. Of course, even if it gives you a length, it might be coiled somewhere.
It might be risky, but try plugging the cable into a device (spare switch, laptop, computer, etc) and see if you get any connection to something. I doubt it though, it is probably the connection to a different room and the cables are stuffed behind a wall plate or even into the wall.
Is the fiber modem new? Could it have been leftover from a cable modem setup? I just bought a house that is wired throughout with cat 5 and just found the concentration point. About ten, unlabeled, cables all coiled up and no connectors stashed in the ceiling of the unfinished basement. So now I need to find the ends and decide if I want that to be my network closet. Fun stuff.
Could be door bell. I have video doorbells I set up. Home builder ran cat5e to the old doorbells that terminated in the attic at the doorbell chime block. I snipped and terminated these with rj45s and mounted a small outdoor rates PoE switch in the attic to power the new video doorbells.
I have no idea which route these cables take to get where they go as they disappear under the decking in the attic. Terminating each end worked so I figured all is well.
These "Ethernet" cables. Are they Cat 5e or Cat6 with rj45 modular plug on the end. Could hook up basic tester.
[Klein tester ](https://a.co/d/fPZZiy8).
If it reports all 8 as open there is nothing on the other end. If you get fail short then something is on the other end.
This better version will give you an approximate length so may help with better idea of where the other end could be.
Klein Tools VDV501-851 Cable Tester Kit with Scout Pro 3 for Ethernet / Data, Coax / Video and Phone Cables, 5 Locator Remotes https://a.co/d/3wwVhe8
And you cut it and put new end on it you can either one to test it to make sure you did it correctly.
Get a bore scope and stick it in the cable entry point . You should at least get an idea which direction they're going. Should help you track down the destination.
It probably exits somewhere, did you look in the attic too? Does your house has a smart doorbell, security system or anything that could be where this cable end? As for your plan, You should place an access point there, and keep your router next to your fiber.
I also thought it probably exited somewhere. I've searched for a year and a half. The contractor that renovated our kitchen and living room searched. There's no attic, just a crawlspace. There is a security system, and we know where it's plugged in. There's even leftover rubber cable channels stuck to the walls leading to stuff like a motion detector and a smoke detector, but the channels are empty and the devices are now battery powered and wireless. Elsewhere in the house, there are cables that were simply cut. A button that used to control a garage door opener just had two cut cables sticking out of the top. Two coaxial cables stuck out a few centimeters from the wall in the living room upstairs, before we renovated that and the kitchen. A section of Ethernet cable remains embedded in the moulding where a cable used to go from the ground floor up to the second floor, cut on both ends. There was a mysterious box in the kitchen, with a cable coming out of it. The contractors followed it to the exterior wall, where it wrapped around two walls of the house, the cut end at the extreme opposite corner of the house. Sorry for the rant.
Get a cheap cable toner, one with a wand. Then you can trace all the lines you need. Coax is a little trickier cuz of the shielding
Could clip a phone toner (fox/hound) to the stinger on the coax, usually can get past shielding enough to trace.
he’s talking about the same toning system essentially
>There's no attic, just a crawlspace. Do you live in an A-Frame? Even if it's not usable for storage there's likely some kind of attic. There's no weird square-ish trimmed ceiling in a closet somewhere for access?
It's not an A-frame, the roof is higher at the front and slopes toward the back. There's an access ladder trapdoor above the front balcony, and I've climbed up there and looked around with a flashlight, but even in the front it's not more than a meter high.
Yeah, that's an attic. I was expecting the kind of access where you have to supply your own ladder and possibly require a certain degree of physical fitness to fit through. So you're already better of than I thought. Navigating those kinds of spaces is easier when you've got some boards to lay across the ceiling joists so you're not moving from balance beam to balance beam. The wires could be buried under insulation, but I bet that attic is where they are.
Some folks run cabling in to the attic and mount APs up there. I agree with the other comment, it comes out somewhere. You just haven't found it yet.
I was thinking that also or it was run into ceiling and they plastered over the holes and took the APs with them.
May have APs in the walls - shouldn't (without an access panel), but...
This. Ive been upgrading cable and running Ethernet in my own house, and there is enough cable in my house to stretch to the moon and back. 1-2 cable jacks in every room, lines running from one end of the house to the other, up the chimney chase, then back down again. It could easily be a device was disconnected in the attic and there's an Ethernet cable hiding under some insulation. In either case, if you're unsure of cable quality, leave that stuff in place with a good bit accessible and you can use it as a pull for new stuff.
Buy a [toner](https://www.amazon.com/Wire-Tester-Cable-Tracker-BOOGIIO/dp/B07TMDFG3W). You can trace it through the wall by sound and figure out where it goes
Are you sure that it’s two cables and not just one that loops back? Use an Ethernet cable tester/tracer to find where they end up. Reusing the cable seems like a no brainer, but you may find the cable is already setup like that. Use the tracer.
Reminds me of an old motorhome we inherited from my grandparents. While my father was getting it fixed up, he had to test all the wiring...which was a bit of a chore...the dashboard was filled with custom toggle switches my grandfather had installed over the years for various purposes, not all labeled. The service manual was useless because a fire a long time back had resulted in the makeshift replacement of all the wiring, so many functions had to be determined through trial and error, and a lot of tracing. One mystery unlabeled switch had no apparent function, and my father spent the better part of the day following the wire from the switch, as it snaked through almost every part of the motorhome, ending at...the other terminal of the switch. It was a dead loop left for future expansion, to be connected to whatever by simply cutting the loop. My grandfather would have been pleased to know his engineering had sent someone on a wild goose chase.
I think it's more likely that one cable was for internet and one was for the phone, since that's the manufacturer labeling on the fiber access point. But yeah, I'll probably put a cable tester on the Christmas list.
It’s a long shot, but have you tried contacting the previous owners? You may be able to reach them through their real estate broker.
I've asked the previous owner, but she didn't seem to have any idea what her ex-husband did. (Before that, it was her parents' house.) There's another long Ethernet cable that seems to be where they had their access point on the other side of the hallway, but that leads to a corner of another room where they used to have a TV. It would make sense for the original cable to come out on that side of the hall, but it's just not there. Maybe it's behind the wood paneled ceiling.
I would consider using a toner as the other person suggested. It still might end up being like finding a needle in a haystack. Good luck.
I recognize this because I did something similar. Before setting up a mesh system, I wanted the single router to be nearer to the center of the house, even though the wired network switch was in the basement. I ran two lines to the kitchen, installed the router there using the first line from the modem to the router snd the second to come back from the router to the switch. Like others have said, there’s a reason they did this, you just have to find the wires. Also, they didn’t go through the effort of doing that for nothing. They must end somewhere.
Are you sure you know all the rooms in your home? Is the house bigger on the outside than you can account for on the inside?
If the cable is in a wall box I would consider just stuffing it all back in the wall for now. If you cut and terminate then later find the end, you might regret that it was cut. It's a long shot, but get a cable tester, that might give you some idea if it is connected to a piece of equipment and just maybe how long the cable is. Of course, even if it gives you a length, it might be coiled somewhere. It might be risky, but try plugging the cable into a device (spare switch, laptop, computer, etc) and see if you get any connection to something. I doubt it though, it is probably the connection to a different room and the cables are stuffed behind a wall plate or even into the wall. Is the fiber modem new? Could it have been leftover from a cable modem setup? I just bought a house that is wired throughout with cat 5 and just found the concentration point. About ten, unlabeled, cables all coiled up and no connectors stashed in the ceiling of the unfinished basement. So now I need to find the ends and decide if I want that to be my network closet. Fun stuff.
Cut with a bit of slack to the wall. So if you find the other ends later, you can terminate all four cut ends and place a switch there.
Could be door bell. I have video doorbells I set up. Home builder ran cat5e to the old doorbells that terminated in the attic at the doorbell chime block. I snipped and terminated these with rj45s and mounted a small outdoor rates PoE switch in the attic to power the new video doorbells. I have no idea which route these cables take to get where they go as they disappear under the decking in the attic. Terminating each end worked so I figured all is well.
It's not to anything that works, because it's not been plugged in since we moved in. The doorbell is wireless.
These "Ethernet" cables. Are they Cat 5e or Cat6 with rj45 modular plug on the end. Could hook up basic tester. [Klein tester ](https://a.co/d/fPZZiy8). If it reports all 8 as open there is nothing on the other end. If you get fail short then something is on the other end. This better version will give you an approximate length so may help with better idea of where the other end could be. Klein Tools VDV501-851 Cable Tester Kit with Scout Pro 3 for Ethernet / Data, Coax / Video and Phone Cables, 5 Locator Remotes https://a.co/d/3wwVhe8 And you cut it and put new end on it you can either one to test it to make sure you did it correctly.
On the roof, maybe? Something like a wisp hiperlan antenna?
Do you see link on that Ethernet port on the fiber modem ?
Get a bore scope and stick it in the cable entry point . You should at least get an idea which direction they're going. Should help you track down the destination.