I think this is oxidized copper - how will it affect Internet quality?

[Filingo]

Hello,

I've been pulling some Ethernet cables and also moved the router to a new location and noticed the phone cable which is used as the infrastructure VDSL cable that gets internet from ISP to the router seem to be black as if it is oxidized copper, could that affect Internet quality? Here are some photos of part of it that I cut:

 

 

 

 

[Blue4130]

22 minutes ago, Filingo said:

Hello,

I've been pulling some Ethernet cables and also moved the router to a new location and noticed the phone cable which is used as the infrastructure VDSL cable that gets internet from ISP to the router seem to be black as if it is oxidized copper, could that affect Internet quality? Here are some photos of part of it that I cut:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That isn't a phone cable... The cable should be terminated in a rj11 jack, think something like a smaller ethernet jack. There really shouldn't be a way for it to oxidize, they are generally plated gold on the contacts.

[Filingo]

11 minutes ago, Blue4130 said:

That isn't a phone cable... The cable should be terminated in a rj11 jack, think something like a smaller ethernet jack. There really shouldn't be a way for it to oxidize, they are generally plated gold on the contacts.

This is the cable inside the walls - I removed the rj11 jack for the upgrades, this is part of the single pair cable that's inside the wall and this is part of one of the wires.

[Bombastinator]

2 minutes ago, Filingo said:

This is the cable inside the walls - I removed the rj11 jack for the upgrades, this is part of the single pair cable that's inside the wall and this is part of one of the wires.

TLDNR: No.  you’re fine.

It looks thick. Also it’s solid core.  It was probably originally for ac power.  Probably about 10 times as thick as it needs to be but that wouldn’t hurt anything.  Looks like you found a wiring hack by a previous owner.  It also looks like there’s no sleeving on it.  Could be old abandoned knob and tube. Used to be they couldn't make wire sleeving with good enough insulating properties so they just used air.  The entire inside of the wall was the insulation jacket.  This is why houses that have knob and tube in the walls can’t be insulated unless the knob and tube is rendered dead.  Would still work for a low voltage application though.   It may have been reused oxidation requires oxygen though and while the outer surface of the wire is oxidized the interior clearly isn’t.  Might be a possible problem in a couple hundred years but not now. 

[Filingo]

Just now, Bombastinator said:

TLDNR: No.  you’re fine.

It looks thick. Also it’s solid core.  It was probably originally for ac power.  Probably about 10 times as thick as it needs to be but that wouldn’t hurt anything.  Looks like you found a wiring hack by a previous owner.  It also looks like there’s no sleeving on it.  Could be old abandoned knob and tube. Used to be they couldn't make wire sleeving with good enough insulating properties so they just used air.  The entire inside of the wall was the insulation jacket.  This is why houses that have knob and tube in the walls can’t be insulated unless the knob and tube is rendered dead.  Would still work for a low voltage application though.   It may have been reused oxidation requires oxygen though and while the outer surface of the wire is oxidized the interior clearly isn’t.  Might be a possible problem in a couple hundred years but not now. 

haha thank you xD So I'm safe till my resurrection.

 

PS it's not thick, it's just the photo haha, it's very magnified, it's actually very thin, here is a photo compared to an ethernet cable:

 

It's especially telephone wire not power (it's an old house where every room has a telephone socket)

[Bombastinator]

1 hour ago, Filingo said:

haha thank you xD So I'm safe till my resurrection.

 

PS it's not thick, it's just the photo haha, it's very magnified, it's actually very thin, here is a photo compared to an ethernet cable:

 

It's especially telephone wire not power (it's an old house where every room has a telephone socket)

Ah.  I thought it was 12 or 14 gauge solid wire.  Ive even that kind of wire used AS strands in thick wire.  Wire that thin should have some kind of sheathe on it. I’ve seen solid core ethernet wire about that size, but it always had a sheath on it. A wire with no insulator is generally used only for grounding, and is generally a lot thicker than that. It could be old school phone wire for RJ11, but again, insulator.  All of those are still way too thick for oxidation to affect their conductive ability.  That black oxide on the copper btw isn’t good for you.  Couldn’t hurt to wash your hands.  Copper oxidizes, but it doesn’t do it like iron does.  There are 3 different oxides which vary according to how much heat and oxygen is around it.  One is red, one is black, and one is green. The black one is fairly hard as such things go and to some degree acts as an insulator from continued oxidation, which is something iron oxide does not do.

[Filingo]

4 minutes ago, Bombastinator said:

Ah.  I thought it was 12 or 14 gauge solid wire.  Ive even that kind of wire used AS strands in thick wire.  Wire that thin should have some kind of sheathe on it. I’ve seen solid core ethernet wire about that size, but it always had a sheath on it. A wire with no insulator is generally used only for grounding, and is generally a lot thicker than that. It could be old school phone wire for RJ11, but again, insulator.  All of those are still way too thick for oxidation to affect their conductive ability.  That black oxide on the copper btw isn’t good for you.  Couldn’t hurt to wash your hands.  Copper oxidizes, but it doesn’t do it like iron does.  There are 3 different oxides which vary according to how much heat and oxygen is around it.  One is red, one is black, and one is green. The black one is fairly hard as such things go and to some degree acts as an insulator from continued oxidation, which is something iron oxide does not do.

thank you! There is insulation, I just removed the sheath to show you the inside, when I get home I'll take photo of the entire cable. I wonder if somewhere deeper into the cable where it was not too exposed it's not oxidized, however I live in a humid environment near the ocean and this cable has been in the walls for at least 30 years

[Bombastinator]

10 minutes ago, Filingo said:

thank you! There is insulation, I just removed the sheath to show you the inside, when I get home I'll take photo of the entire cable. I wonder if somewhere deeper into the cable where it was not too exposed it's not oxidized, however I live in a humid environment near the ocean and this cable has been in the walls for at least 30 years

I might be able to tell you what the stuff is.  If it’s not gas tight cable sheathing though gas can enter it, if perhaps slowly.  There was a lot of phone cable made that was neither waterproof or buriable.  Good chance it’s also not plenum rated so if you burn it it will release toxic fumes.

[Alex Atkin UK]

9 hours ago, Filingo said:

Hello,

I've been pulling some Ethernet cables and also moved the router to a new location and noticed the phone cable which is used as the infrastructure VDSL cable that gets internet from ISP to the router seem to be black as if it is oxidized copper, could that affect Internet quality? Here are some photos of part of it that I cut:

 

 

Actually looks like tin coated copper to me which is done specifically to avoid corrosion.

I have some cheap copper speaker cable and it actually went black, I'm guessing its very low quality so was from contamination as copper usually goes green.

[Bombastinator]

2 hours ago, Alex Atkin UK said:

Actually looks like tin coated copper to me which is done specifically to avoid corrosion.

I have some cheap copper speaker cable and it actually went black, I'm guessing its very low quality so was from contamination as copper usually goes green.

It might be.  I’ve never heard of that but it’s not impossible.  Either way the stuff is likely ok for the foreseeable future.  As to oxidation color, It’s dependent on how much air is available iirc.  The insides of copper water pipes are usually black for example (there is usually some air in tap water)