Slow Internet

DSL internet service is fast becoming an option throughout North America. DSL stands for Digital Subscriber Line. Although the ads keep mentioning ultra fast connection speeds you can often suffer slow internet connection speeds even though you are paying for fast service.

DSL service uses your existing copper phone line to deliver the service to your home. Unlike dial up you can still use your phone while you surf with DSL. But the phone line can be part of the problem if you are experiencing very slow internet speeds.

DSL Slow Internet tips

You need to have line filters installed on all your telephone jacks in your house. This cuts out any possible “noise” that could be interfering with your internet connection. When your DSL was installed they likely provided you with enough filters but its important to make sure they are still installed. Also if your coppoer phone line is damaged that could cause problems.

Your DSL modem also acts like a small computer in the sense that it stores some data in its memory/cache. People might refer to this as power cycling your modem. Its simply turning your modem off so it resets. Follow these simple steps. Unplug your modem. Turn off your computer. After one minute plug in your modem. After another minute restart your computer. Simple and quick solution that has worked for us many times.

DSL internet has one technical problem that can cause slow internet speeds. Distance plan and simple. The technology behind DSL makes it distance sensitive which means that sometimes you can not achieve super high speed connections. Your DSL service works by connecting from your home to a certral local access point which is often called the central office. If you are located over 18,000 feet away from the central office your DSL speeds start to suffer. Also for some of the much higher speeds being promoted by the various telecom companies you need to be located closer than 18,000 (10,000 feet has been mentioned) because over greater distances the signal degrades to much so you can not achieve super high speeds.

Also note that almost all DSL service is ADSL which means that its Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line and that the telecom companies limit your uploading speeds because they do not want people using their home machines as servers. You should be able to achieve fast download speeds but your upload speeds will not be close to those promoted when you signed up for your service.