Speed up your broadband connection

Second, it’s vital to have a good standard of phone wiring in your house. Cheap or poorly fitted phone extension leads are a particular problem, as these can cause interference on the line and slow down the broadband connection.

Finally, BT recommends installing the latest firmware for your modem or router. This is the software that runs inside the router, making it tick, and using a new version can fix any bugs in the old software.

Older firmware restricts the synchronisation rate used when connecting to the local phone exchange, so installing a new version can improve speeds.

Crossed wires
We’ll look at all these areas in detail but, as with most technical problems, it’s best to check the basics first. Check that all your phone cables are securely attached. If your internet connection cuts out entirely, disconnect the power cable from the modem.

If you have a router, disconnect that too by unplugging it from the mains. After 20 seconds you can plug the device back in, but if you use both a modem and a router it’s vital to do this in the right order: first connect the modem, wait 20 seconds, then restart the router. This simple process will fix many temporary glitches.

Next, check your microfilters. With an ADSL connection you need to have a microfilter on every device that’s plugged into the phone line: phones, modems, faxes, Sky television boxes and burglar alarms should all be connected via a filter.

BT believes the difference in quality between different brands of microfilter doesn’t have a great effect on speed. A microfilter either works, or it doesn’ t. If you experience a dramatic fall in speed or reliability over a short period of time, then it’s likely that a microfilter has died.

To find the broken one replace the microfilters around the house, one at a time, testing your connection each time. Replacement filters are available from BT for around £7 each.

The quality of your phone wiring is important too if you use ADSL broadband. This does not apply to Virgin Media customers, but you can still have Ethernet or USB cabling problems between the modem and your router; poor connections will introduce interference, so make sure your extensions are wired up properly using good-quality cable.