In general, these models give a probability of failure for any given fiber km over a chosen lifetime, of somewhere between 20 and 40 years. If I am not mistaken the fiber is from the late 90's and early 2000s. Or Ants! We just had that on a pole 30 feet in the air. I was expecting squirrels Holy hell, I'd never have believed if you didn't post pictures! Good to know Very informative. Had never heard of this! was thinking the same thing. The longevity of fiber optic cabling infrastructure has already exceeded 35 years since the first deployments and we expect the average lifetime will be much longer than 35 years based on the materials, technologies, and manufacturing processes used to produce modern, high quality optical fiber and. With proper installation, fibre optic cables have a service life of around 25 years, but in practice, can perform for far longer. " The reality is more nuanced: silica The optical core is virtually chemically indestructible, but the sheaths, coatings, and. Q1: How long do fiber optic products typically last? With proper maintenance, fiber optic cables can last 20–30 years, though their performance may degrade over time due to environmental factors or wear (18).