Troubleshooting Internet Woes: A Family’s Frustration with ISPs

After a prolonged absence from my family home due to caring for a sick relative, I returned earlier this year to find ourselves grappling with an internet problem of monumental proportions. What was once a reliable connection has devolved into a frustratingly slow service, capping at a dismal 1.8 Mbps. Despite multiple visits from ISP technicians, we remain at a loss for answers.

A Frustrating Return Home

Upon my return five months later, my initial thought was that my PC was malfunctioning. It wasn’t until I discovered that the entire household’s internet experience had deteriorated significantly that the real issue came to light. While we had enjoyed reasonably fast internet speeds prior to my departure, everything changed throughout my absence. Phone download speeds are still agonizingly slow, even six months into this ordeal.

Series of Technicians and Troubleshooting Attempts

Our journey has included five visits from various technicians, each time hoping to unravel the mystery behind our sluggish internet connection. The results have been largely underwhelming:

• We were provided with a new modem—installed right away—but unfortunately, there was no improvement.
• I directly connected laptops to the modem, yet we were still stuck at that pesky 1.8 Mbps.
• We even welcomed family members who complained about a similar slowdown while attempting to download essential work materials.
• Recently, a senior technician claimed to have installed a new port at the neighborhood cable box, yet our speeds remain unchanged.

A Glimpse of Hope at the Library

In an attempt to gauge the extent of the issue, I took my laptop to a nearby library. To my relief, the download speeds were drastically faster than what we experience at home. This visit only deepened our frustration and confusion regarding the situation with our ISP.

Despite our frustrations, there’s been resistance to switching providers from a family member who is paying for the service, as the slow speeds haven’t impacted him as significantly. Yet, I find myself in a dilemma—either tackle this issue head-on or continually make trips to the library every time I need to download something.

Investigating Potential Causes

In our home, there are no external culprits like hackers or network leeches. Our online activity is minimal; usually just my computer, an unused laptop, and the occasional mobile device. Despite a disconnected T-Mobile booster—a move made at the suggestion of a technician—our speeds remained