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Importance of Cleaning Fiber Optic Connectors

In today’s enterprises and university campuses, Fiber optic cabling has become the telecommunication backbone. For maintaining error-free communication in these fiber optic communication systems, ensuring clean fiber optic connections has become one of the most critical requirements with the prosperity of Gigabit Ethernet and 10 Gigabit Ethernet. Thus, a Fiber Cleaner is essential.

In the receptacle or bulkhead adapter, repeated fiber optic connector reconnection and disconnection often leave debris. Even a single 1-micrometer dust particle can interrupt the communication or even cause a big signal loss with a single-mode fiber core as small as 9 micrometers if left blocking the fiber core.
A distinct advantage of fiber optic cables is the ability to transmit enormous amounts of data over long distances in a flash. However, to stay within the acceptable range of data loss, Fiber installers must ensure that contamination on the fiber connectors is minimized.  To the naked eye, dust and Oil particles are small enough to be invisible. To block the entire 9-micrometer core diameter of a single-mode fiber, these are large enough. Smaller soils have the potential to cause permanent damage to the connectors and increase signal return as well as attenuation loss. You can buy fiber pen cleaner online.

Without the aid of a microscope, most contaminants are impossible to see; keep in mind that as compared to human hair, the fiber core is several times smaller in diameter.
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Furthermore, dust particles are deposited outside of critical areas due to the act of de-matting and mating connectors. They redistribute onto the connector end face.  Additionally, the other plug is contaminated by mating a dirty plug cross.  Inspecting is critical and every connection each time is mated when necessary clean including unmated plugs which were previously found to be clean.
Proper cleaning and inspection process

An essential part of quality fiber installations is Fiber connector cleaning.  To clean those connections and before every mating, inspecting every fiber-optic connection is essential.
On a wide variety of contamination, an effective fiber optic connector cleaning process must be effective and provide consistently the best possible result. For defects and contamination on the end face of connectors, industry-accepted inspection criteria have been set.  The plug should be cleaned using the Combination Cleaning Process when equipment to test the connection is not available or when the connector fails this inspection.  If possible, make the connection and inspect the connector again when the plug passes inspection.
Methods of fiber optic cleaning 
Four types of Fiber optic cleaning kits are available in the market based on the cleaning method.

•    Wet cleaning: solvent is used in Optic cleaning

•    Dry cleaning:  The use of any solvent is not involved in this Optic cleaning.

•    Abrasive cleaning: optic cleaning swabs, reel-based Fiber Cleaner, and the         popular lint-free wipes are all abrasive cleaning types.

•    Non-Abrasive cleaning: Without abrasive material touching the end face of           the fiber optic connector, the Cleaning is done. In automated in-situ connector         cleaners, pressured solvent jet or air dusters are used.
Wuhan Sunma Technology Co,.LTD.
88, Mingyuan Road, Optic Valley, Hongshan, Wuhan 430074, Hubei, China
Tel : +86-27 8720 8018, +86-27 5177 9650
Fax: +86-27 5177 8865
E-mail: info@sunmafiber.com
Importance of Cleaning Fiber Optic Connectors
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Importance of Cleaning Fiber Optic Connectors

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