Hands-on Testing: Spectrum Internet vs. Tropical Storm Debby

Debby hit the Florida Big Bend area early Monday morning as a Category 1 hurricane, bringing sustained winds of 75 mph and unrelenting heavy rain. It barreled across Georgia before moving out into the Atlantic, only to bounce back into South Carolina and plow through North Carolina and Virginia. By the time this report went live, the storm had claimed seven lives.

Prior to preparing for “little” Debby’s arrival, I tested Spectrum’s reliability by setting up a standalone Linux computer—which is actually a Raspberry Pi 5 board installed in a small enclosure—and programming it to run a speed test every 30 minutes. The idea was to see if I would get consistent speeds from SpectrumCTAM Plans, which I suspected I would, given I rarely experience noticeable slowdowns—unlike a lot of customers I see reporting negatively about their service on social media.

The Linux box continued to run the test as the storm crawled over my town parked next to the Cape Fear River. So how did Spectrum hold up? I’ll dig into that in a minute.

Spectrum warns you of possible outages

Prior to major storms, Spectrum sends out a text informing customers that it’s preparing for the worst. Notice that it tells customers to call the power company if the lights go out. Apparently, people calling Spectrum about their power outage is an actual issue.

The link provided in the screenshot above leads to Spectrum’s Storm Response and Preparation page, where customers get helpful tips on how to gear up and hunker down before a major storm hits. Customers can also see the current network status, which currently says “Storm Debby has caused a Spectrum service outage in your area.” Guess I’m one of the lucky ones still online.

This page also links out to the Spectrum Storm Center page, which also displays the current network status. Here you can chat with customer service, find storm-related links to third-party info, and see messages from your local power company (Duke Energy, in my case).

The My Spectrum app displays the same outage message and link to the Spectrum Storm Center page on the Home tab. Customers can also chat with customer service on the Support tab.

Spectrum’s reliability during the storm

So, a little context before I dig into the results. First, I pay for Spectrum Internet Ultra, which provides download speeds of up to 500Mbps. The business version has speeds of up to 600Mbps, and given that my speed tests can record just above 600Mbps, I suspect the residential service will officially increase to 600Mbps in the near future.

Second, I didn’t experience a power outage. Duke Energy and Spectrum have been excellent about keeping me powered up and online during major storms up to Category 2 hurricanes. For the bigger storms that blow through here and throw the entire town into the dark—getting online isn’t high on the list. The people who suffered property damage from flooding, wind, and tornados during Debby have more things to worry about than trying to get online. Surviving the heat. Staying hydrated. Cleaning up the debris. Not killing each other because we’re so damn miserable. They’re at the top of the list.

That said, I didn’t run this test while using a generator. And up until recently when fellow HSI writer Austin Aguirre asked me if I had ever done that, it never even crossed my mind. After all, if the whole town goes dark, who’d think the internet would still be up and running? Not me.

The results: Business as usual

While I did record two notable brief slowdowns during tropical storm Debby, I can’t say for a fact that the storm was the issue. Based on my tests, the drops in speed weren’t out of the ordinary.

The chart above displays two day’s worth of data. It shows a substantial dip in speed at 7 p.m. ET Wednesday night as the nasty portion of the storm approached. We had tons of rain, some high winds, and quite a few tornadoes. Given my typical speed averages 600Mbps, 433Mbps is a noticeable drop.

But when I pull back and look at a week’s worth of data, the dip in speed isn’t unusual. Here’s what I saw:

So, what’s causing these dips? That’s a good question.

For starters, I’m not running these scheduled tests on a cable internet line dedicated solely to testing. My wife and kids are using the connection, so some lower speed test results are expected, especially at night when we’re all streaming and downloading who knows what. I live in a house full of gamers, after all.

Some may argue that nightly infrastructure congestion is the cause of these dips. Such congestion would have applied years ago, but not so much today.

When I dig into the data, I don’t experience a continuous stream of dramatic slowdowns, either: The test may record 433Mbps at 7 p.m. and then 535Mbps 30 minutes later.

Here’s a full week’s worth of data:

As the chart shows, my speed test results generally stay somewhat consistent across the board except for whatever was going on Tuesday and Wednesday. If I average the numbers between midnight to midnight, I get an average of around 590Mbps, which is faster than the speed I pay for.

That all said, I can’t explicitly blame Debby for the drop in speed while it blew through town. I see similar drops throughout the week under normal weather conditions. The dips most likely stem from running a speed test while downloading or some other user-specific application.

Final thoughts

I saw some weirdness in the speed tests I ran during the storm, but it may be due to home networking use versus any Spectrum infrastructure issues. My connection remains mostly stable week to week, save for a few dips here and there.

That said, I can’t speak for every Spectrum customer—especially during storms like Debby. As the company’s current message shows, some residents in my area are facing internet outages. It could be due to flooding (turn around, don’t drown) or downed trees—Duke Energy isn’t reporting any power outages in my area. All the major coax cables are aerial, but even in a town that’s used to tropical storms and hurricanes, things will happen.

Based on social posts seen on Facebook, Nextdoor, Reddit, and so on, not everyone has the same good reliability I usually experience on any given day. I can’t confirm that their speed woes are due to user error, a problematic installation, or issues with the local infrastructure. You can’t please everyone, but I’m sure Spectrum is working hard to provide the speeds customers expect and pay for.

The only thing I can honestly complain about is the bill.

Does Spectrum Internet sound like a good, reliable fit for you?

Take a gander at what Spectrum Internet offers if you’re looking to switch from another provider.

Some useful Spectrum information

• Is Spectrum Internet down?
• Contact Spectrum Customer Service
• Spectrum Internet Speed Test
• Your Guide to Spectrum Installation
• Spectrum Storm Center
• Storm Response and Preparation
• My Spectrum app
• How To Stay Connected in a Natural Disaster
• How To Prepare Your Tech for a Natural Disaster

Disclaimers