Nealcrenshaw
Well-known member
I need to replace a jack in my hallway and i'm not sure what it entails. Any advice? I also need to install a new phone jack as i only have two in my house, Where do i start? How do i go about this?
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How to replace/Install a telephone jack.
- Thread starter Nealcrenshaw
- Start date
tfi racing
Well-known member
Nothing to it.Just open it up and transfer the wires to the new one!How many phone #'s do you have,and when it was wired will change the colors a bit,but you will figure it out easily.As for adding a new outlet,you can either run a new line from the demarc point(where it comes into the house) or from the nearest location.
wantedabiggergarage
Member Emeritus
How old is the house? It can make a difference, between wires, as old homes used 4 conductor (RGBY) and newer homes use cat 3 or cat 5 wire, and punchdown tools.
The oldest is the easiest (wire stripper, screwdriver, find your demarcation point).
The oldest is the easiest (wire stripper, screwdriver, find your demarcation point).
OP
Nealcrenshaw
Well-known member
So the Demarcation point is where it enters the house? The house is old built in 1922. So for me to install a new jack, how will i know which wire to connect to the Demarcation and the Jack housing?
Will it tell me on the instructions that come with the Jack?
Can the wires be pigtail from the old jack to run to the the new jack?
Will it tell me on the instructions that come with the Jack?
Can the wires be pigtail from the old jack to run to the the new jack?
Last edited:
ddawg16
Well-known member
Actually, only two wires are being used.....when you look at the jack, it's the center two prongs that do all the work. See which wires are connected to those two terminals...then hook up the same on the new jack....+ and - does not matter.
Tech Guy
Well-known member
Acutally ddawg, four wires are being used. The black and yellow are your ground.
Tech Guy
Well-known member
So the Demarcation point is where it enters the house? The house is old built in 1922. So for me to install a new jack, how will i know which wire to connect to the Demarcation and the Jack housing?
Will it tell me on the instructions that come with the Jack?
Can the wires be pigtail from the old jack to run to the the new jack?
Neal, demarcation points are either on the outside of the house where the Bell line comes in or it is somewhere in your basement. You can either go colour for colour from this point to the new jack or yes you can come off the existing jack (colour for colour) and go to the new jack. If you look at the rear of the jack by the terminals you should see letters RGYB. Those are your colours-red, green, yellow , black. Leave old wires on existing jack and pigtail off the same terminals and you are good to go. Be careful as the voltage on the red and green is 50 volts. Wont do anything to you unless you are touching them when someone calls into the house.
VHF
Well-known member
Acutally ddawg, four wires are being used. The black and yellow are your ground.
While black and yellow (or more often just yellow) may be tied to ground in some installations, this is by no means standard, and is not required for telephone operation. Very old installations may only have 1 pair of wires (red/green) and not even have the second pair (yellow/black.)
In the 1960s it was popular to use the black/yellow pair to provide low voltage power (24VAC) for lighted phone dials--there would a transformer somewhere in the house plugged into a wall outlet and connected to the black/yellow pair.
In the 1990s is was popular to use the black/yellow pair for a second phone line.
To extend an existing single-line installation, you can start at any existing working jack, the demarc point, or any place where the wires are accessible for splicing and run a minimum of 1 pair to the new location. You can still buy standard 2-pair phone wire (red/green/black/yellow) which is fine for extending a 1920s vintage service. The newer Cat3 and Cat5 twisted pair wiring typically has 4 pairs of wires white-blue/blue-white, white-orange/orange-white, white-green/green-white, and white-brown/brown-white.
It is good to maintain polarity (red to red) if possible, although most phones will operate even if the wires are reversed. Telephone service uses 48VDC except when the phone rings, which is 90VAC. To avoid getting zapped while making connections, take a phone somewhere else in the house off the hook while working on the telephone wiring.
If you have been upgraded to a modern style demarc point on the outside of the house, open the gray box and you can unplug the whole house from the phone comapny while you are working on the wiring.
In a 1920s house, a typical demark would be mounted on the basement ceiling near where the phone wire enters the house. It would have two threaded terminals with nuts (probably takes a deep 7/16" socket) where the red & green wires running to the jack(s) connect.
sberry
Banned
yellow and black are for second lines.
HoosierB
Well-known member
Another neat thing about (if you are using 2-pair) is that by hooking up all four wires green/red (primary) & yellow/black (secondary) you have a great troubleshooting/back-up tool.
If you ever loose dial tone and think your line is dead and gone, before throwing in the towel and callin the phone company, try this. Go to the line entry point wherever it may be and swap your pairs. Meaning, remove the active pair which usually is green/red and swap it out with yellow/black. This will aid you in determining if you have a nicked line (open) in your primary line without having to run new wire and will get you back into business using the secondary. With CAT 5E, you have more than enough back-up's!
While we're on this subject! Another cool thing to keep handy in your telephone troubleshooting arsenal is an old, corded rotary phone. If you don't have one laying around, they can be found at garage sales and thrift stores for next to nothing. Great for determining if your outage is localized to your entry point into the house (your problem!) or the incoming line back to the pole or junction box (usually the service provider!) The older phones work off of line voltage and don't need to be plugged into an 115V outlet so if you are in a remote area of the house you are still able to troubleshoot.
Saves time and money especially if you don't have damage/faulty line protection through your service provider!
If you ever loose dial tone and think your line is dead and gone, before throwing in the towel and callin the phone company, try this. Go to the line entry point wherever it may be and swap your pairs. Meaning, remove the active pair which usually is green/red and swap it out with yellow/black. This will aid you in determining if you have a nicked line (open) in your primary line without having to run new wire and will get you back into business using the secondary. With CAT 5E, you have more than enough back-up's!
While we're on this subject! Another cool thing to keep handy in your telephone troubleshooting arsenal is an old, corded rotary phone. If you don't have one laying around, they can be found at garage sales and thrift stores for next to nothing. Great for determining if your outage is localized to your entry point into the house (your problem!) or the incoming line back to the pole or junction box (usually the service provider!) The older phones work off of line voltage and don't need to be plugged into an 115V outlet so if you are in a remote area of the house you are still able to troubleshoot.
Saves time and money especially if you don't have damage/faulty line protection through your service provider!
franksinatra
Well-known member
OMG! I need help too. I hope the original poster doesnt mind if I thread jack a bit. First off Im not too bad at thinking things through but this phone line buisness is killing me. lol I ran into tip and ring and what seemed to be hundreds of color combinations. My home was built in the 70's and I have the main wires black yellow red and green. I was trying to eliminate a crazy run someone had done which was from the back of my house around to my garage and then back into the house over the hill to grandmothers house it went. I skipped it and ran it straight into the house under the floor joists and now have 1 in 5 jacks with power. the one that has power never had poer to begin with so I f'ed up somewhere. If I posted some picks would you guys mind pointing me in the right direction. I can open another thread if its needed thanks. G
Kevin54
MEMBER EMERITUS
So the Demarcation point is where it enters the house? The house is old built in 1922. So for me to install a new jack, how will i know which wire to connect to the Demarcation and the Jack housing?
Will it tell me on the instructions that come with the Jack?
Can the wires be pigtail from the old jack to run to the the new jack?
Yep...use four wires and you can run from one jack to the next. Your four wires will be yellow, black, red, green. Just pull one of your old jacks off and look at it, or look at the color code on the back of the jack and hook it up accordingly, hoping your original is hooked up to the color code the same way.
Identaltech
Well-known member
try this link
http://www.ling.upenn.edu/~kurisuto/phone_wiring.html
phone lines are easy but your phone co will charge you for anything inside your home unless you have line backer. and if you call for service they will do a test and say that the problem is with your wiring.
http://www.ling.upenn.edu/~kurisuto/phone_wiring.html
phone lines are easy but your phone co will charge you for anything inside your home unless you have line backer. and if you call for service they will do a test and say that the problem is with your wiring.
ddawg16
Well-known member
The above link is actually very good.
One thing it pointed out....using Cat 5...is good advice....it's cheaper than they typical phone line wire and easier to get....and works as well if not better.
Frank...Tip & Ring is actually a left over from the days of phone operators...those gals that sat at a table with all those patch cords..."Hi Mary Lou, would you connect to Bill Bob?" She would then use one of those patch cables (Tip, Ring, Sleeve) to connect you to Billy Bob.
A few things to take into consideration on your wiring and demark (some call it POE, Point of Entry) is if you have any carrier equipment. In areas where they are running short of copper (physical phone lines) they will install a module at your house that is basically a multiplexer unit. It allows one copper line to have 2 or more phone lines on it on one pair of wires. That is where the 48 Vdc comes in....it's used to power the unit. I believe that voltage has been reduced now.
Another point...phones. In the old days, the old phones had two modes, on hook and off hook. In on hook mode, the ringer was on the line and that is what the 90v ringing voltage was for. When you went off hook, the resistance droped and the phone company now knows your on the phone.
Newer phones have a much lower off and on hook resistance. But in some cases where you are connected to a real old CO (central office), it may not always detect the on/off hook conditions...especially if you have marginal wiring.
One suggestion....everyone should have at least one standard phone....by this I mean a plain jane phone with nothing more than a keypad. That way, if there is a power failure, you still have a phone that works. They are also good for testing lines. You don't need a rotory dial phone....the touchtone will work just fine. You can usually get them and consumer electronics stores for about $15. I have one in the garage that has caller ID...I think it cost me $20. It uses one 9v battery....and that is only so that it will remember phone #'s....but it still works without the battery.
One thing it pointed out....using Cat 5...is good advice....it's cheaper than they typical phone line wire and easier to get....and works as well if not better.
Frank...Tip & Ring is actually a left over from the days of phone operators...those gals that sat at a table with all those patch cords..."Hi Mary Lou, would you connect to Bill Bob?" She would then use one of those patch cables (Tip, Ring, Sleeve) to connect you to Billy Bob.
A few things to take into consideration on your wiring and demark (some call it POE, Point of Entry) is if you have any carrier equipment. In areas where they are running short of copper (physical phone lines) they will install a module at your house that is basically a multiplexer unit. It allows one copper line to have 2 or more phone lines on it on one pair of wires. That is where the 48 Vdc comes in....it's used to power the unit. I believe that voltage has been reduced now.
Another point...phones. In the old days, the old phones had two modes, on hook and off hook. In on hook mode, the ringer was on the line and that is what the 90v ringing voltage was for. When you went off hook, the resistance droped and the phone company now knows your on the phone.
Newer phones have a much lower off and on hook resistance. But in some cases where you are connected to a real old CO (central office), it may not always detect the on/off hook conditions...especially if you have marginal wiring.
One suggestion....everyone should have at least one standard phone....by this I mean a plain jane phone with nothing more than a keypad. That way, if there is a power failure, you still have a phone that works. They are also good for testing lines. You don't need a rotory dial phone....the touchtone will work just fine. You can usually get them and consumer electronics stores for about $15. I have one in the garage that has caller ID...I think it cost me $20. It uses one 9v battery....and that is only so that it will remember phone #'s....but it still works without the battery.
OP
Nealcrenshaw
Well-known member
Great info, thanks!!