Help with phone extensions

jem16

Could anyone give me some help in moving extension socket wiring around please?

I currently have both BT and Virgin - both master sockets are right next to one another. 3 extensions are wired into both master sockets.

As I'm looking at cancelling Virgin I need to move those on the Virgin master so that 2 of them at least will now work with BT. As there are already 3 wires coming into the BT master I'm not sure if I can squeeze another 2 in there. Is there an easy way of simply taking those 3 and getting them easily into the BT master - I don't use the actual master for a phone if that's any help?

Failing that I could look at rerouting the wiring of those 3 currently on Virgin so that they run off one of the current BT extension sockets as opposed to running separately back to the master. I have had a look at one extension socket and connections 2, 3 and 5 are currently wired - which I think is the same for all extensions.

I'm sure I read somewhere that only 2 and 5 need be connected - should I take 3 out or not?

If I do cancel Virgin I will take broadband from O2 so want to make sure the extensions are good as the master socket isn't near the ethernet wiring I have set up for my home network.

spike7451

All you should need to do is swap the bottom faceplates over.
Colours are-
1-green/white stripe
2-blue/white stripe
3-orange/white stripe

4-white/orange stripe
5-white/blue stripe
6white/green stripe.

as long as the 2 & 5 are connected you should be ok,You can buy a simple 'KRONE' tool for connecting the wires from B&Q ect.
DO NOT use a knife!

HTH.
Spike (ex VM service tech)

jem16

spike7451 wrote: »

All you should need to do is swap the bottom faceplates over.

I'm not sure that will help. I want to keep the extensions that are already in my BT socket plus change the ones that are currently Virgin over to BT.

as long as the 2 & 5 are connected you should be ok,You can buy a simple 'KRONE' tool for connecting the wires from B&Q ect.
DO NOT use a knife!

Hadn't planned on using a knife - out of interest what would it do if I did?

A couple of the extension sockets have not got the kind of connectors that would work with a Krone tool - they have screws.

spike7451

jem16 wrote: »

I'm not sure that will help. I want to keep the extensions that are already in my BT socket plus change the ones that are currently Virgin over to BT.




Hadn't planned on using a knife - out of interest what would it do if I did?
You could split the connection terminals too far open.

A couple of the extension sockets have not got the kind of connectors that would work with a Krone tool - they have screws.

Best bet ( and easiest way) then would be to get one of these;
http://www.comms-express.com/products/77a-3-pair-in-line-connection-box/
You remove the extensions from both master sockets,connect all the extensions into the 77a (the are connection strips on both sides & I've conected 3 lines per strip with no problem) & have one wire going from the 77a back to the master faceplate.
You can get a Krone tool from there too-
http://www.comms-express.com/products/krone-style-idc-punch-down-tool/

jem16

I decided it was going to be easier to reroute some of the wiring and have sorted out one of the extensions.

The other two are proving a little more tricky. I have run the wire and just trying to connect them up. I have run a wire from one extension to the next and then another wire to the next extension. However it's trying to connect up the two sets of wires which is proving awkward as either I can't easily get them onto the screw terminals or the wire is breaking just as I get them connected. When I think I have got them connected the phone does absolutely nothing - no dial tone, no ringing.

Am I doing something stupid? Would using extensions with IDC connectors be easier than the screw terminals?

DVardysShadow

Part of your problem is star wiring each extension back to the master.

Phone wiring should ideally be daisy chained from the master to an extension and from there to the next extension and so on

jem16

DVardysShadow wrote: »

Part of your problem is star wiring each extension back to the master.

You're probably correct. The wiring was done around 1987/88. Some I believe daisy chain from one extension and some come direct from the master socket. These extensions were done before the days of DECT phones.

Phone wiring should ideally be daisy chained from the master to an extension and from there to the next extension and so on

That's what I have now done with the three I wanted to change over. I rerouted one of the originals that came from the master and put it into the first Virgin one that I wanted to change to BT. From there I ran another cable back to the original BT extension and then from there to the 2nd Virgin one that I wanted to change.

I have two more remaining on Virgin but which I don't need to bother rewiring as in one case there is a BT extension right next to it and in the other I'll just use a DECT phone if I want a phone there - no real need as the room is a spare bedroom at the moment. I can always change it later if i need it.

In the end I gave up on the screw terminal extensions and bought some IDC extensions - far easier to wire in my opinion.

I know that all of the extensions currently have 3 connected but as I don't have an adsl enabled line at present I have left them that way as I wasn't sure if they would work otherwise.

My first port of call is the see if Virgin will give me 10Mb broadband only for £10pm or less. Otherwise I'm off to O2 for £7.34 per month.

Thanks for the help.