BT Hub problem (I think)

LadyDee

I'm trying to help a neighbour who is an invalid, and would be grateful for some suggestions.

Her phone was saying "line in use" all the time. BT checked line - all OK.

Tried my phone - just the same. So we know the phone is OK.

Tried with my microfilter - just the same.

Tried restarting modem, power light on the modem flashes for a while and gradually the wireless/phone/broadband lights come - all OK for a little then, then "line in use" comes up again on the phone.

If only the phone is plugged into the wall without the microfilter, the phone is OK.

It seems to me that it must be the modem, but before we ask BT to send out a new one, is there anything else I can check?

Thanks.

neilmcl

Could be a knackered microfilter. Does she have any other phone sockets ion the house, are there microfilters in them also? Is it a standard master socket or a pre-filtered one?

Browntoa

As above , make sure everything is unplugged from any other phone sockets, sky boxes , burglar alarms etc

If it is the newer BT master socket with the obvious split in the middle then undo the 2 small screws on the front and plug directly into the test socket

LadyDee

neilmcl wrote: »

Could be a knackered microfilter. Does she have any other phone sockets ion the house, are there microfilters in them also? Is it a standard master socket or a pre-filtered one?

No, tried with my working microfilter.

Only the one microfilter in the house.

Not sure what you mean by pre-filtered.

Browntoa

https://btbusiness.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/21507/~/how-to-use-the-test-socket-on-your-mastersocket/c/5106/

LadyDee

Browntoa wrote: »

As above , make sure everything is unplugged from any other phone sockets, sky boxes , burglar alarms etc

If it is the newer BT master socket with the obvious split in the middle then undo the 2 small screws on the front and plug directly into the test socket

BT have checked the line and say it's OK.

If only the phone is plugged into the master socket (without the microfilter), and also if only the phone is plugged in with the microfilter but with the hub disconnected then the phone is OK in both those cases.

I'll go back round and try your suggestion about the test socket. I didn't notice whether or not she has the new type but I should think she does.

You'll probably have gathered by now that this is not really my area of expertise!:o

LadyDee

Browntoa wrote: »

https://btbusiness.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/21507/~/how-to-use-the-test-socket-on-your-mastersocket/c/5106/

Thank you for the link, to my suprise she doesn't have the newer socket, I've just disconected/unplugged everything, told her to leave it for 10 mins and then switch everything back on, press the restart and see what happens.
I suspect it might be some wiring somewhere that's at fault, but it's all such a tangle and she doesn't know where most of the wires go, what they are or what they connect to, so she'll have to get someone in that knows what they're doing.

Thanks for your suggestions.

psychic_teabag

LadyDee wrote: »

I'm trying to help a neighbour who is an invalid, and would be grateful for some suggestions.

Her phone was saying "line in use" all the time. BT checked line - all OK.

Tried my phone - just the same. So we know the phone is OK.

I assume these are both wireless phones (in order to have a display). Do you have an old-fashioned plug-in unpowered wired phone to test with ? To see if you get a dial tone or anything.

In my wireless phone, I think you can hold the green button down to join the existing call. Can you try that to hear if there is anything on the line ?

Le_Kirk

Last time I had a problem similar to this (I also was helping an elderly lady neighbour) I had to take the batteries out of the phone handset, wait, put them back and (I didn't believe it would work) lo and behold it did!!

LadyDee

I've just spoken to my neighbour - her phone has come back on but not her internet connection. She phoned her "computer man" and he's coming in the morning with a replacement hub.

Roland_Sausage

Make sure they have the DSL cable plugged into the port marked DSL and not one of the ethernet ports. If it's in an ethernet port, it will put a short circuit on the phone line.