removing excess phone sockets - who can do that?

decbel

wallofbeans wrote: »

Hi all,

Our house is full of phone sockets that are no longer used and we're about to do some redecorating and I'd like to remove all but the main one. Who do I call to do that - an electrician or someone from BT or someone else..?

And does anybody have a recommendation of someone in south London?

Thanks!

UPDATED IMAGES OF ALL SOCKETS AND BOXES IN HOUSE:
https://imgur.com/a/MEX9S

An electrician could obviously do it but the voltage involved is miniscule-I believe around 4 volts.

The BT robbers will charge hundreds of pounds.

If you aren't confident yourself (and I can't see why you shouldn't be) then you often see ex BT phone engineers in the free ad type papers.

Technically you shouldn't touch the master socket as its BT'S property but it has never bothered me or anyone I know.

decbel

wallofbeans wrote: »

Nothing with wires either way around. I even tried adding the wires that feed to the next socket.

Maybe the master socket I took from the back bedroom is dead?

I put back the hanging off the way socket and set up as before and it's working again. BUT plugging phone directly into hanging off wall socket gets nothing. It only works if I plug back into the next socket along.

I guess I'll order a new master socket tomorrow and see if that works.

You'll need the correct pressing down tool. Sometimes they come with the socket.

You could press the wires in with a flat head screwdriver but not generally advised.

Personally for diy work I still prefer the sockets with screw terminals.

decbel

wallofbeans wrote: »

Nothing with wires either way around. I even tried adding the wires that feed to the next socket.

Maybe the master socket I took from the back bedroom is dead?

I put back the hanging off the way socket and set up as before and it's working again. BUT plugging phone directly into hanging off wall socket gets nothing. It only works if I plug back into the next socket along.

I guess I'll order a new master socket tomorrow and see if that works.

If you've disconnected all the extensions from the master socket then on the new socket only 2 incoming wires actually do anything.

On mine its orange and white.

There is no polarity and you can't blow anything up.

So have a go.

Enterprise_1701C

One tip I have never tried but was told by a customer of my OHs is that a credit card does a good job of pressing down the wires. This would probably damage the card though.

Please do not strip them first.

If you cannot get it to work then call an independent telecoms engineer, unfortunately my OH does not cover South London but there is bound to be someone local, have an ask around or a google.

You could call BT, but you would almost certainly be charged, especially if it was evident you had been fiddling with the wiring. That said, I have never had a BT apprenticeship (my OH has trained me for everything he needs me to do though) and I have been forced to show a BT engineer how to do his job before now (a customer was having a new line put in at the same time as we were there and it was rather complicated wiring).

[Deleted User]

decbel wrote: »

If you've disconnected all the extensions from the master socket then on the new socket only 2 incoming wires actually do anything.

On mine its orange and white.

There is no polarity and you can't blow anything up.

So have a go.

You can see from the 3rd picture here that it's blue/white & white/blue wires only that are connected to the previously working master socket in the living room. https://imgur.com/a/j1mVq

I would suggest that since they're pushing it in by hand(?) they've just not made a good enough connection on the existing faceplate at the least.

[Deleted User]

BTW the red cable that goes through the back of the 2nd box in the living room may have 240V running through it so don't cut it at random. Could they have just used the channel to run the feed for the double plug socket you've got your router plugged into or perhaps a wall light above? I'd turn the power off and remove the faceplate on the socket to check what the cable looks like inside the box.

[Deleted User]

Pin 2 or 'B' should have the Blue/White wire attached.

Pin 5 or 'A' should have the White/Blue wire attached.

Don't bother with the rest.

All of your pictures seem to show the correct wiring so if it's not working either the connections not good enough or the (back bedroom) socket is dodgy.



(Thanks for updating the first post with the link to all of your pictures, saves trolling through everything to find them)

wallofbeans

Colin_Maybe wrote: »

You can see from the 3rd picture here that it's blue/white & white/blue wires only that are connected to the previously working master socket in the living room. https://imgur.com/a/j1mVq

I would suggest that since they're pushing it in my hand(?) they've just not made a good enough connection on the existing faceplate at the least.

That's what is confusing. I wouldn't have tried it without the tool if the master socket from the back bedroom hadn't had the screw in connections... And it still didn't work...

And then the original hanging off box doesn't work if I plug a phone line into it directly but only if used as a pass through to the next socket down...

wallofbeans

Colin_Maybe wrote: »

BTW the red cable that goes through the back of the 2nd box in the living room may have 240V running through it so don't cut it at random. Could they have just used the channel to run the feed for the double plug socket you've got your router plugged into or perhaps a wall light above? I'd turn the power off and remove the faceplate on the socket to check what the cable looks like inside the box.

I'll be careful of that - thanks! Wasn't going to dare removing anything unless I know exactly what it is...

I wondered if that red wire is connecting the living room socket to the kitchen socket? The kitchen socket still works even though I took out the right hand junction box from above front door and I can't figure out how it is connected to the main line...

AndyPK

I wonder if the phone you are using has a poor plug, as it doesn't work with 2 sockets you would expect it to


Sounds like you have disconnected the back bedroom now (above door), so can't refit the BT master socket up there and see if it works.


I guess the other option is that it isn't wired as we think! and maybe the down stream sockets get a supply from else where.