Telephone Connection Box & Sockets

[sipetch]

Hi,

We're moving into a new office that has several (approx 20) telephone sockets dotted around the offices that all come back to a connector box such as this:

The phone system we've installed uses CAT5e so we're not using any of the existing phone cabling or sockets. However, we will have a fax machine upstairs which will be no where near the BT master socket, so it would be extremely useful to be able to use one of the existing phone sockets rather than having to run another cable up. Is there an easy way of discovering which cable coming into the connector box goes to the necessary wall plug? Any ideas very much appreciated.

TIA

 

[cruisa]

At work (BT Openreach) we would use a 'Tone' & 'Amplifier'.
The 'Tone' (Oscillator) puts a bleep sound on the pair of wires & you 'pick it up' using the Amplifier. Then when you short-out the pair of wires the tone stops.
Have you access to this equipment at all?

 

[cruisa]

Also, in an ideal world, the telephone number or extension number would be written on the inside of the BT lid corresponding to the pair number. Then the same number would appear on a label on the font of the corresponding telephone socket.
Mind you, this is rarely the case, as things change & people generally don't update the records, but you might be lucky

 

[sipetch]

Many thanks for the reply. I've not got access to this unfortunately. I do however have Openreach coming round on Wednesday to install a Featureline so wonder if with a few kindly words they'd look for me if it doesnt take too long.

 

[cruisa]

Many thanks for the reply. I've not got access to this unfortunately. I do however have Openreach coming round on Wednesday to install a Featureline so wonder if with a few kindly words they'd look for me if it doesnt take too long.

Well if I turned up to install your Featureline & you offered me a cuppa, I'd be quite happy to sort it for you. It should only take a few minutes.
Good luck
Just don't mention the new Trackers in our vans, it may put the engineer in a bad mood (lol)

 

[sipetch]

Well that was my thinking, lol.

If I don't get as kind an engineering as yourself, armed with a multimeter to test for continuity it surely wouldnt be too tricky?

 

[cruisa]

Well that was my thinking, lol.

If I don't get as kind an engineering as yourself, armed with a multimeter to test for continuity it surely wouldnt be too tricky?

Yeah, you could just twist the bared condutors together at the socket & look for a short circuit from the other end. It just takes longer I suppose.

 

[Paul_C]

Yes, shorting a pair at the jack and then looking for the right pair with a multimeter at the 201D (the junction box in your picture) would work. Once you think you've located the correct cable, go back and remove the short at the jack and check that the meter then shows an open circuit to verify, just in case there happens to be another pair with a short on it!

Just don't mention the new Trackers in our vans, it may put the engineer in a bad mood

Oh boy, has BT/OpenReach started with that now?

 

[cruisa]

Just don't mention the new Trackers in our vans, it may put the engineer in a bad mood

Oh boy, has BT/OpenReach started with that now?

Yes. I'm afraid so
Moral & motivation are now at rock bottom in the company.
This is my 30th year with them & like most other engineers I'm totally ****ed off with it all.
Our hours are changing for the worse too, along with more compulsory Saturdays for no extra pay of course.
Funny how they could spend Millions on installing & running the trackers last year, but couldn't afford to give us a pay rise.
Moan over (lol)

 

[Paul_C]

Moral & motivation are now at rock bottom in the company.

There have been times over the years when part of me has wondered whether I should have stayed with BT, then I run into an engineer on a job somewhere and I hear another demoralizing story about the way things have gone, and I figure I probably made the right decision to leave.

 

[cruisa]

Moral & motivation are now at rock bottom in the company.

There have been times over the years when part of me has wondered whether I should have stayed with BT, then I run into an engineer on a job somewhere and I hear another demoralizing story about the way things have gone, and I figure I probably made the right decision to leave.

Oh you did Paul, believe me.
I've just never been brave enough

 

[simonpolly]

Just don't mention the new Trackers in our vans, it may put the engineer in a bad mood

Oh boy, has BT/OpenReach started with that now?

Yes. I'm afraid so
Moral & motivation are now at rock bottom in the company.
This is my 30th year with them & like most other engineers I'm totally p****d off with it all.
Our hours are changing for the worse too, along with more compulsory Saturdays for no extra pay of course.
Funny how they could spend Millions on installing & running the trackers last year, but couldn't afford to give us a pay rise.
Moan over (lol)

X1 They are now rearranging the pwa`s because we have less staff but still the same amount of work,you now have to do 25% extra work to hit your productivity targets.

 

[sipetch]

An update and further question!

Openreach came round today and installed our new line and the guy kindly identified the cable but wasnt prepared to connect it up to the internel network. Ive not done it yet as it was time to come home but the socket I want to use for the extension has a capacitor etc as part of it. Will this be ok? I thought extension sockets generally were just a socket? I think the existing socket used to be part of a PBX (BT Inspiration?) so would it have been required for this?

Thanks again,


Simon

 

[cruisa]

Sounds like its a main socket, something like a Line jack 2/1A or similar.
You could just use that socket. To 'convert' it to an extension socket just snip out all components, ie Capacitor, resistor & diode.
Then of course wire up terminals 2, 5 & 3 each end.

 

[Paul_C]

Jacks used on PBX extensions will typically be masters to provide the 3-wire connection. You can convert to a secondary jack by just snipping out the capacitor.

Check that the B/W and O/W pairs are on the correct terminals for a regular extension jack, as some PBX systems use the second pair on 1 & 6.

Edit: Cross-posted with cruisa.