House Phone Line Wiring

Short and simple video on wiring your home phone jacks (residential). The wiring or home telephone service (also known as POTS or Analog) is fairly simple. The most important part is to keep the wire colors consistently on the same terminals.
Almost all residential phone service uses just 2 wires (also referred to as "one pair"). Each pair of wires has a "TIP" and a "RING". (or kind of like Neg and Positive, but not really).
In home phone wiring TIP is usually GREEN and RING is RED. However, you may have commercial cabling in your home that is refered to as "Category 3, 4, 5, or 6" cabling. With the Cat3 and above cables, the wire colors are different. Tip is white, with blue spots. And, RING is Blue with White spots.
Also, Category 3 (and above) cabling will include a total of 8 wires. If you are only dealing with one phone number, then you only need to worry about the White/Blue and Blue/White. If you have a 2nd phone number coming into your home then that would go on the White/Orange and Orange/White.
House phone wiring begins at the entry point from the street or Telephone pole. This is called a "Demarc" or "point of demarcation". This is the junction box where phone service from companies like AT&T, SBC, Verizon, PacBell, or Frontier begins. All the wiring from this point into your house is your responsibility. Unless, you have inside wiring insurance.
The wiring that goes from the demarc junction box back to the telephone pole or under ground is the property of the phone company. DO NOT mess with the wiring on THEIR side!
RESOURCES:
Tools: networkadvisor.net/tools/telec...
(affiliate link)

[@OtterCreekRedneck]

Super explanation! The jacks in our house were over 40 years old and with your help, they are all brand new now. Thank you.

[@DIYTelecom]

wow, that's great! Glad I could help out. :-)

[@wormchickenwizard]

I'm an intern at my local telephone company. When I was in I/R, we never installed the older, cat3 style of cable. We'd always use cat5e on residential installs. For bonded DSL installs, in particular, adjacent pairs found in cat3 are prone to experience interference from each other. Nowadays, you can often find cat5e for less than cat3.

[@xbnayshun2765]

You will usually find cat3 in older homes so best know the cat3 installations

[@marcymiller3287]

Thank you Sir. You have no idea the relief your easy to understand explanation and visual has given me. Thanks to you I can now fix the wiring, instead of having to beat the crap out of the tech who installed my home WiFi. I am grateful, thanks again!

[@DIYTelecom]

Wow Marcy, what a glowing compliment. I shall have to print it out and put it on my office wall to remind me to keep making more content like this. Sorry to hear about the frustration.. unfortunately I hear it often. Good luck! 😊

[@ericsevern]

Thank you VERY much for this video. It told me EXACTLY what I needed to know to figure out the wiring in my new (old) house. Fantastic!

[@DIYTelecom]

Thanks for the feedback, Eric. Glad that helped. 😊

[@willdogsdroid]

Thank you for your videos. They are really helpful! I just started a new job as a field tech and while they provide on the job training, being the "new guy" I sometimes feel like asking too many questions makes me a bother when on work sites. By watching your videos it helps me learn at my own pace with my tools in my home lab!

[@DIYTelecom]

+willdogs droid Yep, we've all been there. Would have been nice to have a resource like this when I was new in the field. I do make videos with aspiring telecom pros in mind. You might like my other channel if you haven't seen it already. KZbin.com/networkadvisor Similar topics as this channel but with more of a data & networking slant. Good luck and thanks for the comment! :-)

[@alanjjeff]

ask your question and commit the answer to a personal book and you will never have to ask twice. Did this as an apprentice nearly 47 years ago and keep up to date even for today's new tech.

[@angelalaniz2684]

I am am currently running g an in-class training for new hires and at times I need a quick refresh on certain things and I've found your videos are very helpful and you are thorough on explaining what it is you use and what your using them for. Great job!

[@jaredvanblankenstein7966]

Thanks a million!!! i was trying to terminate an old 4 color ribbon cable with a cat 5 keystone jack and your explanation at 8:30 was exactly what I needed. I appreciate your video.

[@DIYTelecom]

right? it can be confusing with all those colors floating around. The residential color code being different from the commercial color code doesn't help! :-D Thanks for the feed back, Jared. :)

[@jeffmoss26]

nice video. I have been doing this stuff for 15 plus years, you explained it very well!

[@DIYTelecom]

+Jeff Moss thanks Jeff. It helps to hear that from someone like you. Its always balancing-act. I try to restrain myself from over explaining the topic and thus losing my audience. The feedback is much appreciated. :-)

[@darklight898]

t 5:00 what is a single line? how many users can be accommodated in 2 pairs? the connection u get at the telephone exchange or de mod (whatever u call it.that thing outside ur house) how many users can use them max...because if it were max connections then they would have single demod for the whole neighbourhood. plus make avideo of how a phone/modem splitter works..how a single copper wire is used to give telephone plus ethernet(internet) signals

[@darklight898]

t 5:00 what is a single line? how many users can be accommodated in 2 pairs? the connection u get at the telephone exchange or de mod (whatever u call it.that thing outside ur house) how many users can use them max...because if it were max connections then they would have single demod for the whole neighbourhood. plus make avideo of how a phone/modem splitter works..how a single copper wire is used to give telephone plus ethernet(internet) signals

[@marymar223]

mashhood syed how to plug a n extension phone into a phone jack

[@tatianayates8358]

Jeff Moss I'm using a modular model and need to connect broadband as well. Do I still use the 2 wires or do I use an additional one

[@dannydanix8698]

Appreciate you explain this phone wiring, the step by step illustration was awesome. Didn't know of any red, blue or green wires LOL. I can't believe a large house we bought comes with only one phone jack, and oddly from all places, it's built-in in the kitchen wall. Anyway, thank you very much !!

[@DIYTelecom]

thanks for the feedback Danny! good luck with your house. :-)

[@jamiesomerville4875]

THANK YOU!!! You're video is the only one I found helpful when working with the 4 paired wires.

[@jasonrobb7542]

You no longer

[@dianebrown4955]

I have a 1960s bell chime ringer and when I moved and took it to my new apartment I had a hell of a time hooking it up in my new apartment because of that new wiring

[@DIYTelecom]

New Wiring.... your referring to the cat5? thats kind of become the new standard. Even for voice.

[@Dragonballzgtvegeta]

Thanks so much! Great video that explained some worries I’ve had about a Hurricane Harvey house. I can at least trouble shoot now before I get professional help.

[@DIYTelecom]

thanks Dragon. Houston is my home town. My thoughts have been with you folks. Good luck with your recovery.

[@cseneris]

Thank you so much for this tutorial. I looked at several videos and my phone didn't work. But your explaination of the blue wires helped a lot. Now my phone line is working properly.

[@DIYTelecom]

Wonderful news Catherine. Glad you got it! ☺️

[@tgreen420]

Thank You. I was able to replace my grandma's old phone lines with new ones.

[@roopaloooop]

Had new phone service hooked up today. Used to use phone like with Verizon but went to Comcast which used phone line off back of modem. Now I'm back to fios and I plugged the phone in and it won't work. It's a screw post jack with only red and yellow hooked up. Is it possible they have line hooked to black and yellow? Figured I'd ask since I watched your video. I learned a lot from it.

[@Rabbit.760]

@@roopaloooop red and yellow aren't a pair for inside wiring or outside plant. It would be black yellow, blue white and/or green red for inside. Outside its blue orange green brown slate is ring and white red black yellow violet is tip

[@Bart32671]

@@Rabbit.760 #on l nip mo

[@Niadrawalker]

Hug hug"""v"v. "V"""v v

[@christopherh6196]

What's your grandmother's phone number so I can check to make sure its working ok

[@MissNancy1]

You are an electrical God! I was so afraid to attempt this, but you made everything so easy! Thanks a bunch! Off to get the "biscuit" wall mount 😊

[@DIYTelecom]

That is great feedback Nancy. Good luck k with your repairs! 😄

[@marcuslydiard1601]

Absoulte amazing explanation mate! Been searching for hours and your the only person who could explain it properly! Cheers man

[@DIYTelecom]

That’s great to hear Marcus ! 😊

[@robertweier2629]

Great Video. I had an outlet that had two jacks, one was for the internet the other for phone. The phone jack only had two wires, the internet had 4. I changed to cable and used the space for the old Internet wires for the cable but had to reconnect the phone. So i connected the new jack and only used two wires that was used for the phone jack. All work fine, except the phone has a humming sound now. I wanted to know if it is possible one of those wires from the internet may have been a ground to terminate the buzzing. Can you help me with this issue?

[@howardmaribelle]

Thank you for sharing your video. It is simple but very informative. The phone jacks in the house worked before but stopped a week ago.The phone only works if plugged directly to the back of the router. Mine are currently wired opposite to yours as follows: solid blue to green, white-blue to red, solid orange to black and white-orange to yellow. House is 20 yrs old (built 1999). Do I follow the same color code wiring the same way they have it now or do I follow what's on the video?Thank you.

[@dalecarlson3181]

Great, easy-to-understand and easy-to-follow video. What really helped me was explaining the difference between the commercial and residential wiring. For some odd reason, my house has commercial phone wiring. The description of matching the colors from the commercial wires to a residential wall mount helped immensely; the phone worked perfectly the first time. Thanks much.

[@tylerboyle3413]

The narrator has been doing telecom/network cabling for a very long time. The house phone wiring for my house, which was built last year, the technician used outdoor rated Cat5e and did one pair for the phone line and one pair for DSL. I was curious and did open my network interface in my front yard, and looks like they ran your red,green,yellow,black cable to feed the ouse and the inside was wired with Cat5e. Cat5e is fairly cheap, common, and most cable provider techs are usually fixing network problems on their end at commercial building, which are most likely using Cat5e or Cat6.

[@DIYTelecom]

Exactly Tyler. Most techs are running around with only cat5e or cat6 on their trucks. That “drop wire” ( the tan cable with the red, green, black, yellow) is almost non-existent anymore . Thanks for commenting! 😊

[@eastafricatotheworld]

Thanks again bro!

[@kevinpoveromo6324]

what do you do with the brown wires?

[@vorpalcheezit6844]

Explanation makes phone wiring so easy a child could do it! A thousand blessings upon you good sir!

[@DIYTelecom]

Great, glad I could help make it easy! 😄

[@michaelcostello6991]

Great video, Thank you. Michael

[@Kenh2os03]

Excellent Explanation, I am going to use this for some of my less analog knowledgeable people on my crew, thanks.... Great work

[@DIYTelecom]

Thanks Ken :-)

[@lillymorando6976]

Thank you for the color explanation . I was able to connect to a RJ45 keystone jack to an older standard 4 color wire . 😃

[@GFLU-]

Thanks for the video. It is very helpful

[@wontrespond3263]

Very helpful video. Thank you

[@DIYTelecom]

hey there. It’s always great to get feedback. So glad I can help make some people’s lives easier. Thanks for watching and thanks for the comment.

[@TikOLoRd]

Just a question at 3:54 what is called that black cable ( the isp cable )

[@mubarekhaile5082]

very useful, thanks

[@joseujose4503]

Hi! I have 2 questions. 1. I've been remodeling my kitchen. I removed some drywall which exposed 2 lengths of phone cable that were spliced together. The splices were done with wire nuts. I know it's a code violation to splice 115, 120 volt together and then cover over with drywall, but is this ok for phone cable? 2. When you work on phone connectors like the ones you show in the video, shouldn't you some how turn off the power to the phone? Perhaps at the "D-mark" (sp?). If so, how do you do that at the dmark?

[@stefanhamilton8713]

You just saved me a bunch of money. Thanks!

[@DIYTelecom]

Glad I could help. :-)

[@panfull]

Its a $300 callout fee for us. This saved me that and explained why my blue and white wires where wrong.

[@charlottemorris2102]

Not sure what the installer did when we changed carriers, but I was able to fix it with your help! MANY THANKS!

[@DIYTelecom]

Wow Charlotte! I love hearing stories like this! Thank you! 😁

[@Search4TruthReality]

Excellent information...brings me closer to accomplishing what I need to for my house, which is full of CAT5e and CAT6 for data AND phones with a home room to a closet, where I can switch the purpose of the jack from phone to data. For example: disconnecting a phone line in the closet (it has an RJ45 connector) and plugging it into the switch. Now that I'm adding both data and phone jacks, I need to sort out the jack's pinouts and how to interconnect the additional phone cables to a single existing phone line. I'm thinking of rigging up rack-mounted patch panel with RJ45 keystones. Getting them all interconnected is the tricky part...not sure whether it's physically possible to punch down more than one wire on the keystones. Suggestions appreciated.

[@DIYTelecom]

You're so fortunate to have those data-capable cable runs in your home. I am so jealous! BTW, if you're not familiar. With my other KZbin channel- /networkadvisor , you might find it helpful for DIY network topics. ☺

[@GHagar2024]

Very useful instructions, very skilled at teaching in a clear & concise fashion, much appreciated, thank you.

[@DIYTelecom]

Thanks for the feedback Gabriel. 😊

[@Qwedogg]

Could a beginner do this? What safety precautions should I take?

[@enriquegaming7991]

Very helpful, thanks!

[@sabrinast871]

Thank you so much!! This helped out so much!!! ❤❤ thank you for being simple and to the point.

[@michaelwall4022]

This video saved my behind on installing a connection box for a camper. I couldn't figure out why each post on the j 45 had two different colors and which were correct. when you showed the two different kinds of cable the light came on . ohhh!!!

[@DIYTelecom]

hey Michael. great to here my video helped. i know I get a lot of help from other youtubers and bloggers. thanks for the feedback. 🙂

[@amerhorozovic6545]

I dont have a jack so i need to connect it directly so idk to which one i need to connect the comercial wires the solid blue and the other i need to connect to what i only got red white yellow and blue

[@78mrj]

I had an issue with my phone line. Your video helped me resolve the issue. Thank you for the help. Very informative 👏

[@DIYTelecom]

Always makes me happy to here someone fixed something and my videos helps a little. Thanks for sharing 🙂

[@JEREMYBOND1]

I have a question I need to install a DSL phone line

[@georgeterry8685]

What is the supply voltage that feeds the vintage telephones with the bells? Is it 24 volts AC or DC?

[@Successdepartment]

Please in my house I don't have the phone wire connection but I want to install one so how do I go about it?

[@1110judemaris]

Certainly going to give it a go! Thanks!

[@minimal4607]

Terrific presentation. I’d already rewired an old landline, but was concerned about the importance of the black and yellow wire (don’t want fires or other dangerous problems. Appreciate your clear, detailed, and concise video Than you!

[@DIYTelecom]

I super-appreciate the feedback! 😊

[@Glorious353]

Perfect instructions!!! I did turn off all the electricity in apartment.

[@JV-lj4gt]

Love the video,perfect explanation can't ask better than this video🐣

[@DIYTelecom]

Great to hear Juan. Glad I could help. ☺️

[@rossprevost8581]

Great job bro...very informative and straight to the point

[@DIYTelecom]

Thanks Ross. Great feedback. And, thanks for watching. 😁

[@Icecat21]

Thank you for the video. Simple and very helpful.

[@yadineldar270]

Hi, I have the commercial writing and it fits not let me receive calls, only call. How do I fix it?

[@narutoman16]

I feel like saul good man was just teaching me about basic phone line repair :)

[@DIYTelecom]

ahahha... yes, I get that a lot. I was a BB fan, but haven't watched the Saul spin-off. :-)

[@narutoman16]

It's pretty good had me rolling a few times

[@nimkakurzfeld1470]

So hlepful! Thank you!!

[@santiagohoyos3225]

Excellent explanation, thank you for the video 👏👏👏

[@JJ-vl3yy]

Great video. Complete, to the point and clear. Thanks.

[@DIYTelecom]

thank you for the feedback JJ. :-D

[@littleigloo5931]

Have you ever seen a wall phone jack with prongs like a fork on the back and the wires are wrapped between the prongs? The outside of the jack is no longer useable in our new home (built mid 1960s). We have wire sets and colors that were connected are blue with yellow stripes and yellow with blue stripes and the other set is red with blue strips/ blue with red stripes. Trying to replace the jack so we can plug the modem into the outlet, but need to replace the jack first. Assuming we shouldn't cut the wires or we may loose phone connectivity in the other jacks. Thanks in advance for any suggestions to help us solve this mystery jack.

[@ADAILYBUZZ]

Yeah, thanks! That, explanation helped. The blue blue/white or double paired stunned me for sometime. We, want to move the biscuit interface from under headboard of our bed in the Master-bedroom, to the front hall foyer area for two reasons, one, easy access, and our new Flat Screen, T.V., seems to receive the Wireless DSL, signal much better at that location in the house. SO, thank you again for takig the time to explain this wiring stuff to us novice folks. Thanks Jimmy_Snags

[@DIYTelecom]

Jimmy, happy to hear you got some useful info from my video. thanks for the feedback. :)

[@cadillacshak5600]

This saved me a call to verizon today. Thank you!!

[@DIYTelecom]

Well that certainly is good news then! :-D

[@austinmk2123]

Can you place an in-line toggle switch on your phone line? For example, If I wanted to drop a call without picking up the phone, I would just hit the switch to dump the call. Thats what im trying to do.

[@DIYTelecom]

yes, you could. I used to busy-out lines with 500ohm resistors bridged across the Tip and Ring (the green and the red). So, I guess you could make a jack with a resistor in it that bridged the Tip & Ring. And, then put it in parallel with your phone wiring. I guess you'd put a toggle switch between the live wires and this new dummy-load switch. Interesting idea, thanks for mentioning! :-D

[@TaragoPreviaEstima]

I watched this hoping to learn if a wire is a TX or RX something of that sort, and does it matter if the 2 main wires needed are put on the wrong way. I have just done a biscuit wall mount and it works but I am not sure if I got the cabling right as I have an older type biscuit mount that all the wires are black.

[@DIYTelecom]

So that’s a great question the polarity of the wires USED TO matter. Last 20-30 years, doesn’t really matter. There isn’t a TX/RX or even a +/-. It is direct current but I have rarely seen it ever matter anymore. 😊

[@TaragoPreviaEstima]

@@DIYTelecom Thank you for a quick reply. That puts my worries at ease. I can leave it as it is then.

[@suzytsaab388]

Thanks, you were very clear and helpful.

[@benlloyddavis]

Great video thanks

[@snowin84]

My first time changing out a phone Jack. I have the “biscuit” style. You didn’t tell me how to actually connect the wires coming out of the wall to the biscuit. Do I just loose the the screws on the biscuit and wrap the wall wires around corresponding screws? Probably seems obvious, but like I said, I’ve never done this before.

[@DIYTelecom]

You got it right. That’s what you do.

[@alsotello6428]

Great video!!

[@heshydrew]

Awesome video but I don't get it, I have the commercial wires, so all i connect is the blue? What are the other 3 colors for? (green, orange and brown)

[@DIYTelecom]

Heshy, if you only have one phone line (phone number) then yes - just stick with the blue/white wires. But, the best practice is to run 4-pair cables in all installations even if the customer will only be using one line. If you had more lines, Orange would be line 2, Green would be line 3 and Brown would be line 4.

[@susancampbell1998]

Thank you so helpful was able to do the job .

[@DIYTelecom]

hi Susan. So glad to hear I could help you out. Thanks for providing feedback! :-)

[@JustinCanose]

Thank you for the video. Well done. We currently have a non-working phone line in our house (Uniden handset displays Check TEL Line) with two (2) beige wires coming out of one of the junction boxes, all wires red, green, yellow and black. Does this mean we have two phone lines? Wiring might be wrong somewhere because we swapped the faceplates for newer ones and had to get new wall jacks.

[@DIYTelecom]

hi Justin, Just because you have the Green/Red and Black/Yellow doesn't mean you have two lines. If I was troubleshooting that problem, I would be focused on just the red/green. Good luck!

[@samtheman3188]

Im having trouble with my security system panel has red green and then 4 other red white green black. Trying to connect different panel not sure if i can connect a phone jack tip to either?

[@DIYTelecom]

hi Sam. Sounds frustrating. That can be confusing because Alarm wire is often white/red/black so could be easy to confuse with phone wire. Probably need a tech to come. Sorry I can't be more help there. :-)

[@timmyjustusii668]

I have a question. If I wanted to move a phone jack(my CenturyLink internet jack) to a different room In my house(its a modular home) and update the line from the box to new jack what do I need and is it easy enuff for a beginner?

[@DIYTelecom]

actually, it’s possible the new location may already be wired. so, a quick test would be to move the box to that new spot and plug it all up then see if the lights all come up. WORS OF CAUTION before you begin. take copious photos os of your existing connections before you move ANYTHING. particularly, note where all the different wires are plugged-in. if it doesn’t work in the new location, you can just put it back the way it was.

[@rickduncan362]

Had no idea I could use CAT 5 cable to wire my single line home. Why does my data line only use Orange and white orange. Thought it would be 4 pair

[@jeffreyhansen1737]

Phone companies only need to use 2 pairs at most for data unless it's fiber

[@neimaabdulwohab3879]

How to fix the external wire in the dsl pot splitter of the telephone box

[@DIYTelecom]

hi Neima. Thanks for your question. Without being there is hard to know all the details and not easy for me to give you a good answer. Probably need the phone company to look at it. :-)

[@bryanstewart9095]

I have multiple phone jacks coming to the NID on the outside of the house. All wires are not connected to anything. I am no longer using the phone company but using a device for VOIP, which has a RJ11 Jack. What is the best way to connect my jacks to the new VOIP connection? Can I connect all of the Red to Red, Green to Green, Yellow to Yellow, Black to Black on the outside of the house including the connection from the VOIP? IS there a special termination block that can be mounted outside to keep the weather off of the connections? TIA

[@SK-qc6fb]

Great, thanks. Just troublshooted a broken blue/white wire on the wall outlet!

[@noobmaster-dm7tu]

How and from where does that wire come in to the wall?

[@hunkyvampire]

The D-mark

[@MrsGatti]

Waw u helped me so much thank you

[@johngonzales2211]

I really appreciate this video, but it would've been nice to see how the wire(s) is connected on the other end at the Network Interface Box. Thanks.

[@DIYTelecom]

ah, that's a good point John. Maybe this video needs a re-do. Great suggestion. :)

[@mariebeers7856]

@@DIYTelecom This was two years ago, did you ever do a re-do? Did you do another video covering that question? I need to know how many wires come from the dmarc into the house and is there at least 2 or possibly 4 wires inside that jacket? The wires I have don't seem to be the same colors. If you did another video on this please send the link. Thanks

[@vikingsgaming826]

Bro your a life saver I just re connected my connections as my dog ripped them out and I have my NBN working again.

[@DIYTelecom]

Oh I love hearing feedback like that! Glad I could help! 😊

[@teresaroselli3403]

What able if your wires go directly from wall to a rotary phone not thru a wall mount but I want to disconnect rotary phone and make into a wall mount so I can plug my newer phone into it?

[@DIYTelecom]

Right. A biscuit jack would work. But that must be some old, old wiring. Modular plugs for phone wiring was quite standard by the early 1970s. 😳

[@GG-ej8ll]

Great video, but I have a question. We have a wall mount AT&T cordless phone that was wired into an outlet that I believe was connected the two or one light switches in the vicinity. (No outlet in that wall!) Now we need a new phone and can not find anyone who knows how to reconnect the new phone. Is this no longer an option? Do I need to have an outlet to plug in the 'transformer'? Can't figure out how it was done, but it worked for 15 years! Any suggestions would be appreciated!

[@Meat47]

Do know any thing about bridge tap how to remove as my telco told me that's what's making my internet drop

[@DIYTelecom]

James, best thing to do, in my opinion, would be to run a new wire straight from the phone demarc box (usually on outside of the house) straight to the place where your DSL modem is. And, disconnect every other wire feeding into the house. See if that improves the speed. Then, you can reconnect the inside wiring back one-by-one and notice when the speed drops. It's tricky. Good luck. :)

[@jessedziedzic3028]

Your video was a massive help, thank you very much for making this well explained video.

[@DIYTelecom]

Glad to help Jesse. Thanks for the comments! :D

[@jimthumerzs6981]

Can't find that drywall mount "Caddy clip?" for phone mount to drywall cutout. Anybody got a link?

[@lebennu3902]

What if you don't have a blue wire? I'm trying to connect to internet and not sure if that's the issue. I'm getting an at&t technician coming tomorrow and not sure if it's an issue outside or the phone jack. Help appreciated!

[@JadedJarvis]

HELPPP. I want to relocate my telephone junction biscuit box all the way from one end of the wall to another end of the wall. I am so clueless on how to go about it. Ive been searching through a bunch of youtube videos for help. The wire seems to be going downwards into the basboard and not from above the ceiling. I could be wrong however. Maybe i need to pry apart the baseboard to be sure.

[@wontrespond3263]

You can either -If you have a basement or unfinished lower floor you can pull the wire through the floor/wall cell if the wire is exposed, attach another length of wire, then reroute it over to the other wall. Then go upstairs and drill a new hole through the floor next to your new wall. Go back downstairs and feed the wire up. -If you don’t have access to a lower level you will need to remove the drywall(not worth it) or add another length of wire and route it around the room. You can hide the wire behind your baseboard trim if you prefer.

[@JadedJarvis]

Won'tRespond actually i figured this out on my own already sorry but thanks for the response anyways haha. I just pryed the baseboards and found out the wires were just tucked behind. Surprised it wasnt that hard.

[@eibmoz76]

What is the Yellow wire on old analogue phone plug? Is there a Ground wire?

[@DIYTelecom]

Great question: two possibilities. 1. In the old days (say 40 year ago) when Bell started offering phones that required power (i.e. Princess phones with lighted dialpads), the used the black/yellow for power. So in that case, yes the Yellow may have been a ground. 2. in more modern times, the Green/Red wires were for the main phone line into your home. And, if there was a 2nd line (not second phone, but 2nd phone #), then the black/yellow would have been for that 2nd line. thanks for watching. :-D

[@alw5058]

Excellent video-my Florida house built in 2004 has CAT 4 or 5 all serial (daisy-chained). I suspect there was a wall mount that was abandoned-kitchen renovation. (tiled over) I have access front attic, both lines going down to old wall mount. Can I cut and splice all pairs together using your Redhead method. I suspect this is why further down stream one of my phone lines is not working......a dull sound when I pick up phone from that location. So I simply follow the pairing as you described?

[@DIYTelecom]

Yes, pretty much what you said will work. Good luck!

[@rocketrider1405]

I'm pretty sure you need to strip about a half inch of insulation off of the red and the green bell conductors before you place each under the biscuit screw terminals; the blue and white-blue Cat 3 don't have to be stripped - just punched down on a modular jack.

[@DIYTelecom]

I didn't mention anything about stripping back the insulation on the wires? Shame on me. I probably just assumed it was Electrical 101 and figured everyone would know that. Thanks for clarifying! :-D

[@ryansolomon5083]

Of course they need to be stripped and he obviously knows that this is just a how to video to show us how to install. I find it funny when ppl point out the obvious like its something only the educated or professionals in the field know and the rest have to be told when all it is, is commonsense lol

[@huttarl]

Yeah, I've been looking for guidance on how to strip that insulation without damaging the wires. So far, every article on this topic skips over that part.

[@Pepecoin123]

Electrical scissors bro

[@shawnstiles414]

@@huttarl Your front teeth will work just fine and not damage the copper conductor causing future issues or faults. It will however fuck up your teeth in a hurry. Keep smilin'!

[@catsims100]

I have a wall mount with a commercial line. how do I actually connect the lines?

[@DIYTelecom]

dont mean to be a jerk but semantics matter. when you say “line” I will assume you mean the service from the phone company. in that case, the connection of the line (service) to the inside wiring is done a the junction box. usually referred-to as the Demarc.

[@alexandrelaia2086]

Very good video thank you very much

[@DIYTelecom]

+Alexandre Laia thanks for the feedback. :-)

[@brianhogan9563]

Can you serialize Jacks back to a jack hub and then to the demarc?

[@DIYTelecom]

Yes, Brian, home phone lines are very flexible that way. All that matters is that the Tip and Ring of each jack (green and red wires) are in some way connected to the demarc.

[@geokaragiannis]

You saved the day once again...

[@DIYTelecom]

That’s great news George. So happy to hear it! I know how often YT saves my rear (especially home and auto repairs). Thanks for the feedback! 😁

[@1800dontcare]

I recently had the fun part of extending the connection from my room (where the live socket is for my connection) out into the lounge room to my new Data Cabinet so everything is one location as I wanted everything out of the bedroom. Needless to say I had to look at the box I had purchased to get it connect it took a little while to realise its on the 2 center pins that are used so had to track what colours which turned out to be Red/Green ones that was all done I had the Cat6 run already so it was patched into that into my Patch Panel so that's all done but I will have to re-do the socket plug as it was done a little weirdly lol mind you I have to say I was happy as I have never done it before lol.. Good video

[@DIYTelecom]

that's great to hear James. that technique is common in the commercial work too. Thanks for watching and letting me know what you're working on. Helps me make better content in the future. :-)

[@1800dontcare]

DIY Telecom I’m currently getting the 380 hours I need to do my Open Cablers Course... love Australia and their archaic laws sheesh they love their $$$$$$ lol

[@DIYTelecom]

Oh wow... so that’s how it is down there? While I do agree that may be OVERKILL (yes, pun for the M.A.W. fans in the US) 😆 unfortunately that wouldn’t be such a bad idea for some of the junior techs here in the US. I see a tremendous amount if sloppy work in the field. Good luck with that James. 😄

[@1800dontcare]

DIY Telecom it’s overkill on everything here lol. I’ve had to apply for my security license just to install Security Camera Systems and Alarm Systems 🤑 electrical I can understand but Data like for real lol 🤦‍♂️

[@z.d.e.computer_scientist8555]

I have a white and gray wires, what should i do ?

[@wadechampion7428]

Awesome. Thank you

[@DIYTelecom]

hi Michael. thanks for the feedback. glad it you liked it. 😊

[@boolos1]

Really helpful thank you mate!

[@DIYTelecom]

Happy to hear that sir! 😊

[@beejh6206]

done lots of training myself - you walk the tightrope very well - didn't fall off at all :-)

[@DIYTelecom]

Thank you! As an instructor, I’m sure you can appreciate that fine balance of trying to teach a complex concept in the simplest terms. I suspect that’s what you meant with the tightrope analogy. Thanks for the comments! 😊

[@clayl9411]

will a two line phone work a pair line(tip and ring) green/red?

[@ridhaamrane3318]

thanks , my nephew ripped the wire going to the spliier out of the face plate , this video helped understand how to fix them

[@michaeldaly3166]

Hi, any references/advice on wiring a mode 3 socket? Thanks for this video

[@DIYTelecom]

🤔 note familiar with that term.

[@mohestking]

My line gives me green and white colors How to wire them to the jak

[@jeffreyhansen1737]

You probably have a cat5, you should have blue, Orange, green, amd brown

[@shawnstiles414]

DIY Telecom; In your description of this video above you quoted; "Almost all residential phone service uses just 2 wires (also referred to as "one pair"). Each pair of wires has a "TIP" and a "RING". (or kind of like Neg and Positive, but not really)". In reality it is exactly like Negative and Positive (Direct Current 48 - 50 volts). You have many viewers and I'm sure you can teach a large percentage of them a very simple video with a volt/ohm meter (VOM) at the demarcation and then the final termination point (jack) to verify their voice/data/video signal is present and working. VOM's are free with a small purchase from Harbor Freight Tool Co. or very affordable for most DIYers.

[@DIYTelecom]

hi Shawn, def agreeing with you that an inexpensive Volt meter (or multi-meter) would be very helpful for determining the presence of POTS line power on the pair. The reason I said “not exactly”, is I was taught that Phone line voltage is -48vDC. so, yes it is 48 v between the pairs. (but maybe I am misinformed) i super-appreciate it when viewers, like you, take the time to leave detailed insights because many people read the comments. And then, we all become smarter. 😀

[@shawnstiles414]

@@DIYTelecom ; DC voltage is available on your car battery. If you look for voltage on one conductor and ground on the other you will know how to use a VOM. Current flows on the positive to the device (voice-data-video/not just POTS anymore) and the circuit is completed when there is a grounded conductor with continuity back to the central office. If your experiencing problems with no signal at the jack, it might help to find the two wires that have your POS/NEG continuity. A DC circuit cannot be made without +/-.

[@bobdole513]

Beautiful video, didnt know how to wire it and im a red seal but i dont do data, u explained it perfectly

[@DIYTelecom]

I'll take the compliment, thank you. ☺️

[@jeffreyhansen1737]

Doesn't really matter as long as it's the same on both ends, which color it is doesn't matter much

[@neillezotte6818]

Great explanation. Thanks!