There are two numbers currently working in my home. I would like to rewire a jack so it works on the other number. I thought it was an easy task by just switching the wires. However I tried numerous combinations and it still does not work.

The jack that I want to switch users other colors than the normal red, black, green, yellow.

Do I need to look into the junction box in the basement and make the switch there or can I make the switch at the jack?

labman

Most phones are set up to just use the red and green wires. The yellow and black are there, but not used unless the phone is set up to switch between lines. You need to identify which wires are used by the line you are trying to use, and connect them to the red and green contacts in the junction box for that phone. There was a post in another thread a month or 2 ago giving more than I can. Try to dig it up.

NoCalHomeowner2

Pavonej, if you are still here....

You have some detective work to do. Starting at the beginning, you need to find where the two phone lines start. This is typically called the "point of demarcation". At the point of demarcation you will find two pair of wires. These days, their colors are irrelevant. One pair is for one of your lines. The other pair is for the other of your lines.

Do some testing. Disconnect one of the pairs. Go back in and pick up each phone. One should be dead, the other alive. Now you know the wires for the phone that is dead.

Disconnect the other pair. Go back in a pick up the phone that was working before. It should be dead.

Now you have identified the wires for each of your phone lines.

That was easy. Now the fun begins.

Can you follow where wires which are connected to the terminals with the wires you just tested go? Colors sometimes help. Sometimes not if there is a break in the wires out of sight or if the person doing the last work on the wires didn't know enough to use "proper" procedures.

Let's assume you can't follow the wires because the colors at the point of demarcation aren't the same as the colors at your jacks. So, you get to do some experimentation. Easiest thing to do is to get a short telephone wire and cut off one of the ends and strip the red/green wires bare for an inch or so. Now open one of the jacks and attach the red/green wires to something that looks like a "pair". Plug a phone into the end of the wire you didn't cut off and see if you have dial tone. If you do, you know that "pair" is live. Using that phone, call the phone number you think it is. If it is, and you don't have something like the phone company's message center on that line, it should ring busy. Take the wires off and connect to the other "pair" in the jack. Have a dial tone? If not, you know that only one pair is really connected at that jack. If so, then repeat the dialing thing to confirm what phone number that pair belongs to.

If you have both pair live, it is indeed a simple matter to merely switch the two pair and you will have switched which phone number rings on the phone connected at that jack.

Based on the fact you already tried switching, though, it sounds like only one phone line is actually connected to that jack. If you are lucky, you can see the colors of the wire coming into that jack which are not used and see those same colors back at the point of demarcation. If so, great, just connect them to the right terminals at the point of demarcation and switch them at your jack and you should be good to go.

Phone wiring is not rocket science. But it is sometimes tedious to ensure you have the right wires being connected. And it is a major pain at times to run new wires when the existing wires just can't do the job.

Good luck.

George