Phone Jack Wiring
In olden times, the job to wire a phone jack was officially proceeded by a phone company wherein, they would provide you with a phone device and do all the wiring in your house. In this process, the phone company would also install a NID (Network Interface Device), a plastic box which is generally mounted on an exterior wall of your house or anywhere in the basement of your property. Today, an ordinary man or a homeowner can perform wiring of a phone jack in his house all by himself, if he has some basic instructions and techniques to carry out this job.
Why is a Phone Jack Needed
Well, let me tell you that in this modern age, times are changing drastically and people who find it hard to go out and work, find it even more comfortable and convenient to run a business from their home itself. Many homeowners, businessmen, housewives, etc., can work from home and open a full-time job anytime they want. So, undertaking this type of a job might need a bunch of lines for communicating with several clients and dealers across the globe. There would be the need of extra telephone lines, fax lines, Internet facilities, etc., wherein, the need of expanding your common phone would be a high necessity. That is when you will require a phone jack which will act as an add-on attachment to your telephone and network connections handily. Adding this device to any room in your house is a pretty simple task to undertake, all you have to do is get the phone line run into the room you wish to install the phone jack and next, you will have to just wire it. The phone lines that are chosen to run into the room have plastic tips present on the ends of the cables and cords generally called modular plugs which in turn fit into the modular jacks. Speaking of phone jack formats, there are three types in the category.
Types of Phone Jacks
Surface Jack: The surface jack is a cubical box, measuring 2'' x 2'' worth mounting on a wall. So, to wire a wall phone jack, first, a wall has to be constructed and two, the wire has to be stapled to a baseboard. In addition, the connections are available in two, three or four pairs and are available in a variety of colors too.
Flush Jack: With the phone wires confined within the wall, a flush jack is a flat device, more like an electrical outlet available in a variety of colors and more than two pairs of wires.
Wall Jack: In order to support a wall phone, a wall jack is mounted 5 feet above the ground level. Adding to the details, it has two metal mounting studs for proper support but are also available in stainless steel and plastic front plates with 2 to 3 pairs of wires.
How to Wire a Phone Jack
Tools Needed
- Screwdriver
- Wire Strippers
Step 1: Choose the type of phone jack mounting you want to conduct, whether a surface mount or a wall mount, whatever it is, the wiring is the same.
Step 2: Once you choose your type of mounting, remove the front cover of the device and you will see 4 screw terminals with colored wires present in them. Use a flat-head screwdriver to loosen all the four wires.
Step 3: To add an insulation from each of your phone wires, strip about '' of strips using a wire stripper. Ensure that you do not cut the phone wire in the process, because the phone cables are very gentle and thin.
Step 4: After the phone's four wires are stripped and set up for installation, get hold of the phone jack and begin to wrap each wire around the terminal points. Match the similar colors while attaching, for instance if there is a green wire in the phone jack, attach the green wire around the terminal screw carefully. Tighten the screw to fasten the wire properly.
Step 5: Well, this is just one example for one wire. Similarly, perform for the remaining 3 wires and look for a notch in the device of the phone jack. If you are able to find that, slowly place the insulated-sheathed part of the phone lines in it to give it a neat and professional look.
Step 6: In the final step, just replace the cover of the phone jack and screw all the screws back into its place, the way it was. This is where you complete the entire procedure of wiring.
Here is a quickie I would like to share with you. Remember, the phone jack is always provided with two lines in a pair; yellow and black and red and green. You may remember this combination as Bumble Bees and Christmas Trees concurrently.
