Phone Network Interface Box: O.K. To Wire In Parallel Two Lines There ?

[Robert11]

Hello:

Have a new residence that seems to have half the phone jacks wired for one incoming line, and the rest of the house jacks wired for a possible second line (which we don't have or need). So, half the jacks in the house now are inoperative.

Rather than re-wiring all the jacks on this second line back to the red and green leads that service the jacks that do work, is it permissible, or a good idea, to just parallel the two circuits at the house's Verizon Network Interface box mounted on the side of the house?

There would then be only 1 circuit going out to Verizon. Verizons incoming black and yellow leads would just dead end at the box, and lead nowhere inside the house.

Any thoughts on the best way to do this ?

Thanks, B.

[Matt]

Just move all the leads going into your house, to the "hot" leads from verizon.

I've not seen a verizon NIB, But I'd think you should be able to do this without opening the telco half of the box.

[Jeff Wisnia]

It sounds like you have 4 conductor phone cable running to all the jacks. If that's the case....

You can accomplish your goal without opening up the Verizon NID box simply by paralleling Y to R and B to G at any one of the jacks.

Staple a note about that to your house deed so you'll remember to give that info to the next owner when you sell the place.

Jeff

[Vinnie]

Should work -- it just makes it confusing down the road later if you, a future owner, or a service person ever needs to make changes or troubleshoot something in the house, or if you ever do want to hook up a second line. It won't be self-evident that the jacks wired as Y/B are actually the primary incoming line.

Best answer is to hook up all four wires at each jack to their proper terminals. Then, if you ever order a second phone line, you can then just buy a two-line phone, plug it in and it will work on both lines.

Another solution (to avoid needing a two-line phone in the future) is to replace each phone jack wall plate with a dual jack (i.e.

One jack is wired with R/G wires to R/G terminals, the other has Y/B wires to R/G terminals. Now you have two phone jacks at each location -- one for each phone line. If you ever order a second line, you simply plug any telephone into the second jack to make the phone ring only on the second line.

Certainly you are *allowed* to do it pigtail both pairs of house wires onto the same terminals in the "customer side" of the NID. The only caveat is that it's non-standard and requires someone to remember the house is wired that way to avoid confusion down the road. Unless you have a *lot* of jacks on the secondary line, it really shouldn't take to long to individually rewire them properly for the primary line or replace them with two-line jacks.