Hello All:

Our telephone line is giving us some trouble. It has a loud buzz, or hum, and
our internet dial up connection performance has degraded.

I took a phone out to our 'network box', and plugged it in. No hum, or buzz. I
reconnected the network box, and took a cordless phone back out with me. It
seems that I can reduce the hum by touching wires that are connected to other
phone numbers (at one time this house had FOUR phone numbers). I am not sure of
this is a clue, or not.

The phone company wants $85 to come out and troubleshoot, that's TROUBLESHOOT,
not repair. They have this long speal that they may not be able to make the
repair, and it will still be $85 hour. I'd gladly pay the $85 an hour IF they
would repair the problem.

So, any suggestions on what to look for, how to troubleshoot, or even a third
party repair person would be helpful.

Thanks for any advice. Have a nice day,

Bill

Disconnect all phones and modems except one and see if the problem can be
eliminated that way by narrowing down to a bad phone or modem. If that
doesn't work, do the same at another connection box in the house. Maybe you
can narrow it down to a bad connection box. If that doesn't work I would
try to replace the first wire coming into the house.


"Billccm" wrote in message
...
Hello All:

Our telephone line is giving us some trouble. It has a loud buzz, or hum,
and
our internet dial up connection performance has degraded.

I took a phone out to our 'network box', and plugged it in. No hum, or
buzz. I
reconnected the network box, and took a cordless phone back out with me.
It
seems that I can reduce the hum by touching wires that are connected to
other
phone numbers (at one time this house had FOUR phone numbers). I am not
sure of
this is a clue, or not.

The phone company wants $85 to come out and troubleshoot, that's
TROUBLESHOOT,
not repair. They have this long speal that they may not be able to make
the
repair, and it will still be $85 hour. I'd gladly pay the $85 an hour IF
they
would repair the problem.

So, any suggestions on what to look for, how to troubleshoot, or even a
third
party repair person would be helpful.

Thanks for any advice. Have a nice day,

Bill

Find ONE phone that you are sure is "good". NOT a cordless.

Unplug ALL other phones, especially CORDLESS phones AND computers and TV
boxes from your phone system, so nothing is connnected.

Take that phone to the interface box and try it there.

OK? Work your way thru the house and check each outlet for a 'good'
dialtone.

Still OK, take the next phone and plug it in.. one item at a time-reconnect
and see how that goes.


"Billccm" wrote in message
...
Hello All:

Our telephone line is giving us some trouble. It has a loud buzz, or hum,
and
our internet dial up connection performance has degraded.

(Billccm) wrote in
:

Hello All:

Our telephone line is giving us some trouble. It has a loud buzz, or
hum, and our internet dial up connection performance has degraded.

I took a phone out to our 'network box', and plugged it in. No hum, or
buzz. I reconnected the network box, and took a cordless phone back
out with me. It seems that I can reduce the hum by touching wires that
are connected to other phone numbers (at one time this house had FOUR
phone numbers). I am not sure of this is a clue, or not.

The phone company wants $85 to come out and troubleshoot, that's
TROUBLESHOOT, not repair. They have this long speal that they may not
be able to make the repair, and it will still be $85 hour. I'd gladly
pay the $85 an hour IF they would repair the problem.

So, any suggestions on what to look for, how to troubleshoot, or even
a third party repair person would be helpful.

Thanks for any advice. Have a nice day,

Bill


Several pieces of information and/or conjecture for you:

* It is likely that some, or all, of those telephone numbers are still
connected, physically and electrically, to the telephone company network.
Disconnects these days are generally done in software at the switch,
allowing for emergency service, and simple re-connects.

* The telephone company provides its own network power, DC, at -48V. Each
of those lines MAY have power over it, depending on its physical connection
status in the world.

* If your telephone sounded clear when your network interface was bypassed,
then the problem MAY be in your 'inside wiring'. 'Inside wiring' is a
regulatory, legal term, denoting where you, the building occupant, are
responsible for the problem. The 'demarcation point' is generally the
network box, or interface.

* The telephone company may have installed an active multiplexer (DAML in
some company lingo) at some time. They don't last forever, and can cause
problems with modem performance, new or old.

* In many, if not all, of the United States, the rates for an inside wiring
call are determined by regulation. Historically, this was to foster
competition, and make certain the monopolist wasn't cross-subsidizing
repair services, to drive others away. Not every plan works out the way it
was supposed to.

So what to do:

If it were my home, I would disconnect all of the inside wire, not
currently in use, at the network interface. In other words, if I had only
one number active, I would see that there are no other lines powered.

I would have the telephone company check the lines physically, at the
network interface. Many of these have become, over the decades, a rats'
nest, with moves, adds, changes, and all sorts of stuff over the years.
With competitive telephone providers, DSL and cable companies, things get
changed, and not always for the better. If the problem is on their side of
the interface, there should not be a charge to you.

And $85 for a visit isn't too bad. Most installers/repair persons really
want the problems to go away. Wierd wiring in your building often causes
problems elsewhere, too. The ones I know take great pride in their work.

Hope this helps.

Patriarch

In article ,
(Billccm) wrote:

Hello All:

Our telephone line is giving us some trouble. It has a loud buzz, or hum, and
our internet dial up connection performance has degraded.

I took a phone out to our 'network box', and plugged it in. No hum, or buzz.
I
reconnected the network box, and took a cordless phone back out with me. It
seems that I can reduce the hum by touching wires that are connected to other
phone numbers (at one time this house had FOUR phone numbers). I am not sure
of
this is a clue, or not.

The phone company wants $85 to come out and troubleshoot, that's
TROUBLESHOOT,
not repair. They have this long speal that they may not be able to make the
repair, and it will still be $85 hour. I'd gladly pay the $85 an hour IF they
would repair the problem.

So, any suggestions on what to look for, how to troubleshoot, or even a third
party repair person would be helpful.

Thanks for any advice. Have a nice day,

Bill

I'd try disconnecting the un-used lines one at a time at the network box
and see if the problem goes away. First make a diagram so you can put
everything back if necessary.

Do you have a phone extension cord up tight against some 'noise'
producing device by any chance? Any new phone equipment or wiring in the
house? Have you moved anything that might have pinched a phone extension
cord?

Just a couple of ideas...

Good Luck

Erik

Erik

One of the two wires is a ground. If the ground is open, then the line is
more sensetive to AC noise from the house power.

Check also for loose connections.

I had an AC hum one time when a phone wire was too close to an electrical
appliance.

--

Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
www.mormons.com


"Billccm" wrote in message
...
Hello All:

Our telephone line is giving us some trouble. It has a loud buzz, or hum,
and
our internet dial up connection performance has degraded.

I took a phone out to our 'network box', and plugged it in. No hum, or buzz.
I
reconnected the network box, and took a cordless phone back out with me. It
seems that I can reduce the hum by touching wires that are connected to
other
phone numbers (at one time this house had FOUR phone numbers). I am not sure
of
this is a clue, or not.

The phone company wants $85 to come out and troubleshoot, that's
TROUBLESHOOT,
not repair. They have this long speal that they may not be able to make the
repair, and it will still be $85 hour. I'd gladly pay the $85 an hour IF
they
would repair the problem.

So, any suggestions on what to look for, how to troubleshoot, or even a
third
party repair person would be helpful.

Thanks for any advice. Have a nice day,

Bill

"Billccm" wrote in message
...
| Hello All:
|
| Our telephone line is giving us some trouble. It has a loud buzz, or hum,
and
| our internet dial up connection performance has degraded.
snip
| So, any suggestions on what to look for, how to troubleshoot, or even a
third
| party repair person would be helpful.
|
| Thanks for any advice. Have a nice day,
|
| Bill

Back in my dial-up days I had a problem with our internet connection also.
The cause turned out to be our water meter that was tied into the phone line
to dial in meter readings. A new meter solved the problem. Seems it was a
common problem and a well kept secret of our local water department. After
that I ran a wire straight from the phone box to the puter with nothing else
on the line and greatly improved the performance of our internet connection.

Billccm ) writes:

Our telephone line is giving us some trouble. It has a loud buzz, or hum, and
our internet dial up connection performance has degraded.

I took a phone out to our 'network box', and plugged it in. No hum, or buzz. I
reconnected the network box, and took a cordless phone back out with me. It
seems that I can reduce the hum by touching wires that are connected to other
phone numbers (at one time this house had FOUR phone numbers). I am not sure of
this is a clue, or not.

The phone company wants $85 to come out and troubleshoot, that's TROUBLESHOOT,
not repair. They have this long speal that they may not be able to make the
repair, and it will still be $85 hour. I'd gladly pay the $85 an hour IF they
would repair the problem.

So, any suggestions on what to look for, how to troubleshoot, or even a third
party repair person would be helpful.

Thanks for any advice. Have a nice day,

Bill

The hum is likely being picked up from an electrical source inside the
house, near a phone line. Make sure the inside lines are not running too
close to the electrical wiring. Try unplugging suspect appliances. I
suppose you could even turn off the house fuses to see if it fixes the
problem, if you don't mind resetting all your electronic clocks. Moving
the appliance or phone line could save you $85.


--
"For it is only of the new one grows tired. Of the old one never tires."
-- Kierkegaard, _Repetition_

James Owens, Ottawa, Canada

Thanks to a number of BellSouth folks (employees and customers), there exist
a great deal of inside wiring information at:
http://www.dslreports.com/faq/7144.

"Billccm" wrote in message
...
Hello All:

Our telephone line is giving us some trouble. It has a loud buzz, or hum,
and
our internet dial up connection performance has degraded.

I took a phone out to our 'network box', and plugged it in. No hum, or
buzz. I
reconnected the network box, and took a cordless phone back out with me.
It
seems that I can reduce the hum by touching wires that are connected to
other
phone numbers (at one time this house had FOUR phone numbers). I am not
sure of
this is a clue, or not.

The phone company wants $85 to come out and troubleshoot, that's
TROUBLESHOOT,
not repair. They have this long speal that they may not be able to make
the
repair, and it will still be $85 hour. I'd gladly pay the $85 an hour IF
they
would repair the problem.

So, any suggestions on what to look for, how to troubleshoot, or even a
third
party repair person would be helpful.

Thanks for any advice. Have a nice day,

Bill

From: billc

Our telephone line is giving us some trouble. It has a loud buzz, or hum, and
our internet dial up connection performance has degraded.

sounds like you need a filter on the line or a new line.

my phone co offers inside wire maintenance for $3 per month
maybe yours does too.... order it & call for service after its fixed cancel
it.

"Billccm" wrote in message
...
Hello All:

Our telephone line is giving us some trouble. It has a loud buzz, or hum,
and
our internet dial up connection performance has degraded.

I took a phone out to our 'network box', and plugged it in. No hum, or
buzz. I
reconnected the network box, and took a cordless phone back out with me.
It
seems that I can reduce the hum by touching wires that are connected to
other
phone numbers (at one time this house had FOUR phone numbers). I am not
sure of
this is a clue, or not.

The phone company wants $85 to come out and troubleshoot, that's
TROUBLESHOOT,
not repair. They have this long speal that they may not be able to make
the
repair, and it will still be $85 hour. I'd gladly pay the $85 an hour IF
they
would repair the problem.

So, any suggestions on what to look for, how to troubleshoot, or even a
third
party repair person would be helpful.

Thanks for any advice. Have a nice day,

Bill

The only comment that I have is that if you touch the wires and it goes away.
Sounds like you might have a grounding problem.
I know that my house has a phone wire that is connected to the water pipe in my
crawl space.
Just my two cents worth.


Remove NoSpam to reply, Thanks

(PoCambo) wrote in message ...
From: billc

Our telephone line is giving us some trouble. It has a loud buzz, or hum, and
our internet dial up connection performance has degraded.

sounds like you need a filter on the line or a new line.

I have a similiar problem but with me I could not get on the internet
even though it was on a different phone line. I unplugged all of the
phones in the house and would keep the computer on and it would
suddenly "pop" onto the internet after I unplugged one particular
cordless phone. When I plugged the phone back in, that particular
phone's main board was fried. I got rid of the phone and replaced it
with a good (believe it or not) Radio Shack phone and never had a
problem since. I went though 2 cheap phones before i figured out it
was the phone and not the lines.
Dave G

Well, to make a long story short, the telephone company (QWEST) repairman found
a bad ground on a transfromer three miles away. It took him four hours to find
the problem. No charge for the repair!

Thanks for the replies.

Bill

"Billccm" wrote in message
...
Well, to make a long story short, the telephone company (QWEST) repairman
found
a bad ground on a transfromer three miles away. It took him four hours to
find
the problem. No charge for the repair!

Thanks for the replies.

Bill

That was my next suggestion. LOL