Step By Step Home Wiring Guide
Step 1. ISOLATE YOUR INSIDE WIRING
- To re-wire your home for
VoIP, you first need to isolate your inside phone wiring from the
lines that come into your house from the phone company. This is a
step you shouldn't skip, even if you think your phone line is already
dead. If you don't isolate your inside wiring, and the phone company
decides to send voltage across the line you thought was dead, it
could damage the telephone equipment inside your house or worse, cause
a fire.
- To begin, find the box on the outside of your house where the
telephone lines come into your house from the street. This is called
the Network Interface Unit (NIU). It's the legal demarcation point
where the outside wiring from the street (owned by the telephone
company) meets the wiring inside your house (owned by you). When you
open the box, which is usually locked or fastened with a screw, you
will have access to the side containing the wires going into your
home, but not the side with the lines coming from the street. You'll
also see a ground wire coming out of the phone company's side of the
box. This wire protects you against lightning strikes, so make sure
you never disconnect it.
- Once you've opened your side of the NIU, you'll see one or more
sets of screw terminals inside. Each will have a short piece of
telephone wire coming out of it with a phone connector on the end
plugged into a corresponding jack. If there's only one line coming
into your house, you'll most likely have only one set of screw
terminals. To disconnect from the phone company, simply unplug each
of the short telephone wires from its corresponding jack.
- Next, you need to make it obvious to others that you've unplugged
the wires on purpose and they shouldn't undo your modifications
without risking damage to your inside equipment. Start by wrapping
the end of each of the telephone wires you just unplugged with
electrical tape so it can't be plugged back in without unwrapping the
tape. Then, clearly label the inside of the box with a message that
says something like: "Do not reconnect! May cause damage to inside
equipment!" A sign written or printed in waterproof ink and taped
inside the box works well. No matter how you choose to label the box,
be sure it is obvious, clear, and easy to read.
- Once you've clearly labeled the inside of the NIU, close and
refasten the box.
Step 2. CONFIRM THE LINE IS DISCONNECTED
- After you've isolated your wiring from the phone company's, it's
important to confirm the line is disconnected before installing VoIP
- Go back into your house and pick up a phone plugged into a jack
that previously worked. You should hear absolutely nothing; the line
should be totally dead. If the line's not dead, go back and check
your work. If your work looks correct and the line's still not dead,
it means that voltage is somehow still being carried on the line and
it's not safe for you to proceed any further. Consult a professional
electrician or telephone technician for help.
Step 3. CONNECT YOUR PHONE ADAPTER
- Simply plug your DSL/cable modem into the Grandstream phone
adapter. Then plug your phone adapter into any telephone jack using a
standard telephone cord. Finally, plug regular phones into the other
jacks in your house. Telephone jacks are wired in parallel, so when
you plug your phone adapter into any working jack, it will spread the
signal to the other jacks in your home.
- Like any telephone line, there is a limit to the number of phones
you can connect to a single VoIP line. If too many phones are
connected, the signal will fade, and not all of the phones will ring
when a call comes in. Therefore, we recommend you only connect five
phones maximum to a single VoIP line.
Congratulations! Your home is now wired with VoIP!
