How to Install a Phone Jack Box

No matter how many phone jacks you have in your house, it seems there's never a phone in the room where you are. If you have some carpentry skills, you can install additional phone jacks in your home and save the expense of having the phone company install them.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Measuring tape
• 4-wire telephone wire
• Phone jack box
• Drywall saw
• Metal coat hanger
• Drill and drill bits
• Wire-stripper
• Screwdriver
• Cable staples

1. Find the phone's outside box. Disconnect your phone service temporarily. There's a small amount of electrical current that runs through this box. It's not worth taking an accidental jolt of electricity.

2. Locate you telephone line's junction box. Measure the distance from the junction box to where you want to install a new box for a phone jack. Purchase enough wiring for the job. Also purchase the phone jack box and any other tools that you don't have to complete the task.

3. Mark the spot where you intend to install the phone jack box. If you are going to install it into the wall, cut out the hole with a drywall saw. Otherwise you can mount the box on the wall.

4. Drill a hole into the floor for the wiring if the phone jack box is a wall mount. If it is an in-the-wall installation, use the wire coat hanger to help you run one end of the wire from the basement or crawlspace of your house up into the phone jack box.

5. Wire the phone jack box by matching the colors on the box with the colors of the wire. You need to use the wire stripper to pull back a couple inches of sheathing to expose the wires first. Once you have the wires in place, screw the box in place.

6. Connect the other end of the telephone wire to the junction box. Once again, match the colors of the stripped wires. Staple the wire to joists to keep it out of the way.

7. Reconnect the phone's main box. Check to make sure you have service in the new phone jack as well as all the other phones in your house.