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Snowy90



Member Since: 23 Feb 2015
Location: Surrey
Posts: 482

United Kingdom 2008 Defender 90 Puma 2.4 XS CSW Fuji White
Fitting a landline to garden office
OK this forum is awesome and it appears that the people on here has a real "can do" attitude towards problem solving and technology so I thought I would put my totally non defender related issue out there.

I work from home, I have an office down the bottom of the garden about a 20m long garden. I have for ages struggled to get a land line in the office and so far I have made doo with extenders and repeaters but depending on the weather some days they work other they crackle and often the drop out entirely.

I'm currently using a BT elements phone which is supposed to have a range of 1k well it doesn't I can assure you of that.

So my set up. my Virgin media point which is where my phone line point is, this is the only one. Then I have CAT5 cables running to the back of the house under a fitted oak floor to my TV etc... this is where my router is.

I then have a CAT5 cable running down to the office which provides me with broadband perfectly.

with the fitted floors I cant run a new phone line underneath and don't want to run along skirtings or drape a cable over the house.

I have heard that I can use the CAT 5 cable to run a phone line but I have no idea how to do that.

So is there any tech anyone uses that can help. Is it possible to use the existing CAT 5 cables?

ANY help of advice soooo gratefully received to what should be really simple, but it has me confused!
Post #525908 22nd Apr 2016 11:14am
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jonnyboy



Member Since: 15 Oct 2014
Location: Wiltshire
Posts: 161

United Kingdom 2005 Defender 90 Td5 XS CSW Tonga Green
Not sure of running "normal" telephone signal over cat5.

The only way I know that cat5 will run a phone is with VOIP (Voice over IP), like Skype, but you can get a "normal" phone if that's what you want, but it will be different number to that of your house

Have a look here:

https://www.zen.co.uk/home-office/voice/voip.aspx and have a search for "IP Phones"
Post #525910 22nd Apr 2016 11:25am
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Snowy90



Member Since: 23 Feb 2015
Location: Surrey
Posts: 482

United Kingdom 2008 Defender 90 Puma 2.4 XS CSW Fuji White
Somebody has mentioned VOIP before, its possible but would mean changing my number and stationary and website etc....

So I was really hoping for a "normal" telephone solution.
Post #525911 22nd Apr 2016 11:29am
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Martin
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Member Since: 02 Apr 2007
Location: Hook Norton
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United Kingdom 2015 Defender 90 Puma 2.2 XS CSW Montalcino Red
Could you use a VOIP phone (phone over broadband) in the office, or is the number you use critical?

Are you sure it is CAT5 under the floor to the TV, or is it coax (like smaller TV cable)?

The reason I ask is that my understanding of VM - from being an NTL customer 10 years ago - is that as it is cable, the router would connect to the wall point via coax rather than CAT5 as you suggest it does (under the floor).  1988 90 Td5 NAS soft top
2015 D90 XS SW
Post #525912 22nd Apr 2016 11:29am
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jonnyboy



Member Since: 15 Oct 2014
Location: Wiltshire
Posts: 161

United Kingdom 2005 Defender 90 Td5 XS CSW Tonga Green
Unless someone has a solution for getting "normal" phone over CAT5 , then I think your options are:

    Lay an extension cable to the office
    Get an office VOIP phone with business number (with new stationary)
Post #525915 22nd Apr 2016 11:34am
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Martin
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Member Since: 02 Apr 2007
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United Kingdom 2015 Defender 90 Puma 2.2 XS CSW Montalcino Red
Physically, CAT5 cable used for a phone line, but not at the same time as the cable being used as a network cable.  1988 90 Td5 NAS soft top
2015 D90 XS SW
Post #525916 22nd Apr 2016 11:37am
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ORD



Member Since: 15 Jul 2015
Location: Cheshire
Posts: 4

United Kingdom 
What about a VOIP bridge? Slightly different solution as it will then go via your mobile but will maintain your land line (and additional benefit of being able to answer your land line even when out and about).
Post #525917 22nd Apr 2016 11:39am
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geobloke



Member Since: 06 Nov 2012
Location: Nottinghamshire
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United Kingdom 
I feel your frustration. The farm house is 500 odd years old, so radio based telephone handsets and 1m+ wall thicknesses do not work very well together. Same for wireless signals and after (like you) trying extenders around the house we finally opted for a fully wired network. Well worth the effort.

As to the telephone and cat5 cables, I cannot see why you couldn't utilise a cat 5 cable as long as it was dedicated just to the landline. It would be quite OTT spec-wise but considering the distance to your shed the thicker wires may actually be a good thing.

As to wiring up it would just be a case of using the CAT5 as an extension cable so as long as you utilise the same wires at either end for connecting up your landline you shouldn't have a problem. This should also be quite easy to test cheaply.

All the bits you need are also easily available from BandQ or Screwfix.
Post #525918 22nd Apr 2016 11:47am
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Cupboard



Member Since: 21 Mar 2014
Location: Suffolk
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United Kingdom 2011 Defender 110 Puma 2.4 HT Corris Grey
You can run a standard phone over CAT5 quite happily so long as you use the correct pairs (we have in places), but it's an overkill way of doing it.

Would it be possible for you to use the existing wiring as a pull cord to run some new wiring in? Would mean you didn't have to pull the floors up. You'd need to cut the existing plug off, pull the cables through then put new plugs on the new cables (easy enough to do with the correct crimpers).
Post #525919 22nd Apr 2016 11:59am
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Snowy90



Member Since: 23 Feb 2015
Location: Surrey
Posts: 482

United Kingdom 2008 Defender 90 Puma 2.4 XS CSW Fuji White
Awsome I knew you guy's would have some great suggestions, my number isn't critical but would be a pain to change so would rather not.

Martin your right the VM feed is coax but I also ran a CAT5 cable as well so I could move the route and have a few other sockets.

Cupboard your solution appeals, I don't know how the cables were fitted ie just drapped under the joists in the floor zone in which case I may be able to use them as a pull cord??? or if he drilled the joists and ran them that way in which case they would most likely bind as its a big run. When I see the builder next I will ask.

As for using the wires in a CAT 5 cable, how do I know what is used for Board band and what is spare?

in the meantime I will try and research the VOIP to mobile solution.
Post #525935 22nd Apr 2016 1:29pm
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Martin
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Member Since: 02 Apr 2007
Location: Hook Norton
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United Kingdom 2015 Defender 90 Puma 2.2 XS CSW Montalcino Red
1 Gigabit networking uses all 4 pairs in CAT5. 100 Megabit only uses 2 pairs BUT the Virgin Media hubs appear to be Gigabit devices.

Can you get another CAT5 cable or phone cable from behind your TV out to the office?

Then you can use the CAT5 under the floor and the extra CAT5 (joined) to run an extension to the office.  1988 90 Td5 NAS soft top
2015 D90 XS SW
Post #525938 22nd Apr 2016 1:38pm
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Scoobeenut



Member Since: 04 Mar 2015
Location: West London
Posts: 310

United Kingdom 2010 Defender 90 Puma 2.4 SW Santorini Black
If you have something like Vonage https://www.vonage.co.uk/how-business-phone-lines-work/ you can use a VOIP phone in the garden office over the Cat5 cable or have business calls directed to you mobile.
Post #525939 22nd Apr 2016 1:39pm
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Snowy90



Member Since: 23 Feb 2015
Location: Surrey
Posts: 482

United Kingdom 2008 Defender 90 Puma 2.4 XS CSW Fuji White
Martin

So yea I can get another CAT5 cable or phone cable from the TV to the office that is doable.

Under the floor is a single CAT5 cable that is a network cable from the super hub back around the house, primarily to the loft.
Post #525941 22nd Apr 2016 1:48pm
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Martin
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Member Since: 02 Apr 2007
Location: Hook Norton
Posts: 6519

United Kingdom 2015 Defender 90 Puma 2.2 XS CSW Montalcino Red
Ah so that CAT5 under the floor is in use?

In that case I think you may have to use it to pull another through  1988 90 Td5 NAS soft top
2015 D90 XS SW
Post #525942 22nd Apr 2016 1:50pm
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Snowy90



Member Since: 23 Feb 2015
Location: Surrey
Posts: 482

United Kingdom 2008 Defender 90 Puma 2.4 XS CSW Fuji White
Can you get another CAT5 cable or phone cable from behind your TV out to the office? YES

Then you can use the CAT5 under the floor and the extra CAT5 (joined) to run an extension to the office.[/quote]

So maybe im being thick, probably, but how do I get the phone and network down the cable under the floor?
Post #525943 22nd Apr 2016 1:50pm
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