Corded phone incoming calls don't ring

Can anyone explain why a corded phone will not ring for incoming calls? We have two sites with BT lines, each line having two pairs but only one pair connected to the master socket. Cordless phones/answering machines and ADSL BB work perfectly on both sites. However, there are a couple of power failures each year so the subscribers keep a corded phone to plug into the master for emergency use. The corded phones work fine but do not ring out for an incoming call.

Maybe it's something to do with the ring wire often mentioned on this site? Being rural areas, the mobile signal is not very good so the landline is important.

In reply to a post by Malwaremike:

Can anyone explain why a corded phone will not ring for incoming calls? We have two sites with BT lines, each line having two pairs but only one pair connected to the master socket. Cordless phones/answering machines and ADSL BB work perfectly on both sites. However, there are a couple of power failures each year so the subscribers keep a corded phone to plug into the master for emergency use. The corded phones work fine but do not ring out for an incoming call.

Maybe it's something to do with the ring wire often mentioned on this site? Being rural areas, the mobile signal is not very good so the landline is important.

Almost certainly. I have said before that there are still a large number of phones available that require a separate ring wire, there are others who just dismiss that idea.

One way round it is to get a dangly filter and use that with the phone - some work and some do not. Or just reconnect the ring wire.

Edited by MHC (Fri 14-Oct-16 17:44:08)

It IS possible that this is due to a fault, duff exchange equipment, possible, but unlikely.

As MHC suggests, it is more like likely that you have disconnected the ringing circuit by just using 5 and 2 to the extension.

You have checked that someone hasn't just switched of the ringer function on the handsets haven't you ? Look on the base normally.

Problem solved. Acting on your posts I found the corded phones in both homes will ring for incoming calls ONLY when plugged into the master socket which I think is NTE5. They won't ring when plugged into the extension socket, but as the corded units are only for emergencies this is acceptable. Many thanks for your advice.

Are your corded phones "ancient" compared with the other devices that ring on the extension?

Must try the corded phone that I retain for similar purposes.

He had dissed off the bell wire between the master and the extension, as folk often do, and in doing so remorovddvthe source of the ring current to the extension.

In reply to a post by Zarjaz:

He had dissed off the bell wire between the master and the extension, as folk often do, and in doing so remorovddvthe source of the ring current to the extension.

Not so. The ring voltage is presented across the A and B wires and is therefore present at all extensions.

OP. For devices that expect a ring voltage between the ring wire and the A leg the following faults could be present...

1. Short between the A leg and the ring wire.
2. Disconnected Ring wire.
3. Swapped A and B legs to the extensions.

The only reason the ring wire exists on UK circuits is to prevent bell tinkle.
Modern devices do this by suitable filtering of the ring signal present across the A and B pair such that ring detectors don't respond to inductive EMF.

One fix is to just supply A & B to all extension sockets and fit masters at each.

Edited by Eeeps (Sun 16-Oct-16 19:54:05)

Anybody for popcorn?

One fix is to just supply A & B to all extension sockets and fit masters at each.

Oh dear .................

In reply to a post by Eeeps:

One fix is to just supply A & B to all extension sockets and fit masters at each.

Ye Gods!

Might be fine as long as you have no intention of wanting broadband or happy with substandard broadband. As for the FTTC level of broadband, forget it!

Eeeps you have just given by far the worst advice I've heard on hear since joining in 2008. Please tell me you do not have masters all over the place?

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

In reply to a post by Eeeps:

One fix is to just supply A & B to all extension sockets and fit masters at each.

Ye Gods!

Might be fine as long as you have no intention of wanting broadband or happy with substandard broadband. As for the FTTC level of broadband, forget it!

I can't really see the problem. Each master socket presents an additional impedance between the legs of 470k. Are you saying that this is the problem?

This arrangement also means the two legs are properly balanced rather than having the imbalance caused by the ring wire hanging off the b leg.

The key aspect of this arrangement is that the ring wire must not be used and left disconnected.
Indeed for the OP, if he only has one phone that uses the ring wire then this is the only extension that needs to have master circuitry (i.e. the 1.8uF capacitor and the 470K resistor).

In reply to a post by ukhardy07:

Eeeps you have just given by far the worst advice I've heard on hear since joining in 2008. Please tell me you do not have masters all over the place?

Why 'worst advice' - please explain your reasoning?

Please see my other post for mine.

Do you have a Masters?

Indeed for the OP, if he only has one phone that uses the ring wire then this is the only extension that needs to have master circuitry (i.e. the 1.8uF capacitor and the 470K resistor).

Answered correctly by MHC yesterday.

One way round it is to get a dangly filter and use that with the phone - some work and some do not. Or just reconnect the ring wire.

Or install a filtered extension socket, which will provide a ring facility without a ring wire, as it contains the XF-1e dangly filter circuitry.

In reply to a post by Eeeps:

I can't really see the problem. Each master socket presents an additional impedance between the legs of 470k. Are you saying that this is the problem?

WRONG. I suggest you go back to basics and do the calculations.

The corded phones are five or six years old. They are BT Duet and the box proclaims they are Proudly Designed in England. Slight disappointment to find the Made in China label on the phone itself ...

MHC named the problem straight away as there is no ring wire connected from the master which has (I think) filtered faceplate in both houses. I took the cover off and found the corded phone worked from the test socket, then refitted the cover and found the outer phone socket worked too. It's just the extension that will not ring although the corded phone will make outgoing calls from it, and the cordless base stations work fine.

Given that the corded phone is only for mains power outage, there's no problem in using only the master when the lights go out. Thank you again for your advice.