AKB: Removing old phone lines/jacks

[PSU Mike]

Apologies if this is now against board policy - mods delete if so.

My home has 15+ old phone jacks and the associated wiring, with exactly zero in use. Is there any reason I should not pull out all the bird’s nest of wiring where it all originates in the garage, and remove/patch/paint all the unsightly outlets?

 

[BW Lion]

Go for it. The wiring has zero utility.

 

[LBUfanatic]

Apologies if this is now against board policy - mods delete if so.

My home has 15+ old phone jacks and the associated wiring, with exactly zero in use. Is there any reason I should not pull out all the bird’s nest of wiring where it all originates in the garage, and remove/patch/paint all the unsightly outlets?

Just remember, there is electrical current running through those lines. It’s a small amount — akin to the voltage powering a doorbell — but it’s enough to give you a zap. The electrical current is what powered the phone when power outages occurred.

 

[s1uggo72]

You ask during an Iggles game??

 

[PSU Mike]

You ask during an Iggles game??

Sorry, I thought the Chiefs were playing.

 

[s1uggo72]

Sorry, I thought the Chiefs were playing.

They didn’t show up for the second half. Probably chasing down old phone lines

 

[PSU Mike]

They didn’t show up for the second half. Probably chasing down old phone lines

Y’know Sprint was KC-based, so you might be onto something.

 

[Nitt1300]

Just remember, there is electrical current running through those lines. It’s a small amount — akin to the voltage powering a doorbell — but it’s enough to give you a zap. The electrical current is what powered the phone when power outages occurred.

chances are that the transformer is in the garage with the bird's nest of wiring near the box

 

[PSUAVLNC]

Leaves the lines, take the cannoli

 

[bbrown]

Apologies if this is now against board policy - mods delete if so.

My home has 15+ old phone jacks and the associated wiring, with exactly zero in use. Is there any reason I should not pull out all the bird’s nest of wiring where it all originates in the garage, and remove/patch/paint all the unsightly outlets?

Ehhh just plaster over it.

 

[PSU Mike]

Ehhh just plaster over it.

There will be mashed potatoes left over Thursday …

 

[Lion84]

Why bother just leave them

 

[Obliviax]

Why bother just leave them

Agreed. I had a handful that were in bad places or just looked bad. I bought covers that had no outlets rather than sealing them up.

 

[PSU Mike]

Why bother just leave them

Lowest effort possible is also my wife-figure’s POV. Me? Are you familiar with OCD?

 

[Nitt1300]

keep them -you might need them if we have a bad sunspot event.

 

[Mr. Potter]

You can scrap the copper for a pretty penny. Had a friend that made a decent income from doing exactly what you proposed

 

[manatree]

You can scrap the copper for a pretty penny. Had a friend that made a decent income from doing exactly what you proposed

But your friend didn't have the keys.

 

[JWB389]

Agreed. I had a handful that were in bad places or just looked bad. I bought covers that had no outlets rather than sealing them up.

I did something similar with my phone and TV cable connections. I neatened everything up where it came into the house. Then I bought paintable "blank" covers at Home Depot and painted each one the color of the room. You still see the "blank" but it blends and it's not unsightly. If you need them at a later date, they're still accessible.

 

[PSU1969A]

Cheap to remove, very costly to replace especially if you sell house.

 

[Lion84]

Cheap to remove, very costly to replace especially if you sell house.

I kept mine because the alarm is hooked to it and its free in the bundle - also if the power goes out and your cell phone dies you can always plug an d landline phone in and it will work. Yeah I know PSU has a better shot getting into the CFP than that happening.

 

[PSU Mike]

I appreciate all the responses. With xfinity’s ever-changing menu prices we were offered $20 reduction to nix the land line service that my wife had wanted to keep. Even if we lose power, we couldn’t simply use the land line without reactivating voice service first. Plus, while house generator is on next year’s project list.

Also, don’t most “modern” land line handsets simply require a connection from voice modem to a base station, then all satellites use wireless connections to the base?

Also, our security system is all WiFi-based. Hard to switch seamlessly back to a wired system in 0 time.

Maybe I just backed us into a corner, but it’s where we’re at.

 

[s1uggo72]

I kept mine because the alarm is hooked to it and its free in the bundle - also if the power goes out and your cell phone dies you can always plug an d landline phone in and it will work. Yeah I know PSU has a better shot getting into the CFP than that happening.

now how does that work? if you arent paying for a land line service, then when you plug in, how do you get a dial tone?