home clinic; following the basic steps or installing extra telephones

Bernard gladstonemay 1984 this is a digital version of an article from The Times Print Archive, before it starts online in 1996.
To keep these articles as they appear initially, the Times will not change, edit, or update them.
There are occasional copywriting errors or other problems during the digitization process.
Please send a report of such issues to archid_feedback @ nytimes. com.
Since its own phone installation is now legal, more and more homeowners and apartment residents have bought their own phones and added extensions themselves, knowing that buying an extra phone now is-
Does not involve any labor costs or time charges for the increase in monthly telephone charges.
In other words, they can now facilitate the extra phone anywhere they want by connecting the wires to a new location and installing a new modular jack, and then plug in the extra phone.
As basic as all these sounds. and really is -
Some people are still confused about what they can and cannot do, and what is involved in doing additional cabling.
Some people are worried that they will be hit seriously, while others are worried that they will be in danger of fire.
When using a telephone line, neither of these is a problem. A mild (But not serious)
If the phone may ring when you hold the bare wire end in your hand, but, even then, when you actually connect the bare wire to the terminal, it can also be prevented by simply getting the phone off the hook --
Things you may not have to worry about anyway (
More information on this).
The first thing to remember is that the phone company will install-
And responsible-
The line that reaches a certain demarcation point enters the house, after which all the lines are your own.
In a fairly new device, this demarcation point is a special junction box or junction box called a network interface.
From here, there are wires on all kinds of telephones at home.
Advertising usually these wires will have some modular plugs that will be stuck in a matching socket on the interface or modular jack.
If the phone company connects the wire from here to a variety of phones, then it may do this by \"hard wire --
That is, by connecting the wires directly to the terminals inside the interface instead of inserting the terminals.
In most homes or apartments that now have only one phone, the demarcation point is the terminal block or Jack of the phone-
The company is already related to this, which is where it is responsible (
And the cost of wiring every month)will end.
At any time, you can add cabling to the extension after this, but there is a limit: you must not connect to an existing demarcation point (
Terminal, Jack or interface)
By \"hard wiring \"-
That is, by connecting directly to the device of the telephone company.
You have to connect with a modular plug (
The idea is that if one of your phones or wires has a problem with the phone company, you can unplug the wires quickly).
If your junction box is one of the old styles and the phone line is stretched out from the side and cannot be unplugged, then the first step is to convert it to a modular jack.
This can be achieved by providing a special converter cover with a modular socket for the phone.
These modular jack converters are available from local phone company stores as well as phone stores and e-supply stores.
They came with installation instructions.
Please click on the box to verify that you are not a robot.
The email address is invalid. Please re-enter.
You must select the newsletter you want to subscribe.
View all New York Times newsletters.
To be able to plug the phone into a modular jack, the phone must have a wire with a modular plug at the end.
If not, you have to buy a different phone or change the wires from the phone to the modular plug.
If you don\'t have a phone, bring it back to the phone company and change it to a new model.
If you do own this phone and want to use the same phone, buy a new phone line with a modular plug.
You can then disconnect the old wire and replace it with the new one.
If you had an old phonestyle four-
Insert the plug into the end of the wire and put it into the jack with matching holes, then you can purchase a special plug
In the converter that converts the old Jack to a modular jack.
It has four pins to match the pins on your old Jack, but there is a modular socket on the surface.
You plug it into your old Jack and then plug the phone line into the modular socket in front.
Now that the conversion to modular has been completed, the next question is: how to add additional wires to the extended phone?
The best way is to buy a special wire junction box with a short wire and a modular plug at the far end.
There is a patch board on which you can connect up to four different sets of telephone lines (
Four different mobile phones).
The terminal is colored.
Coding to match the standard four colors
Conductor telephone lines, so there won\'t be any problem connecting them properly.
You install the junction box near the demarcation point (
Modular Jack or interface installed by telephone company)
, Then insert its wires into the wall jack or modular socket on the interface.
You can then connect the wires to all the other phones around the house (
Actually, you will connect all the wires first and plug them in).
Another way to do the same without using the wire junction box is to unplug the phone from the modular jack and insert a special T-
Connector or duplex Jack.
This plug is inserted into the existing modular jack on the wall with two modular sockets on the front.
In one plug, you plug in the original phone, and in the other plug, you plug in a wire with a modular plug that leads to the next phone.
This wire of varying length is available for sale in many telephone stores, electronic supply stores, and some hardware stores.
A little heart.
This will apply to mobile phones with only one line (
A phone number)
No hold button, \"call-
Service and similar improvements.
These features may complicate the installation, so please get in touch with your local phone company before adding extensions to such systems.
Reply to email Q.
We want to take a walk instead of a brick slate.
We plan to simply dig a trench, level it, and then put the bricks on the sand with sand.
Should we know what the trap is? Can you use any kind of outdoor brick? -J. J.
In Stamford, Conn. A .
You should make sure the trench is deep enough to allow at least three to 4 inch of sand under the brick to ensure proper drainage.
If your soil contains a lot of clay and poor drainage, it may also be a good idea to lay two or 3 inch more gravel in this case.
You also have to install some sort of permanent boundary on the edge to prevent the sand from being sifted along the edge.
One such boundary would be a brick on the edge, half of which would be buried underground;
Another type of border can be made by half
Buried pressure-
Treated planks along both sides (
The board should be set at the edge).
As far as bricks are concerned, all bricks are used outdoors, so almost any type of brick should work well. Q .
There is plaster cement outside my house that needs to be painted.
I was told to avoid using latex paint and only use cement paint on plaster, but I can\'t find any such paint for sale in the local store.
Is there any special paint for plaster? -L. Z. , Hastings-on-Hudson, N. Y. A .
I don\'t know who told you to avoid using latex paint;
There are many latex paint that are specially designed for the surface of concrete, plaster and similar masonry.
Just make sure you follow the instructions on the container about mixing and preparing the old surface.
Also, if your plaster has never been painted before, just buy a small amount and apply it to a small area as a test.
Let this weather last for several months before you continue the whole house.
The reason for this caution is that certain types of plaster used a few years ago can\'t hold paint at all, so this test will help determine if you have this plaster.
Questions about house repairs should be addressed to Bernard Gladstone of The New York Times, 229 West 43d Street, New York. Y. 10036.
This column will answer questions of general interest;
Unpublished letters cannot be answered separately.
A version of this article was printed on page LI11 of the National edition on May 27, 1984 with the title: Family Clinic;
Follow the basic steps or install additional calls.