BT Slave Outlet (extension)

[Juliette]

Hi,

I had a landline installed around the start of the pandemic. The Bt engineer couldn't come in due to covid protocols and did all the work from outside. he got the master socket and line (in the bedroom) working but seemed unable to get my extension socket (in the lounge) to work.

I have been changing to a wired connection (due to health reasons) and the extension socket in the lounge is exactly where I need the router etc to go. I asked BT for an engineer to come again and take a look at the extension socket from inside the flat, now they could come in.  But they said the engineer would have done all they could from the outside at installation and it would be no use them coming again as they wouldn't be able to get the extension working.

I queried why was there a second socket there at all if it couldn't work? the flats are about 15 years old and all pre installed with a BT master socket and Openreach socket in the bedroom and a BT slave outlet in the lounge.  BT said sometimes second extensions are built in to flat blocks that don't work, can be due to wiring or something.

I have asked our concierge if other people can't get their extension to work and she said she wasn't aware that this was something that was a problem for others in the block.

Would someone be able to tell me if an engineer coming in to look at the extension from the inside would help get the socket to work or was the lady on the BT phone line correct, in that I would make no difference and they wouldn't be able to get it to work? I want to find out as I need to buy a couple of 15 - 20m long cables  to link from the bedroom to the lounge otherwise and wanted to be certain before I didn't this.

Thanks Juliette

[imjolly]

If your extension socket worked before engineer visit then should be able to get it to work now but any extension sockets are the house holders responsibility and not openreach and probably why engineer was not interested in your extension.  You can just look in local paper and get a telecom engineer to fix your extension.  Obviously at your own cost

[Juliette]

thanks jolly. I rent the flat and the previous tenants had never had the landline connected. so the landline had never been connected before so no one would know if it worked prior. I moved in to the flat about 7 years after they were built.

It wasn't that the engineer wasn't interested in the extension socket - the engineer did actually try to get the extension socket  working from outside but said he couldn't get it working. He was asking me to put telephones in both of the master and slave sockets. (Btw the flats telephone sockets are all built connected to BT - they are labelled BT sockets etc)

do you believe getting another telecoms engineer would be able to get it working then? even when the initial one couldn't only from outside 

I have read somewhere that on installation the engineer can set up extensions for no extra cost. which is what I was asking but he wasn't able to come in, only work from outside.

thanks

[licquorice]

@As@@imjolly has already said, any internal wiring of extension sockets is your responsibility. If you ask BT to do the work it will be much more expensive than getting somebody local to do it for you 

[imjolly]

The engineer when fitting broadband will only make sure connection/broadband is working.  Any extensions are responsibility of the home owner/occupant 

The obviously thing is to check the wiring at master socket and that extension wiring is connected to terminals 2&5

[rbz5416]

Have a look at this & then check your wiring.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WE42ijT25l4