No dial tone when Sky and phone connected via splitter on same socket.

Soldato
Joined
26 Jan 2005
Posts
7,835
Hey guys,

I seem to be having a problem with my connections since moving house...

I have a telephone socket in my living room which the Sky guy connected the sky box to, and then I connected my phone to it as well using the 'doubler' the sky chap supplied when he was installing the service.
Please note I only have Sky TV.

A few days later, a BT chap came and installed BT infinity. He moved the master socket from the living room to the study where my computer is located and the living room socket became an extension socket.
He tested everything, and the line had a dial tone when using the phone.

However, now, a few days later, there is no dial tone unless Sky is disconnected from the doubler and the phone is connected on it's own (doubler or otherwise).
I've tested the phone in other rooms sockets too, used a different phone etc, and all work when Sky is not connected. Two phones connected to the doubler work too. It's just as soon as sky is connected with another phone. It's like the phone socket has gone over it's limit or something??

A BT engineer is coming out to see it, but I was hoping someone had a solution that wouldn't involve me getting charged £130 if the engineer determines it's nothing they've done to cause the issue.

BT Infinity option 2 is working fine though!

Thanks in advance! :)
 
It's a long shot but...

I had the same problem, funnily enough just after getting BT Infinity installed too. No dialtone on any phones until the Sky box was unplugged. However my problem was actually due to the fact that I'm an idiot rather than there being any problems.

I'd had all my kit by my TV out before the BT guy came out for a tidy up and because my master socket is in that area, so when it came to getting everything plugged back in I ended up not paying any attention to the back of the Sky box and had plugged the RJ11 phone cable into the Sky box Ethernet jack instead of the phone jack. It was fine as soon as I plugged it in where it should've been ;)

I'm sure you're not as retarded as I am but I thought it was worth a mention. At the very least so I can be ridiculed ;)

If that isn't the problem I would suggest taking the Sky box to a friend's house so you can test it on a phone line there. At least that way you'll prove whether or not it's the Sky box. I very much doubt it's a problem on the phone line since your phones work fine.
 
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The Sky cable is most likely causing a short circuit in the phone circuit mate.

Plug the sky splitter in and call your phone, if it rings engaged then it is shorting out or earthing.

If BT come out to it and it is the sky splitter causing the fault they will try to charge you like £120 or something.

Adam
 
It's a long shot but...

I ended up not paying any attention to the back of the Sky box and had plugged the RJ11 phone cable into the Sky box Ethernet jack instead of the phone jack

Seen people do this very often with virgin media boxes having the same effect too
 
It's a long shot but...

I had the same problem, funnily enough just after getting BT Infinity installed too. No dialtone on any phones until the Sky box was unplugged. However my problem was actually due to the fact that I'm an idiot rather than there being any problems.

I'd had all my kit by my TV out before the BT guy came out for a tidy up and because my master socket is in that area, so when it came to getting everything plugged back in I ended up not paying any attention to the back of the Sky box and had plugged the RJ11 phone cable into the Sky box Ethernet jack instead of the phone jack. It was fine as soon as I plugged it in where it should've been ;)

I'm sure you're not as retarded as I am but I thought it was worth a mention. At the very least so I can be ridiculed ;)

If that isn't the problem I would suggest taking the Sky box to a friend's house so you can test it on a phone line there. At least that way you'll prove whether or not it's the Sky box. I very much doubt it's a problem on the phone line since your phones work fine.

I think i've just joined the exclusive club... It was plugged in via the ethernet port. I must've done it when I was adjusting the cable management on my tv stand :(

I... am... a... numpty...!

Thanks very much for the help chaps! :D
 
Just disconnect the Sky box from the phone line, it's not needed unless you use the interactive services (like pay for games, pay per view etc) and providing you can put up with 1 phone every 12 months saying "please plug it back in" then leave it out .. havent had mine connected for about 3 years except when they switched us over to HD, and then it got whipped straight back out
 
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^^this.

It's supposedly in the t&c that it's plugged in for the first 12 months, but do they ever check it? Mine has never been anywhere near a phone socket. The eng didn't even ask to connect it.
 
You don't really have to have it plugged in unless you have multiroom, in which case they do enforce it. You get 2 warnings and then they will just take the second subscription at full price via Direct Debit.
 
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