New fax machine line is easily added to phone box black and yellow wires

To add a new fax line, find the phone lines, connect to the outside box, and attach the black and yellow wires to the "R" and "G" terminals of the new phone jack. You don't need no stinkin' phone company help for adding a fax machine line.

Installing the second phone line may be easier than you think because most homes are already wired with four-conductor phone wire. Your phone is using only two of the four wires that run throughout your home leaving two wires free for the fax line.

First some facts:

Phone lines are low voltage unless the line is ringing.

Red and green are the common colors used for phone lines. Most old phone wire has four conductors (wires) of red, green, yellow and black. That will leave the black and yellow wire free for the fax line.

When purchasing phone wire, consider getting 'twisted pair' phone cable. It prevents interference from the other phone line and is much better if your fax line is ever used for computer connections.

First you need to run a line from the outside of the house (where the phone company installs the interface box) into the basement next to the existing terminal block.

Note: To prevent a needless phone company charge you should go to the interface box and plug in a phone, if you ever have trouble with the phone connection.

When you run the line into the house you need to find the existing phone wires. They usually connect to a block near where the old lines run into the house.

There should be the black and yellow wires that are not attached to anything.

You can follow the wires that run around the house and connect to the wire that runs to the room where you want to install the fax machine. Connect the black and yellow wire to the new line you ran from the interface box.

Now once in the room where the wire terminates you can remove the existing phone jack and remove the black and yellow wires. Hopefully there will be enough slack to connect the black and yellow wires to the "R" and "G" terminals on the new phone jack for the fax machine.

Though my second line is mainly for the fax, I can call out on that line to keep my main phone line free.