topic Re: Dialling tone continues after number is dialled. in Home Phone

Dialling tone continues after number is dialled.

JohnRB — Wed, 10 Jun 2020 12:23:57 GMT

Occasionally my corded landline phone continues the dialling tone after I have dialled the number. My upstairs phone occasionally has the same problem. When it happens, the call doesn't connect and I have to retry, often several times, before I can make the call. Does anyone know if this might be an internal wiring or handset problem, or is it possibly some issue with the line?

Re: Dialling tone continues after number is dialled.

flanzm — Wed, 10 Jun 2020 14:51:13 GMT

Only way to tell is disconnect the internal wiring and check with a corded phone from the test socket on the master socket. If you get the same fault with one corded phone check with the other one.

If you get the fault with both phones at the master socket I would imagine it's a line fault. I would make sure you have used a process of elimination to narrow down the fault before raising as a line fault.

Re: Dialling tone continues after number is dialled.

JohnRB — Wed, 10 Jun 2020 15:24:51 GMT

Thank you, Flanzm. I am wary of tampering with the internal wiring. The problem is intermittent and is intermittent on two different corded sets on two different sockets; one is the phone half of a double master socket and one is upstairs on an internally wired extension. Both sockets were inspected and tested when Plusnet was first installed here in Dec 2019. If I tested as you suggest it wouldn't really help if the phone works because it usually does work, and if it doesn't work then it already sometimes doesn't work. I know an intermittent fault is a pain to diagnose, but do you have any hunches about where the problem might lie?

Re: Dialling tone continues after number is dialled.

198kHz — Wed, 10 Jun 2020 17:06:00 GMT

@JohnRB

It would be highly unlikely if both phones were at fault.

The fact that you're getting dial tone rather than a wrong number or "the number you have dialled has not been recognised" announcement suggests that the exchange is intermittently not responding to dialled digits.

99% sure it's not house wiring or line.

Re: Dialling tone continues after number is dialled.

JohnRB — Wed, 10 Jun 2020 18:36:48 GMT

Thank you, 198. Can you advise what I should do? Is it something I should report to Plusnet, or BT? Or do I live with it? It doesn't prevent me from contacting the outside world, just makes it inconvenient when it happens.

Re: Dialling tone continues after number is dialled.

198kHz — Wed, 10 Jun 2020 19:13:40 GMT

If you report it, it would be to Plusnet, your service provider.

They appear to have no mechanism to directly pass it to BT, but only to their "supplier" ie Openreach.

In all likelihood an engineer would attend, and be unlikely to locate the problem if it's so intermittent.

Personally I wouldn't bother unless unless it develops into a more serious problem.

Re: Dialling tone continues after number is dialled.

JohnRB — Wed, 10 Jun 2020 19:22:30 GMT

Thanks, 198. I think I'll live with it unless it gets worse. I appreciate your input, and that of Franzm.