Phone won't work after storm but internet still does

Posts: 2 · New Forum Member Joined: Aug 18, 2006 Posts: 2

After a recent storm, we lost our telephone service through Vonage. We have no dialtone and it doesn't ring when people call. The internet still works though. We thought it might be the router that got zapped by lightning but we bought another Vonage router off of ebay and when we plug that in....nothing works. The phone and internet both are dead.

I am now wondering if I am dealing with the new (ebayed) router is a bum router OR is that also detecting that there's a problem? AND how in the world do I just get this fixed? If it's not the router, what else could it be and where would I begin to troubleshoot, replace, reset or fix things?

Thanks!

Posts: 25 · Vonage Forum Junior Joined: Jul 19, 2005 Posts: 25

If the router part works, then it is not the router. If the phone does not work, and you have not activated with Vonage, then it will never work. You still need to activate with Vonage the new equipment, before it will work.

I would reboot everything, and make sure that each piece is working, and work from there.

Posts: 493 · Vonage Forum Evangelist Joined: Apr 29, 2005 Posts: 493

Have you activated the new device?
http://vonage.com/retail_subscribe/

If you plug the phone into phone jack 2 of your old device do hear anything?

Posts: 2257 · Posted: Fri Aug 18, 2006 10:34 pm Post subject:

First, it's HIGHLY unlikely that you can transfer your account to the eBay device, or set up a new account with it, or do much of anything Vonage-related. Vonage does not usually allow you to reactivate equipment that has been previously used by someone else. Don't ask me why, they just don't.

You may be able to call Vonage and have the line transferred to the PHONE2 port, if that hasn't fried. Vonage devices seem to be very sensitive to lightning. I've got mine on a UPS, and I still freak out and unplug it from everything when a lightning storm comes through. Wink

Posts: 2 · New Forum Member Joined: Aug 18, 2006 Posts: 2

Thanks for all the help! It did turn out that Vonage couldn't activate this "new" router until the previous owners called in to have it removed from their account. I am now trying to get them to do that. In the meantime, I did ask them to switch the services to port 2 on the current router and that has worked.

Thanks for everyone's help!

Posts: 508 · Posted: Sun Aug 20, 2006 12:01 pm Post subject:

that exact same thing happened to me, over a year ago.. had a big thunder storm, the next morning my phone didn't work anymore.. the light was solid, and the router web page said it was active.. I called in to vonage from my cell and had them switch to port 2, and it has worked fine..

what i found was that my home telephone wiring was not properly grounded, so I spent some time and grounded all my services, (phone, cable, electric) all together.. doing that cleared up line static, and over the last year, the device has made it through many lighting storms since then..