Alarm System (Phone Line) & Vonage

Posts: 1 · New Forum Member Joined: Aug 05, 2009 Posts: 1

I just signed up for Vonage, and forgot I have an alarm system that uses a phone line to dial out...

Should I pay for the Vonage proffesional installation, or contact my alarm company (a lsmall, local one) to come out and modify what is required to make this work via Voip?

Opiniions, before I start to contact people?

Posts: 227 · Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 7:17 pm Post subject:

I work part-time as a field technician for the company that does installations for Vonage. Their instructions for their installers are very clear: if the customer has an alarm system connected to the telephone wiring, just connect the ATA to the customer's broadband, and connect one telephone set to the ATA. Test and demonstrate that calls can be made and received from that telephone. Don't touch the premises phone wiring at all. Encourage the customer to contact the alarm company and have the alarm system modified to use wireless or broadband.

If the alarm is not connected to the telephone wiring, then the goal is to activate the customer's wiring, providing Vonage service to all existing telephone jacks. Installation of additional jacks is offered at extra cost.

The rationale is simple: Vonage and the installation company do not want liability for the failure of an alarm system to report an emergency.

In practice, I have often found cases where the customer ordered Vonage service, ported the phone number, and left their phone lines dead, or with DSL and no dial tone, and never gave a thought to the alarm. In these cases, we fully document that the customer rendered the alarm inoperative, but we are still not permitted to activate the house wiring while the alarm is connected to it.

Posts: 183 · Posted: Tue Aug 25, 2009 4:10 pm Post subject:

I'm a little late in the game, been away, but yes my alarm dials through Vonage just fine. The ATA connects to a RJ31X jack on the alarm panel and then goes out from the alarm panel to the rest of the house just like the wiring pre-vonage. I have a cellular backup on the alarm in case the Vonage ever took a dump but it never seems to have an issue.

Posts: 4 · Posted: Fri Sep 25, 2009 6:23 pm Post subject:

Being an installer for alarm systems, ksig is right. You just have to wire the line from the ATA to your existing RJ31X jack. If your not comfortable with doing this yourself. I would suggest you call your alarm installer to do so.

Posts: 1 · New Forum Member Joined: Apr 25, 2010 Posts: 1

My Guardian Alarm System is showing a FC "Failure Connection" message in the Display. To follow your instructions, do you mind telling me what ATA means? Do I need an adapter? What type of cable (Phone or Ethernet)? Thank you,