Use ADT system with no monitoring company?

[Tony Sivori]

I'm buying a house that has an ADT system installed. Pretty basic system,
just the front, back, and basement door, plus one motion detector.

The house is a repo, so I won't be getting any codes from the previous
owner.

I've Googled, and seen that an ADT system can often be reused with another
monitoring company. Presumably one with better service and perhaps even
better price.

But I'd like to go an even cheaper route, and have the alarm call my cell
phone. Is this possible, and if so how much might an alarm company charge
to set up the system to call my own cell phone?

 

[Carl Carlson]

I'm buying a house that has an ADT system installed. Pretty basic
system, just the front, back, and basement door, plus one motion
detector.

The house is a repo, so I won't be getting any codes from the previous
owner.

I've Googled, and seen that an ADT system can often be reused with
another monitoring company. Presumably one with better service and
perhaps even better price.

But I'd like to go an even cheaper route, and have the alarm call my
cell phone. Is this possible, and if so how much might an alarm
company charge to set up the system to call my own cell phone?

<sigh>
js

 

[Tony Sivori]

If you can find a company to do it.. maybe $65-$100 for a service call.
But you won't have much luck finding that company.

I was wondering about that. On one hand they'd obviously be costing
themselves a potential monthly income. On the other hand, they'd be
getting paid for a service call, which would be better than nothing.

BTW - The panel does not support calling cell phones.

Pardon my ignorance, but I don't understand how a cell phone number could
be different than a monitoring service number. I wouldn't be expecting any
information from the call, other than the fact that the alarm was
triggered. (I live alone, so when I'm at work or out I would not be
expecting any calls from my home number.)

 

[Carl Carlson]

Since you are the only one to get the reference, Carl, are you too
eagerly anticipating 7-27-07?

uggc://jjj.nccyr.pbz/genvyref/sbk/gurfvzcfbafzbivr/genvyre1_ynetr.ugzy
PUK73

Nah. I'll wait for the DVD.
js

 

[Carl Carlson]

"Fat Tony" D'Amico wrote:
I was wondering about that. On one hand they'd obviously be costing
themselves a potential monthly income. On the other hand, they'd be
getting paid for a service call, which would be better than nothing.

Not really.
1 Alarmcos do not make money on service, and you would not be willing to
pay the amount necessary to compensate a decent alarmco to come out and
program your panel to call your cell phone.
2 Also the alarmco will not even touch your system without a contract
limiting their liability.
3 No alarmco that I know of would waste their time doing it.
4
5 Not to mention, it won't work anyway.

Pardon my ignorance, but I don't understand how a cell phone number
could be different than a monitoring service number.

I know.

I wouldn't be
expecting any information from the call, other than the fact that the
alarm was triggered. (I live alone, so when I'm at work or out I
would not be expecting any calls from my home number.)

Why don't you do some research (Google) and do it yourself. After all, it
isn't rocket science.
js

 

[Tony Sivori]

Not when you add it up- they might make a buck or so, but rolling trucks
costs macho-dinner <funny spell check of mucho-dinero>.

Maybe. But it seems to me the only thing that costs more than rolling
trucks, is trucks and technicians sitting idle.

It's not worth their effort.




It won't work man. For several reasons.

Alright, I'll take your word for it.

Please do some research before posting something that has been addressed
many-many-many-many-many times here before.

I did. All I found was a few threads regarding reusing ADT equipment with
another alarm company.

 

[Neo]

I've Googled, and seen that an ADT system can often be reused with another

monitoring company. Presumably one with better service and perhaps even
better price.

No , ADT properitery panel cannot be used with other monitoring
companies moreover they can unlock that for you.

But I'd like to go an even cheaper route, and have the alarm call my cell
phone. Is this possible, and if so how much might an alarm company charge
to set up the system to call my own cell phone?

The panel can call your cell it will call for 32 times and then show a
Failure on the panel. Alternatively you can chek out at Radio shaks
about a audio player which on getting voltage can dial a number and
then play the recorded message repeatedly.



Neo

 

[Crash Gordon]

"Maybe. But it seems to me the only thing that costs more than rolling
trucks, is trucks and technicians sitting idle."

Common misconception...that we have techs just sitting around waiting to
work on a dead end service call on a local system. Not many alarmco's will
even work on a local. We do, because we usually recognize a conversion
sale...but we charge more for service on a local system and we fit them in
when we are in the area and have time. IOW locals are not a priority, our
monitored clients are priorty.

My guys are never sitting idle.




| "Fat Tony" D'Amico wrote:
|
| > Tony Sivori wrote:
| >>
| >>I was wondering about that. On one hand they'd obviously be costing
| >>themselves a potential monthly income. On the other hand, they'd be
| >>getting paid for a service call, which would be better than nothing.
| >
| > Not when you add it up- they might make a buck or so, but rolling trucks
| > costs macho-dinner <funny spell check of mucho-dinero>.
|
| Maybe. But it seems to me the only thing that costs more than rolling
| trucks, is trucks and technicians sitting idle.
|
| >
| > It's not worth their effort.
| >
| >
| >>> BTW - The panel does not support calling cell phones.
| >>
| >>Pardon my ignorance, but I don't understand how a cell phone number
| >>could be different than a monitoring service number. I wouldn't be
| >>expecting any information from the call, other than the fact that the
| >>alarm was triggered. (I live alone, so when I'm at work or out I would
| >>not be expecting any calls from my home number.)
| >
| >
| > It won't work man. For several reasons.
|
| Alright, I'll take your word for it.
|
| >
| > Please do some research before posting something that has been addressed
| > many-many-many-many-many times here before.
|
| I did. All I found was a few threads regarding reusing ADT equipment with
| another alarm company.
|
| --
| Tony Sivori
|

 

[Tony Sivori]

No , ADT properitery panel cannot be used with other monitoring
companies moreover they can unlock that for you.

My previous Google search indicated that ADT equipment can usually be
reused, unless "the board is locked". That search was done a few days ago
so I don't have all of the results at hand. Here's one thread that I had
previously found, see the last four paragraphs for the relevant portion:

http://tinyurl.com/yt37hj

Is the above referenced post incorrect?

The panel can call your cell it will call for 32 times and then show a
Failure on the panel. Alternatively you can chek out at Radio shaks
about a audio player which on getting voltage can dial a number and then
play the recorded message repeatedly.

Thanks, that is useful information.

 

[Tony Sivori]

Well you have choices. If you think you have enough technical know-how
you can do it yourself. You'll need to get a manual and fully
understand it - then attempt to gain access to programming.

Sounds rather time consuming. I'm working a lot of overtime, and I'm
moving into a repo house that has a lengthy list of minor "to do" projects
so my spare time is in short supply.

Or, you can attempt to find a dealer in your area that is willing to
help, but as I said - it will be difficult.

Either way - the cell phone idea will not work. You will need a
monitoring company, or a voice dialer if you desire notification.

Since the alarm is already there, I'd thought I'd make use of the hardware
if I could do so with reasonable convenience and expense. Looks like I'll
move that idea to the back burner.

Thank you for your advice.

 

[Carl Carlson]

Not me! Do you see the significance of the release date? <hint -
add the numbers>

That one eluded me.

Do you also notice all the other subtle stuff in each episode? It's
amazing how much thought goes into each production, and the references
made to ancient history. This is by far the most well thought out and
intelligent endeavor ever created for television. So many hidden
messages - it's fun to decode it.

We're talking about the Simpsons.....right?
js

 

[Carl Carlson]

Maybe. But it seems to me the only thing that costs more than rolling
trucks, is trucks and technicians sitting idle.

Uh, they're not sitting idle, they're busy servicing their monitored
clients.


js

 

[Frank Olson]

I'm buying a house that has an ADT system installed. Pretty basic system,
just the front, back, and basement door, plus one motion detector.

What's the equipment manufacturer?

The house is a repo, so I won't be getting any codes from the previous
owner.

I've Googled, and seen that an ADT system can often be reused with another
monitoring company. Presumably one with better service and perhaps even
better price.

But I'd like to go an even cheaper route, and have the alarm call my cell
phone. Is this possible, and if so how much might an alarm company charge
to set up the system to call my own cell phone?

That's do-able on some systems. We'd need more information to be able
to answer that question. There are limitations you should be aware of.
Most alarms with a "pager response" feature will only transmit the
alarm once. There's no way for the panel to know that you actually
received your page (or cell phone message). If you happen to be in an
area with "iffy" coverage, you could wind up missing the call. This
will be of no use to you if your house happens to be on fire...

 

[hayes]

But I'd like to go an even cheaper route, and have the alarm call my cell
phone.

i'd try some illegal aliens. they are cheaper. and it's not rocket science

 

[Tommy]

I'm buying a house that has an ADT system installed. Pretty basic system,
just the front, back, and basement door, plus one motion detector.

The house is a repo, so I won't be getting any codes from the previous
owner.

I've Googled, and seen that an ADT system can often be reused with another
monitoring company. Presumably one with better service and perhaps even
better price.

But I'd like to go an even cheaper route, and have the alarm call my cell
phone. Is this possible, and if so how much might an alarm company charge
to set up the system to call my own cell phone?

Even though this thread has been beaten to death, here is an answer.

Yes you can "probably" get the system changed to a local... IF you can find
someone to work on it. where are you by the way?

No you cannot have it call your cell and get anything meaningful from it.
all you would hear is a bunch of beeps and noise. you would have to add a
voice dialer as someone else mentioned. (i would give proper credit if i
could figure who is who anymore. JEEZ)

 

[Robert L Bass]

But I'd like to go an even cheaper route,
There's an easy way to do that without
reprogramming the alarm. Several companies
make automatic voice & pager dialers that are
designed to connect to an alarm system. The
dialers can call from 1 to 8 telephone numbers
and play one or more messages when triggered
by the alarm system's "bell" (siren) output.
Most of these voice dialers will also send a
digital pager message. They don't send text
though.

The user connects the dialer to the alarm
control panel's + and - 12VDC aux power
terminals and the "bell" output terminals. There
is a dial pad which is used to record up to eight
telephone numbers to be called in sequence.
A microphone in the unit allows the user to
record his own messages for different types of
alarm signals (fire, burglary, panic, etc.)

The plus side of these dialers is they're
inexpensive and easy to use. The down side is
they're not as reliable as central station
monitoring. The alarm user should decide what
level of security is appropriate to his needs. If
police response in his area is fast and his
alarm company uses a professional central
station with a good track record, 24 hour
monitoring is a worthwhile investment. If he's
in a remote location where services are sparse
or if his alarm company can't/won't do a good
job, a voice dialer may be the better choice.

When any of my DIY customers wants central
monitoring I refer them to an online dealer I
know. His company does a decent job (I
assume so since I've never heard a bad word
from anyone except their competitors).

I clients want to self-monitor, I offer one of our
voice/pager dialers. The choice is the client's
to make. Here's a URL to our page on voice/
pager alarm dialers.
http://www.bassburglaralarms.com/voice_pager_dialers_44_ctg.htm

--

Regards,
Robert L Bass

=============================>
Bass Home Electronics
941-925-8650
4883 Fallcrest Circle
Sarasota · Florida · 34233
http://www.bassburglaralarms.com
=============================>

 

[Tony Sivori]

Yes you can "probably" get the system changed to a local... IF you can
find someone to work on it. where are you by the way?

I'm in Louisville, KY.

No you cannot have it call your cell and get anything meaningful from
it. all you would hear is a bunch of beeps and noise.

Since I live alone, if the alarm were to dial my cellphone when I am away
from home I would consider that to be very meaningful information. Either
a break in or a false, one of the two.

 

[Crash Gordon]

or a test signal, trouble, ac fail, restoral, power fail, opening, closing,
etc. so if it could be forced to dump to your cell the info would not be
all that meaningful to you.





| Tommy wrote:
|
| > Yes you can "probably" get the system changed to a local... IF you can
| > find someone to work on it. where are you by the way?
|
| I'm in Louisville, KY.
|
| > No you cannot have it call your cell and get anything meaningful from
| > it. all you would hear is a bunch of beeps and noise.
|
| Since I live alone, if the alarm were to dial my cellphone when I am away
| from home I would consider that to be very meaningful information. Either
| a break in or a false, one of the two.
|
| --
| Tony Sivori
|

 

[Tommy]

I'm in Louisville, KY.

Too Far north from me.

Since I live alone, if the alarm were to dial my cellphone when I am
away from home I would consider that to be very meaningful
information. Either a break in or a false, one of the two.

But which is it? Are you going to run home every time it calls? After it
falses 4 or 5 times and you start ignoring it, the next time will be
real.

Ultimately it is your descision. Good luck either way

 

[Tony Sivori]

That's do-able on some systems. We'd need more information to be able
to answer that question. There are limitations you should be aware of.
Most alarms with a "pager response" feature will only transmit the
alarm once. There's no way for the panel to know that you actually
received your page (or cell phone message). If you happen to be in an
area with "iffy" coverage, you could wind up missing the call.

Could be, but if it is cheap enough to set up as long as false alarms
aren't a problem it would be better than nothing.