Phone that works in a power cut?

Beckipeg

Grandma lives in a house where there are frequent power cuts - not a lot we can do about that, the whole village is affected. Her problem is that when the power goes off, so does her phone. We get worried because we can't contact her, she gets worried because she can't get in touch with anyone - eg. the electricity company to report the fault!

We've tried a mobile phone kept plugged in but she struggles to use it as the buttons are too small and she can't read the display (partially sighted). Not sure if there are any 'large print' mobiles around!

She's got a normal BT line coming into the house but we haven't been able to find a phone that works in a power cut. We'd also like to have an answer phone there.

Any ideas or advice very welcome.
Thanks.

clark1982

any corded phone should work, as long as it does not require power. BT have a big button plus for £19.99 see http://www.shop.bt.com/invt/caw111 The basic rule is most corded phones will work, cordless won't (as they req power)

ManAtHome

You need a wired phone, not a wireless (DECT), or perhaps both with a splitter plug so she can wander round with the DECT and use the wired on when the power goes off. There are large-button models, about the size of an old BT phone - one here http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/search/202-4238743-8430234?search-alias=electronics&field-keywords=big%20button%20phone

Don't think you'll find an answerphone which works off batteries, but I'm sure BT do an answer service (chargeable).

Edinburghlass_2

I have a similar problem and keep a cheapo corded phone beside the telephone socket that I can plug in during a power cut. You can get a small corded phone for next to nothing nowadays but to save your Grandma having to find it, then bend down and plug in etc I would get a double socket thingy for the phone socket and keep it plugged in along with the cordless phone that she presumably uses most of the time

Alfie_E

A completely different solution would be to use an Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) that is more normally used for computer equipment. Basically, they’re just a fairly large battery with some electronics to transfer over to the battery, when the mains fails. A reasonable UPS for home use has enough power to power a computer and monitor for a about five minutes, without the mains. I’d imagine a cordless phone base station draws so little power that such a UPS would be able to power it for hours. It would also keep an answer phone powered too.

Of course, the extra simplicity of a single phone comes at a price, especially as you have to appreciate that the battery in a UPS has to be replaced every few years. I’m starting to wonder if someone doesn’t make a cordless phones that have a battery in the base station as well as the handsets. I mean, there must be plenty of places with an unreliable electricity supply.

seven-day-weekend

Der....I thought all landlines worked in a power cut. Mine do, but they are all plugged in!

Talk of being a luddite.

david29dpo

bt by law have to have a backup of 6 hours if there power goes down. you can still get cordless phones with battery backup. incidentally cable companies dont have to have a backup!