Landline closure?

[#1]

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@pvmb wrote:

In the fullness of time it is not too fanciful to think there may be deaths. Then the newspapers will be full of headlines such as "Why weren't we told?", "How could BT let this OAP die alone at home?".

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It's starting! And nobody has died yet, AFAIK.

Grandmother, 78, has landline number used for more than 50 years cut off after ringing BT to end her broadband package so she could pay for husband's care

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12623615/Grandmother-78-rang-BT-cut-broadband-package-pay-h...

Brenda Rowles, 78, had landline number changed after cancelling BT broadband

[#2]

I've been trialling an emergency phone solution for the past few weeks, to try and find something that will allow 999 and emergency calls to still be made after the shutdown of the PSTN. Not a particularly easy thing to set up, if I'm honest.  Using our VDSL/FTTC broadband connection isn't good enough, as the cabinet stops working about half an hour into a power cut (and we've had three power cuts here since the start of autumn already).

The solution I think is best for us is an outdoor, roof mounted, high gain, directional antenna mobile router (need this as we can't get a mobile signal on a phone here) coupled with a Grandstream VOIP adapter that is connected to our landline phones.  I set up an account with A&A (as Plusnet aren't doing telephony any more) which was straightforward and easy to set up (and cheap).  I have a £5/month data only SIM card in the mobile router, which is overkill, as it allows 3Gb/month, way more than we'll ever need for phone calls.

We are fortunate in that the only mobile mast I can get this system to connect to has a big generator to keep it going during power cuts.  Combined with the battery backup system I have that powers the phones, ATA, 4G router etc this will give us a (hopefully) reliable emergency phone system. 

All told it's a lot of faffing around though, not to mention significant additional expense.  I've so far spent several hundred pounds just to get a reliable VOIP phone, even using some second hand parts to reduce the cost and re-using our existing landline phones.  I still have a phone on our Plusnet package, and would like to transfer the number we've had for years to A&A as a VOIP number, but despite statements that this "should" be possible there still seem to be many instances of people losing their number.  Hopefully number porting may become more reliable the closer we get to the PSTN shutdown.

[#3]

JSHarris, can you tell me what mobile antenna and router you have please?

I purchased one quite some time ago because the signal is weak around here, but the power adaptor got so hot when it was switched on, that I dared not leave it unattended. I ended up sending it back! I would be interested in a decent (and safe!) replacement.

[#4]

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@Batphone wrote:

JSHarris, can you tell me what mobile antenna and router you have please?

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I ended up with a Mikrotik LHG LTE6.  It's a small dish antenna with an integral router that runs from power over Ethernet along the data cable (makes installation easy).  I have this mounted on a 1.8 metre pole bolted to the gable end of our house, so I can get a half decent chance of getting a signal.

It's not fantastic in terms of download speed (max is about 8Mb/s) but is more than good enough for web browsing and running a VOIP phone.  The latter will allegedly work as long as the speed is above about 0.5Mb/s I've been told.

Relatively easy to install.  I made up a template from an Ordnance Survey map so I could be sure to point the antenna straight at the mast (can't see it, as it's behind a hill and about 1.6 miles away).  The unit has the advantage of having the router very close (just a few tens of mm) from the antennas, so losses are low.  Main disadvantage is that to get at the SIM card means taking the antenna down, as it's under a cover on the front of the thing.

[#5]

Thanks for the info. Having both a landline closure and mobile services closure at the same time has made it necessary to consider all alternatives. I know that in terms of the mobile contract, PN are encouraging a move the EE, but given the current fiasco, the last thing I want is to take up a new contract with another BT owned company. The only other network with a signal that just about reaches us in some parts of the house and possibly worth considering is O2. I am therefore considering renewing my mobile contract with Tesco mobile. I haven't yet looked into the likes of GiffGaf, Lebara etc We have had landline/broadband outages this year and with the last one the BT engineer told me that the aluminium cables in the ducts along the street were deteriorating and he had to switch our service to another pair. I am not sure whether that's just to the DSLAM in the street or all the way to the exchange, but in any case, I would like the option of a mobile network solution as a backup. In the end I may have no choice but to go with EE, but as I said, at this time it is necessary to consider ALL scenarios and ALL alternatives.

I am also planning to purchase (as per BT rep advice) a standby power supply (battery backup) in some form, probably APC, to provide power to the router kit in the event of a power failure, and have sorted out VOIP so plans are well in hand for the demise of the landline. Curiously, following the BT event that my elderly mum was invited to back in June as a PN customer (I attended in her place), I haven't heard anything further regarding what's happening with her landline yet nor have I been contacted by the council regarding her lifeline, as was indicated by the BT rep. Both contracts (hers and mine) run out in May 2024, so we have a little time yet but I want to be ready for when that happens.

[#6]

Only two mobile operators we can use here (and then only with a high gain antenna on a pole on top of the house) are O2 and Vodafone.  I went with a Lebara SIM (uses Vodafone's network) and it seems fine.  I first tested the antenna and router set up using the O2 PAYG SIM from my phone and that worked fine as well. 

Nothing at all to choose between Vodafone and O2 here, but we have no signal from EE or 3 so I didn't consider either of them.  EE is generally poor around here, except in towns.  Get into the countryside and it seems as if EE's coverage just disappears.

Lebara seem OK, not had the SIM long enough to be sure, but I did get a second one and put it in my phone to replace the O2 PAYG, only because their cheapest SIM allows WiFi calling, whereas the O2 PAYG SIMs don't.  Seems very good, not a big data allowance but that's fine for me, as I rarely use my mobile phone anyway.

I was lucky as we have a big house battery that can supply power when we get a power cut.  That takes a second or two to switch over, so to keep the router etc going I bought a fairly low capacity APC uninterruptible power supply.  Not that expensive, although it doesn't have a long run time.  Looking at it though it seems very easy to add a larger external battery.  Mine came with the internal battery disconnected for shipping and it struck me that it would be very easy to just extend the internal battery wires outside the unit and connect them to a larger sealed 12V battery.

[#7]

I also started to use Lebara earlier this year when they introduced their new pricing. Vodafone have the best signal where I live so I need to use one of their MVNOs.