It's a question that has been asked over and over again in the wake of major power outages: do landlines still work without power? The answer, as it turns out, is a little bit complicated. Landlines do technically still work without power - but only if you have a battery backup system or if your phone company has an emergency power supply. If neither of those things are in place, then your landline will not work during a power outage.
Community Phone offers an innovative landline phone service that works without power. It connects to cellular networks in your area, eliminating the needs for an internet or copper wire connection. Its landline base offers a 12-hour battery backup. This ensures it keeps working when the power goes out, enabling round-the-clock communications.
Download our brochure below to learn how to upgrade your landline for cheaper with Community Phone.
This article will walk you through types of landline phones and which ones work without power. We’ll also look at the benefits of phones that offer a built-in battery. In addition, you’ll find why traditional copper landlines are no longer effective – sounds bad but it’s true. Let’s dive in.
Do Landlines Work Without Electricity?
Whether or not your landline will function without power depends upon its network – wired or wireless:
Traditional Cordless Phones – NO
Though your landline provider will offer electricity backup for your landline phone, your landline won’t work if you use a cordless phone. It’s because the power offered by your phone provider isn’t sufficient to create a wireless network between your handset and the phone system. So, cordless phones backed by a traditional landline service won’t be functional – but with a provider like Community Phone, it’ll work.
Traditional Corded Phones – YES
The corded landline phones don’t require electricity to run. Landline services offer enough current through copper cables to power your wired phone. This means if you have a wired landline phone, it’ll keep working when the power runs out, without needing a power backup.
However, note that traditional corded phones are still not a good option for a few reasons. Firstly, their data transmission rates are quite limited. Secondly, FCC will no longer limit telecommunication companies to offer copper wire landlines from August 2, 2022. As copper landlines are retiring soon, they’re not a great long-term solution for anyone.
That’s where innovative landline services like Community Phone come in, presenting a long-term phone service solution. Keep on reading to learn more about Community Phone.
Best Landline Service That Works During Power Outages
Traditional landlines work during power outages, but with the FCC order 19-72 allowing carriers to retire copper connections nationwide, companies will no longer support traditional phones. You will have to subscribe to internet-based phone services, which will go down when there is a network or power outage.
Your best bet in the current scenario is to switch to Community Phone, a cheap landline phone service that provides
1. The reliability of a traditional landline
2. The freedom of wireless access, and
3. The ability to stay connected during power outages.
With solid coverage across 99% of the US and excellent voice quality in rural and low-reception areas, Community Phone is the best landline service for you.
How Community Phone Provides Service During Power Outages
The Community Phone landline base connects your home or business phone to cell towers in your area. Since it does not depend on the internet, your phones will continue to work during internet or network outages and maintenance. Unlike VoIP services, the Community Phone landline base has a 12-hour backup battery that ensures your phones continue to work during a power outage.
VoIP services will go down during a power outage even if you have power in your cordless phone, as the network would go down. This limitation of VoIP services can leave you stranded during emergencies or when you are trying to check on loved ones during inclement weather. Here’s a quick video on how the Community Phone landline base works:
Enjoy the reliability, excellent call quality, and outstanding features like call forwarding, voicemail, spam call blocking, call waiting, and 3-way calling at affordable prices when you get a new number or switch providers to Community Phone. Read on to learn more!
Community Phone Features
Get the best out of your landline with these Community Phone features:
1. Call Forwarding
Forward incoming calls to another number when you cannot answer calls from your landline. You can set conditions to customize the call forwarding feature to enable flexibility when working from home or constantly traveling for business.
Community Phone’s versatile conditional call forwarding allows you to program several numbers to ring simultaneously so that you can answer the call from the nearest number. You can also forward calls to a second number if the first number does not answer within a specific time frame.
Talk to a landline specialist to learn more!
2. Call Waiting
Never miss important calls from loved ones or when working from home with the call waiting feature. Two beeps will alert you of an incoming call when you are engaged on one call. This alert allows you to place the first call on hold and talk on the second one or route it to voicemail.
3. Caller ID
Opt for the caller ID feature so the recipient can see your number or name when you make outbound calls. This feature can help loved ones answer your call or return missed calls without mistaking them as spam.
Engage your customers and build credibility when you display your caller ID on outbound calls. This feature will also help customers engage with your business without mistaking or blocking your calls as spam.
4. Spam Call Blocking
Americans lost an average of over $500 per person to phone scams in 2021. With phone scams on the rise, blocking spam calls manually after receiving them, *60, or phone features will be inefficient, time-consuming, and unhelpful.
It would be best to block unwanted and unlawful spam calls automatically before your phone rings to get maximum protection from spam. Get the Community Phone spam blocker, which automatically blocks over 6 million spam calls. Talk to a landline specialist about the whitelist and blacklist services to protect yourself or your business from scams.
Call Community Phone to learn more about various features and how to customize them for personal or business use.
Why Get Community Phone?
Enjoy several benefits when you get a new number or port your existing number to Community Phone. Here are some at a glance:
Unlimited nationwide calling: Stay in touch with loved ones nationwide with unlimited minutes. If you are a business, use these unlimited minutes to run customer outreach, feedback calls, marketing campaigns, and more. The options are endless!
Use your existing phone: The Community Phone landline base is compatible with all phone models, unlike VoIP services. So you do not have to buy a separate phone to start using Community Phone services once you sign up.
30-second setup: You or anyone can set up the Community Phone landline base in under 30 seconds by connecting it to a power outlet and phone. No more expensive and messy technician-led installations!
Works during power outages: The 12-hour backup battery in the landline base ensures your phones work during power outages, unlike VoIP phones that will go down during network and power outages.
No internet or copper wire connection needed: Community Phone works by connecting your home or business phone to cell towers in your area, eliminating the need for high-speed internet or copper connections.
Benefits of Landline Phones With Battery Backup
Most modern-day phone systems come with built-in batteries for numerous benefits, such as:
1. Supports Your Needs During Blackouts
It’s obvious that landline phones with battery backup enable communications during power outages or breakouts. They’re a great solution for remaining in contact with your family & friends round-the-clock, regardless of blackouts. Plus, they’re effective for businesses that want to maintain good customer relationships by providing 24/7 customer support.
2. No Downtime
Hands down the best thing about battery-enabled landline phones is the minimal landline downtime. This means you’ll never be disconnected from the world – your family, friends, colleagues, emergency helplines, local shops, customer support services, and whatnot. The zero downtime will be a bonus if you’re a business as your support service will be available all the time.
3. Very Reliable in Emergency Situations
The slightest hurricanes and wind storms can disturb electric connections and cause power breakouts. Worst of all, you may not be able to fix your electricity fluctuation until the emergency is over. If you don’t have any other power backup, you might have to survive without phone calls until that time. A battery-based phone enables consistent communication even during emergencies.
4. Protection Against Power Variance
If your electricity current keeps fluctuating, it may fry out your electronic appliances and gadgets – including your telephone. A good way to deal with power variance is by using a landline phone that packs a built-in battery. This way, you’ll be able to set your phone to use the built-in battery until the current stabilizes.
5. Confidence
Whether you’re a business or everyday user, having a battery-based phone will give you peace of mind – knowing power outages won’t affect your communications.
How Copper-Wired Landlines Work When Power Is Out?
We all know that the traditional landline phones keep working even when the electricity runs out – be it for a short or prolonged period.
First of all, note that landlines require very less power to keep working. It generally falls between 6 and 12 volts of current at 30 milliamps or less. But when the power runs out at your end, it runs out 100%. So, how does a landline phone keep working?
Well, your landline service provider offers a dedicated copper wire connection for your telephone. The electricity comes through the telephone line and provides power for your telephone, as long as it’s corded. If your handset is wireless, you’ll need another power source to have your phone working during a power outage.
Generally speaking, phone service providers have extensive battery power systems at their offices to provide round-the-clock electricity regardless of power outages. This helps them ensure a 100% landline network uptime and results in a more pleasant user experience for customers.
That said, the copper wire cables used to provide electricity are generally disaster-proof – they’re buried to protect them from storms and hurricanes. So, to conclude, copper-wired landlines are fully functional during power outages if you have a wired phone. But wireless handsets require an electricity backup to run.
Why Copper Wired Landlines Are Not a Long-Term Solution
However, note that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has permitted large telephone providers to cease their copper-wired landline services from August 2, 2022. Many big phone services have already switched to cellular and internet-based landlines due to their lower costs and easier setups.
If you’re seeking a landline service that works during power outages, go for a cellular landline service like Community Phone. Unlike internet-based landline providers, Community Phone’s landline works as long as your nearby cell tower is operational.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a telephone line shock you?
The electric current running through telephone lines is only 48 volts. This is not enough to cause a shock. Still, telephone lines can be harmful to the artificial cardiac pacemaker – a device that’s implanted into the chest to control the heartbeat. But for everyday users the current passing through these lines is negligible.
How much electricity do traditional landline phones use?
The landline phones are functional as long as they get an electric current of between 6 and 12 volts at a 30 milliamps rate of flow. Landline phone services are generally connected to copper cables for power, provided by your landline service vendor.
Which is better: cordless or corded phone?
A corded phone is more reliable whereas a cordless phone is more convenient. If you want your telephone to be functional during emergencies and power breakouts, use a corded phone. But if portable and convenient conversations are your utmost concern, a cordless phone might be a good solution.
Final Words
Whether a landline works without power or not depends upon the network of its phone. If you have a wired landline phone, it’ll keep working when the power runs out because of the power provided by your landline vendor. But this current is not enough to power a wireless phone. So, a wired landline phone works without power but a wireless phone doesn’t.
If you’re looking for a reliable phone system for your business, avoid traditional landline services as they’re retiring from August 2, 2022. Most landline vendors have already replaced their copper landlines with modern landlines. But we also suggest avoiding a VoIP-based landline provider as it’ll require a reliable and high-speed internet connection.
CommunityPhone is your best bet for reliable phone service as our landline works during power outages – without needing internet or copper wires. Plus, it’s affordable, effective, and convenient. Click here to sign up at CommunityPhone today.