fios battery

Do I have to have someone come out to change the battery in the basement or is there another way to manage getting a new one? It's been chirping for several days now and there is a red light indicating a battery change is needed.

There are stores where you can get Fios equipment. I picked up my new router and DVR at the Verizon store near Whole Foods in West Orange off Eagle Rock Rd.

Call Fios first though to confirm they have them.

I believe you can get a replacement battery via Amazon.

By the way, if the beeping isn't too annoying, you never have to change the battery. Ours beeped forever, because the Verizon installer, in his infinite wisdom, located the box in the most inaccessible part of the basement. We never bothered to change it. I'm told though, that changing it is no big deal.

Verizon will mail you a replacement battery if you want to go that route.

They are dirt cheap on amazon, less than 1/3 the price of Verizon. If you have a screwdriver you can change it yourself. It is a very easy job.

you can just unplug it wait 30 secs and then replug it in and the chirping should go away

mine is in the basement and has been chirping for years-everything works ( I guess as long as we have power)

I've been dealing with this recently. I tried just removing the battery, but that doesn't stop the beeping. Called VZ and told them I don't really care about having the battery backup. The tech told me to unplug the unit for at least 30 seconds and, while it's unplugged, remove the battery (or, at least, unplug it from the unit). Then plug the unit back in, and then plug the battery back into the unit.

That stopped the beeping for about a month. When it started beeping again, I just did the same procedure again and it stopped again. I'd personally rather do that once a month than buy another battery.

I don't remember paying for a new battery when mine was replaced. I could be wrong, but I don't remember that -- and FIOS came the day after I called them about it.

Don't you want your stuff to work when there's no power? I do, so I would replace the battery if I had that setup.

Tom_Reingold said:

Don't you want your stuff to work when there's no power? I do, so I would replace the battery if I had that setup.

It only keeps the phone line on, which I couldn't care less about.

If your home router is on your own UPS, then your internet connection will stay up, too.

Tom_Reingold said:

If your home router is on your own UPS, then your internet connection will stay up, too.

I don't have a UPS.

Yeah then I guess the verizon UPS isn't all that useful unless you have another of your own.

you replace it yourself at your cost...or just do what I did..take it and do without..it only gives you 8 hours battery back up of I think just the landline phone (I don't recall internet)...but with a smartphone, people can do without a computer/landline for 8 hours...if the outage is longer than 8 hours it does no good...my battery has been sitting out next to the unit for a year or 2 with no problem...the beeping stopped when I removed it.

I have been without power for any significant time ( a couple days to 2 weeks) 3 times in the last 30 years...not worth the battery....if i need to charge my phone I sit in my car and charge it to access internet.  Also, for $5 you can get a battery charger for the phone and since I have android, I have a spare battery to begin with..much better investment as I am more likely to need the charger/battery for the phone periodically.

jmitw said:

..it only gives you 8 hours battery back up of I think just the landline phone (I don't recall internet)...but with a smartphone, people can do without a computer/landline for 8 hours...if the outage is longer than 8 hours it does no good...

I have been without power for any significant time ( a couple days to 2 weeks) 3 times in the last 30 years...not worth the battery....

This is pretty much my thinking. And really, when the power is out for any extended period of time, internet access tends to fall pretty far down my list of concerns. (And I generally don't answer my landline even when it is working.)

and if you have a desk top with no battery back up..even if you have internet....can't access it....and even with a laptop, my battery only lasts 2-3 hours of continuous use...the only benefit for the landline back up is if there is an emergency, it is better to call 911 from a landline.....all 3 times I have been without power, there was never a seconds matter/unable to speak emergency....the one time a live wire was down it was good enough to use a cell to make the call as I was able to wait to be transferred to local PD (this was the early days of cell phones) and give the location.

I find that if it fiddle with the battery connection the chirping goes away. I think what happens is either the contacts corrode or the clip starts to slip a bit as temp goes up and down it it expands/contracts. Either way - mine was chirping a few weeks ago, fiddled and hasn't chirped since. I've noticed this with two different models of boxes over a 5 year span.

TLDR - wiggle the cable.

They offered to send a battery or a tech person. I had them come -- no charge and they replaced it. They gave me a choice of days and times but I went with whatever day I was first on the list. Guy showed up at 8:30 am and was done by 8:32.

jmitw said:

and if you have a desk top with no battery back up..even if you have internet....can't access it....and even with a laptop, my battery only lasts 2-3 hours of continuous use...the only benefit for the landline back up is if there is an emergency, it is better to call 911 from a landline.....all 3 times I have been without power, there was never a seconds matter/unable to speak emergency....the one time a live wire was down it was good enough to use a cell to make the call as I was able to wait to be transferred to local PD (this was the early days of cell phones) and give the location.

That only applies if you actually have a land line. If you have FiOS, than you don't have a land line, you have VOIP pretending to be a landline.

If its free, must be a new thing..when mine went maybe a year ago a lot of people were annoyed by being expected to pay for a new battery......

max_weisenfeld said:

jmitw said:

and if you have a desk top with no battery back up..even if you have internet....can't access it....and even with a laptop, my battery only lasts 2-3 hours of continuous use...the only benefit for the landline back up is if there is an emergency, it is better to call 911 from a landline.....all 3 times I have been without power, there was never a seconds matter/unable to speak emergency....the one time a live wire was down it was good enough to use a cell to make the call as I was able to wait to be transferred to local PD (this was the early days of cell phones) and give the location.

That only applies if you actually have a land line. If you have FiOS, than you don't have a land line, you have VOIP pretending to be a landline.

same difference...the fios phone works as a landline for 911 calls  (showing your address) as far as I know...very few people have good old fashioned landlines that work through a power outage...when I first switched over, I actually had comcast and the phone often didn't work.....I had no problem with the old tech....but once it did malfunction it is nearly impossible to get it fixed as the new techs don't know the old equipment.

Batteries and Bulbs on Route 22 East in Union has the correct batteries. The exact voltage you need might vary with the specific box, so you might want to look at the existing battery before you go.

Must be more to the story. Verizon doesn't do anything for free.

jmitw said:

If its free, must be a new thing..when mine went maybe a year ago a lot of people were annoyed by being expected to pay for a new battery......

I'm sure there are any number of variables, including which CSR you happen to speak to, which determine what kind of offer you might get. But for the record, when I called they made it clear that I would have to pay for a replacement, and directed me to this page:

https://www.verizon.com/home/a...

Of course I fully realize I could get this battery from somewhere else for less money. I'm just saying, as a data point, that they didn't offer me a free replacement.

(In looking at this page again I also notice that it specifically says " voice backup battery." I wouldn't completely rule out Tom Reingold's contention that it will maintain your internet access if your router is connected to a UPS, but if that is the case, there is no mention of it on the replacement battery page.)

nothing more to my story. it was easy, it was free and the tech person came. My monthly bill is 120.00 so no special packages. And I have a long history of having problems with Verizon but the battery replacement is free.

unicorn33 said:

Must be more to the story. Verizon doesn't do anything for free.

jmitw said:

If its free, must be a new thing..when mine went maybe a year ago a lot of people were annoyed by being expected to pay for a new battery......

You must live right. I've had Verizon for both FIOS and Wireless since the beginning of time, and I've never gotten anything for free, except aggravation.

mikescott said:

nothing more to my story. it was easy, it was free and the tech person came. My monthly bill is 120.00 so no special packages. And I have a long history of having problems with Verizon but the battery replacement is free.

unicorn33 said:

Must be more to the story. Verizon doesn't do anything for free.

jmitw said:

If its free, must be a new thing..when mine went maybe a year ago a lot of people were annoyed by being expected to pay for a new battery......

I bought my replacement at Lowes for almost 1/3 of what Verizon wanted