Ooma whole house connection

[bizlady]

I'm looking for some feedback from Ooma owners.

We moved into our downsized home, and I am trying to get Ooma set up on all the phones (works great on the one).

Looking at these directions, it appears I need a router AND a modem to get all the lines connected- correct? Connecting your phone jacks | Free Internet Home Phone Service | Ooma

I do not have nor have I had a phone line installed, so I know I am good on that front. Any kind of land line phones will work once I get this going?

 

[pb4uski]

What we do is use a cordless phone with 5 handsets. So the progression is DSL line to DSL modem to Ooma to cordless system. We also have a wireless router for our internet that also plugs into the Ooma. So it is similar to the picture below except the Ooma plugs into our cordless phone system rather than to our house telephone wiring.

 

[calmloki]

If you have in-home phone wiring you can run a jumper from the Ooma to the house wiring and then plug in phones wherever you like. We did that, but now just have our primary wireless phone plugged into the wall and little charger units all over for satellite wireless phones. We have a modem down south that has several ports, so one goes to my wired connection computer, one goes to the Ooma (with a phone line going out to the wireless phone base unit, and we use the modem wireless for everything else. Ooma is pretty forgiving - we've had it before and after a router and it has worked ok.

 

[Chuckanut]

I have an Ooma also.

What pb4uski said.

 

[wolf]

Also have an Ooma. Once you get it to work, pretty good. Voice excellent.

Customer service for me was terrible. Waste of time. Ended up, finding

help on the internet.

Using Ooma, with wireless adapter a pain for me. Took many tries, finally got it to work. Then when I had to buy a new Router, the Ooma wireless
adapter did not work.

Ended up, just running wire (Ethernet) directly from the Router to the Ooma unit.

From their, I did as other have mentioned. Plugged in a wireless phone,
with 4 separate wireless units. Just plugged in the other units around the
house.

Only cost $3 or $4 a month.....got a panosonic from Costco...works fine

 

[Tree-dweller]

We are same as pb4uski, though cable rather than dsl. Great sound quality, with exceptions: sometimes calls between ooma and cell phones produce significant lag, causing us to talk over one another unintentionally, and with a very few specific callers we can hear clear echo, which I think is caused by those callers using speakerphone mode by default.

 

[jon-nyc]

I too purchased a single phone with multiple wireless extensions rather that try to get the Ooma working on in-house wiring.

 

[OBXretire]

On my second month with Ooma over cable and wireless to the router. We have 5 Panasonic cordless phones, great system. So far, only very minor voice quality issues as pointed out by Tree-dweller.

Loved the blacklisting capability so much I sprung for the premier service when they offered a special deal on an annual subscription. The voicemail to email feature is also nice.

 

[pb4uski]

We have had troubles with delays, particularly when answering the phone. I'll answer and say hello but the other side doesn't hear me say hello so I have to say it again. Occasional, but infrequent echoing. Plus we sometimes get random touchtone sounds during conversations, particularly with female callers.

 

[Cobra9777]

We use an Obi100 VoIP adaptor. Exact same thing as Ooma, only a lot cheaper upfront, no monthly fee when used with Google Voice, and it's a generic device that will work with any VoIP provider I might want to use in the future.

We had no problem hooking up to in-home wiring... just one Cat-5 cable to the router, and a phone cable to the nearest phone outlet on the wall. All existing landline phones work. We use a combination of cordless and wired handsets.

I would not recommend using a wireless adaptor for the network connection. That just introduces another weak link. Always Cat-5 to the router.

 

[Sunset]

I have been tempted by Ooma, so hearing what peoples experiences have been is great. I have used skype, and even on a linux computer it works very well for me.
I did go into my router and set it to give priority to voip , and that did improve it as large downloads could not hog bandwidth when I'm using skype.

One question about Ooma, can I take it with me when I travel and plug it into a network and receive phone calls like I am at home ?

 

[pb4uski]

While I have not done it, I believe you can since it is internet based. Better yet, you can use multi-ring to have it ring a cell phone number and just take the cellphone with you. I have also found the website helpful to check messages while traveling though now I just have any messages left sent to my email at the same time the message is left.

 

[calmloki]

While I have not done it, I believe you can since it is internet based. Better yet, you can use multi-ring to have it ring a cell phone number and just take the cellphone with you. I have also found the website helpful to check messages while traveling though now I just have any messages left sent to my email at the same time the message is left.

Sunset - Just as pb4uski says. We have Ooma set to ring my gal's cell so we get any calls even if we aren't home. When we do the snowbird thing we stay in perfect contact with our Oregon number while en route to SoCal, plug into the internet down there, and people calling us hear no difference - calls to our Oregon number ring down south.

 

[ziggy29]

Customer service for me was terrible. ...

...

Only cost $3 or $4 a month.....

At that price, yeah, I doubt I'd be expecting first-rate customer service. You don't get Nordstrom service with Walmart prices...

 

[Chuckanut]

While I have not done it, I believe you can since it is internet based. Better yet, you can use multi-ring to have it ring a cell phone number and just take the cellphone with you.

Is that a part of the 'free' service, or is it part of the paid service - Ooma premier?

 

[pb4uski]

Is that a part of the 'free' service, or is it part of the paid service - Ooma premier?

We have premier and I suspect it is part of the premier service as I recall the free service as being quite skimpy. Still, for $14/month on average for premier, I think it is a good bang for the buck.

 

[omni550]

Need help to set up Ooma at home

I bought an Ooma unit a while back but left on a long trip before I had time to set it up. I'm now back for a couple of weeks and am trying to figure out how to do this.

Several items of concern that I have:

I'm puzzled about what I need to do re: the existing AT&T line. My neighborhood has buried cables, so I'm unsure where the AT&T cable enters the house and how it is connected to the interior phone wiring. (I assume there's some type of "connector" on the basement ceiling somewhere.) To use Ooma on my existing phones that are plugged into the wall phone jacks, it sounds as though l need to disconnect the AT&T incoming cable from the interior house phone wiring Connecting your phone jacks | Free Internet Home Phone Service | Ooma
Does anyone know what this "connector" looks like? And do I simply unscrew the incoming cable? Or, would it suffice to ask AT&T to shut off my service instead?

I want to have the base station Ooma Telo in my first floor kitchen (for quick access to check for messages and to verify that the Ooma service is operational) and my router is in a second-floor bedroom "home office". I purchased Ooma's wireless+bluetooth adapter unit, so hopefully that will take care of this issue.

I have a seldom-used FAX machine (located in the "home office" a few feet from the router), which would still be nice to have for the occasional time I need to FAX something. Faxing with Ooma | Free Internet Home Phone Service | Ooma shows that it will require a phone splitter and cable. The wway the house is configured, it might be difficult to run a phone cable between the "home office" and kitchen.

Before I [-]break something[/-] attempt to install Ooma, I'd appreciate any help/guidance from the knowledgeable posters here.

omni

 

[gauss]

I bought an Ooma unit a while back but left on a long trip before I had time to set it up. I'm now back for a couple of weeks and am trying to figure out how to do this.

Several items of concern that I have:

I'm puzzled about what I need to do re: the existing AT&T line. My neighborhood has buried cables, so I'm unsure where the AT&T cable enters the house and how it is connected to the interior phone wiring. (I assume there's some type of "connector" on the basement ceiling somewhere.) To use Ooma on my existing phones that are plugged into the wall phone jacks, it sounds as though l need to disconnect the AT&T incoming cable from the interior house phone wiring Connecting your phone jacks | Free Internet Home Phone Service | Ooma
Does anyone know what this "connector" looks like? And do I simply unscrew the incoming cable? Or, would it suffice to ask AT&T to shut off my service instead?

I want to have the base station Ooma Telo in my first floor kitchen (for quick access to check for messages and to verify that the Ooma service is operational) and my router is in a second-floor bedroom "home office". I purchased Ooma's wireless+bluetooth adapter unit, so hopefully that will take care of this issue.

I have a seldom-used FAX machine (located in the "home office" a few feet from the router), which would still be nice to have for the occasional time I need to FAX something. Faxing with Ooma | Free Internet Home Phone Service | Ooma shows that it will require a phone splitter and cable. The wway the house is configured, it might be difficult to run a phone cable between the "home office" and kitchen.

Before I [-]break something[/-] attempt to install Ooma, I'd appreciate any help/guidance from the knowledgeable posters here.

omni

On the outside of your house, there should be a box where the legacy phone wire comes in. If you open that box with a screwdriver you should be able to disconnect the house phone lines from the external phone line. If you still have active traditional phone service, then this should be simple to test that you have done it correctly.

Here is a picture and further details.

Once the house is disconnected from the external legacy phone line, then you could plug the Ooma box into any phone jack and it should back feed the phone jacks in the rest of the house.

When I set it up, I did 3 basic steps.

1- get the ooma running with just a single phone extension attached

2 - properly disconnect the house from the external phone line as
described above

3 - replace the single phone extension plugged into the ooma with a cord
that back feeds into a phone jack so that all the other phone jacks will
work.

For one who fixes their own appliances, this should definitely be within your skill set.

-gauss

 

[omni550]

On the outside of your house, there should be a box where the legacy phone wire comes in. If you open that box with a screwdriver you should be able to disconnect the house phone lines from the external phone line. If you still have active traditional phone service, then this should be simple to test that you have done it correctly.

Here is a picture and further details.

Once the house is disconnected from the external legacy phone line, then you could plug the Ooma box into any phone jack and it should back feed the phone jacks in the rest of the house.

When I set it up, I did 3 basic steps.

1- get the ooma running with just a single phone extension attached

2 - properly disconnect the house from the external phone line as
described above

3 - replace the single phone extension plugged into the ooma with a cord
that back feeds into a phone jack so that all the other phone jacks will
work.

For one who fixes their own appliances, this should definitely be within your skill set.

-gauss

Thanks, gauss.

I did a lap of my house's exterior. Lo and behold, I found this 3" x 3.5" box marked "Bell System" (which probably dates back to 1977 when the house was built) and a small 'rats nest' of wires inside.

As this configuration is a bit different from the one pictured in the link in your post, what are the "next steps" when I am ready to disconnect from the legacy AT&T service? [BTW, there are two smaller gray-clad cables that run from the house into the rear of this box. Do I disconnect the many colored wires associated with those 2 gray-clad cables or do I disconnect the larger 'buried' black cable (sort of visible entering from bottom center) or something else?]

omni

 

[target2019]

Gauss,
Do a thorough inspection inside the house. If that is the actual service box, you'd want to see where service wire bundle enters your home. Might be another box inside the home.

 

[gauss]

Thanks for the clarification omni. Now I see the point of confusion.

What you have there is a pre-1984 demarcation point. These were originally designed to be touched by phone technicians only, not the homeowner.

After the legally imposed breakup of the Bell System in 1984, the newer style of demarcation point, ie the Network Interface Device (NID) was put into use. The NID's allow the homeowner to easily isolate the house from the incoming phone line with just a simple phone plug/jack disconnect.

You can probably get a NID installed for free by calling ATT and requesting one. Explain that your current one is from 1977, never had a NID, and has no way for the homeowner to disconnect the house from the external phone line.

If you don't get the desired action from them (for free), we could look to the regulations that govern this to see if they are required to do this.

Cool photos by the way. I use to fool around with this stuff back in high school....

-gauss

 

[ERD50]

Thanks for the clarification omni. Now I see the point of confusion.

What you have there is a pre-1984 demarcation point. These were originally designed to be touched by phone technicians only, not the homeowner.

After the legally imposed breakup of the Bell System in 1984, the newer style of demarcation point, ie the Network Interface Device (NID) was put into use. The NID's allow the homeowner to easily isolate the house from the incoming phone line with just a simple phone plug/jack disconnect.

You can probably get a NID installed for free by calling ATT and requesting one. Explain that your current one is from 1977, never had a NID, and has no way for the homeowner to disconnect the house from the external phone line.

If you don't get the desired action from them (for free), we could look to the regulations that govern this to see if they are required to do this.

Cool photos by the way. I use to fool around with this stuff back in high school....

-gauss

If they can be forced to put in a modern box, that probably is the cleanest approach - but it might take some time, especially if they say they are not required to.

An alternative I was going to suggest would be a brute force approach - label, disconnect, and tape off every single wire in the box. That should be safe.

That might leave you with some sockets in the home disconnected from other sockets though (if they were tied together at the box). Otherwise, you'd really need a voltmeter to track down the source of 48V tip & ring. Then the source could be tied off, leaving the other connections. This might be pretty obvious by looking physically at which cable comes from the telco and which are coming from inside the home, but sometimes this old wiring can have surprises - someone may have jumped something from an unexpected place.

-ERD50

 

[meierlde]

If they can be forced to put in a modern box, that probably is the cleanest approach - but it might take some time, especially if they say they are not required to.

An alternative I was going to suggest would be a brute force approach - label, disconnect, and tape off every single wire in the box. That should be safe.

That might leave you with some sockets in the home disconnected from other sockets though (if they were tied together at the box). Otherwise, you'd really need a voltmeter to track down the source of 48V tip & ring. Then the source could be tied off, leaving the other connections. This might be pretty obvious by looking physically at which cable comes from the telco and which are coming from inside the home, but sometimes this old wiring can have surprises - someone may have jumped something from an unexpected place.

-ERD50

Actually if you look at the picture you will note that only the two terminals on the left have 2 wires, while the ones on the right have only one. The wires going there are red and green which are the colors used for single line phones. Once you have canceled the phone line and it no longer works, you could cut both the red and green wires. (Assuming you don't have DSL and your internet comes in some other way.)

 

[48Fire]

Wow just up with morning coffee, and you folks are blowing me away! Moving in to new (but old) house tomorrow, so lots of great ideas for me. Thanks!!

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Early Retirement Forum mobile app

 

[ERD50]

Actually if you look at the picture you will note that only the two terminals on the left have 2 wires, while the ones on the right have only one. The wires going there are red and green which are the colors used for single line phones. Once you have canceled the phone line and it no longer works, you could cut both the red and green wires. (Assuming you don't have DSL and your internet comes in some other way.)

Yes, on closer inspection I think you are correct about that.

However, you just never know what someone might have done along the way, and I'm just a little squeamish suggesting that unless the [-]OP[/-] (woops, not OP, but omni550 in post # 19) is going to verify it with a voltmeter. But I still give you 99.99% certainty you are correct.

For example, I had some problems with the phone wiring to an extension in our house. L1 had opened somewhere, but I found that L2 was still good, so at a junction closer to the box, I swapped L1 and L2. Works for me, but might confuse someone down the road.

-ERD50