"AT&T Home Security System - Starting Up the System"

By Ron Stultz

21 April 2007

You have moved into a house with an AT&T Home Security System but know nothing about it. Do you use it or not?

Probably your system is no longer monitored by a security company and it may be hard to find a company to monitor it as they probably do not have the proper programming tool to change the telephone number the central controller CC) auto dials at a system event. But all is not lost.

No matter if you have a monitoring company or not, the AT&T Home Security System has very loud alert messages at detection of smoke or an intrusion. In the case of smoke, the system works in conjunction with any other smoke detector you may have but the AT&T Home Security System actually annunciates: "Fire. Leave the building immediately." If the system is armed and there is an intrusion detected either via a door or window intrusion detector, motion detector or glass break, the AT&T Home Security System announces: "Burglar. Leave the Building immediately" or something like that.

So what do you do to set up the system for you use?

(1) Go to the central controller, which is the biggest box in the system and using a flat blade screw driver, remove the 2 screws holding the front cover to the CC's chassis. Now unhook the wire going to the positive terminal of the large battery you see. If you do not have a large battery inside, you will need to get one (see CC battery change.).

(2) Unplug the CC's power adapter from the wall outlet.

(3) Buy enough fresh 9 volt batteries to replace the battery in every system detector, wireless keypad and smoke detector. Note that the smoke detectors will only host Duracell 9 volt batteries as believe it or not, other batteries are larger than the Duracell and that (2) 9volt batteries are required of every smoke detector.

(4) Go around to every detector and wireless keypad and open it up and replace the battery(s). Make sure you properly close the cover on all universal transmitters (rectangular white box with raised button on the front) and that you get the wires properly seated on glass break and motion detectors.

(5) Now check out the section having to do with defining a new house security code. Set a new house security code into all the wireless transmitters you have.

(5) With all detectors and wireless keypads hosting new 9volt batteries, install the large battery in the CC and then plug in the CC's power adapter.

(6) Now take a wireless keypad to the CC and enter your new security code into the wireless keypad and press the "off" key. The CC should detect the wireless signal from the wireless keypad, beep and remember the new security code.

(7) Now the the AT&T Home Security System initialized again, your smoke detectors will work no matter if you have armed the system or not. Additionally, if someone should try to open one of the universal transmitters or wireless keypads, no matter if the system is armed or not, the CC will sound a very loud, nasty alarm.

(8) For additional details on using the system, consult the AT&T Home Security System User Manual on this site.