Wondering if I can extend the antennae on my Qolsys 4 Cellular connection?
Haven’t had a single issue with connectivity since before a few weeks now.
Constantly getting “cellular connectivity issues” with panel warning message.
I went through the power down, remove battery, wait 10 minutes and restart and continue to have the problem.
When the unit is operational, the test shows 2/5 bar strength.
It looks like there is a single black wire attached to the module with a clamp on type connector. Would a longer wire fed into the wall help reception?
I have the thought of spending another $400 to switch to AT&T cellular to “maybe” fix the problem.
The IQ Panel does not support an external antenna.
Looking at your system, I am not seeing any significant issues reported on our end. Signal strength looks fine, and 2 bars is enough for reliable connection. The data transmission is not demanding.
I do see a radio not responding error a couple weeks ago which resolved fairly quickly.
Just to be sure, is the panel on or near and exterior wall on the first floor or higher? Do you have a metal roof?
Would you mind posting a photo of the errors you see on the panel screen?
The message was only visible for a bit today and didn’t get a chance to photo it. Basically, said cellular unavailable.
I did a test and it still says 2/5 bars available, but passed the test.
The unit is mounted on an interior first floor wall about 10 feet from a laundry room window (adjacent garage door). We have a typical asphalt roof.
Never saw that error message previously. Also we used to have a Simon system using AT&T (Qolsys on Verizon).
When I checked to see the antenna cable was securely fastened (it was) I noticed the LTE module is a simple plug in held by 1 screw. I investigated the possibility of replacing the VZ with an AT&T module but it looks like Qolsys doesn’t sell that separately. Don’t want to spend another $400 to get an AT&T setup just to see that one not work which is why I was looking into the extended antenna option.
Guess I’ll wait until it fails to connect again and will let you know. Shame as I love the Surety service and Qolsys panel.
I did a test and it still says 2/5 bars available, but passed the test.
I would expect it to pass, again 2 bars is plenty for reliable connection. 2-3 bars is the most common signal strength level I usually see.
The signal strength itself does not indicate a reason why a drop would occur. That’s why I was asking about posting the error you see.
Locally the panel can tell there is a signal issue quicker than Alarm.com can with supervision, and if the issue resolves itself quickly ADC may not see the event.
If a panel reboot did not impact communication loss then it is likely a temporary issue with the carrier network. However I just want to be sure that is what was being tested with with the reboot and not the signal strength itself. The signal strength isn’t going to typically change with a reboot.
The message was only visible for a bit today and didn’t get a chance to photo it. Basically, said cellular unavailable.
Never saw that error message previously.
Constantly getting “cellular connectivity issues” with panel warning message.
Would you mind clarifying this? In the original message you said the panel is constantly showing a cellular error, but later the description sounds like it happened once.
Roughly how long has this been occurring, and how frequent are the trouble conditions on the panel?
I see the message every couple of days on the main screen of the panel (new feature with the latest software upgrade).
I’ll pay close attention to the next time it appears and will send on.
I’ve probably seen it 3x in the last week and will usually self-correct. I did pull the panel, disconnect the battery, wait and restart a couple of times over the last 2 weeks to see if that would reset the cellular connection but it didn’t.
Ok thank you for clarifying. If you can, try to note how long the condition lasts roughly. Also does this seem to happen around the same times of day? Is there any pattern to the behavior or is it random?
Just to check, how long is the power cable for your panel and what is the cable gauge?