Battery backup failed.

Reading the above comments brings up a question that if the Base station batteries go dead due to an extended power outage, would it be possible to take the connector from the wall charger and plug it into an external battery?  I have one that I use for my iPad and cell phone.  I also have a portable solar charger that puts out the same required voltage for charging my iPad and cell phone and it just needs a light source to produce electricity.  By doing so the Base station would be receiving the same voltage as it would if it were connected to the wall plug adapter.  Perhaps SimpliSafe could make available such a backup to be used for an extended power outage.  Any thoughts?

"up to 24 hours" is a "normal" advertising methodology (ALL advertising is misleading to some degree), which means that if they set up a system optimally (like only one sensor close to the base, absolutely fresh batteries and no interaction with the system at all), it might last 24 hours.  A real system will last a lot less.  Kind of like the "40 mile walkie talkies" which in the real world get 4 miles or even less.

In order to make the backup "last longer", they would have to come out with a new base with much bigger battery.  And the chances of that happening is minuscule.


You can, of course, plug the base into an "uninterruptible power supply" (UPS).  Many of them, particularly old ones, are designed to provide a lot of power for a short period of time and only last an hour or two even under a minimal load (the losses in the conversion from DC to AC are large).  Some of the newer ones may be more effective.  Mine has an "estimated life" display which claims it will run my system AND my exterior cameras for well over a day..

If you run directly from a large battery into the base (cutting off the base "wall wart" and getting rid of any losses due to conversion from DC to AC and back to DC), you could get a much longer time, even infinite if the battery were connected to solar panels.  Unfortunately, there is no standard battery which provides the right voltage into the SS base.  You would have to build a custom battery or include a voltage regulation circuit.


There is still benefit to having your alarm working even if the police are busy.  It can be important for YOU to know that someone has penetrated your perimeter.

I considered adding a battery backup supply unit (UPS) but decided not because I really like the feature of SS notifying me when the power goes out. Handy to know if at work or away from the house.

If you are handy, you could get a couple of D sized batteries and an external battery holder, and run the wires to the + and - terminals inside the base unit so you would still get the power out notification, but have service for longer.  If you use wooden dowels to replace the internal batteries and hold the wires in contact, you wouldn't even need to modify the base.  I don't think that I'd leave the internal batteries in place, as the disparity in sizes could confuse the charging circuit.

Or, alternatively, leave the internal batteries in place and use them to hold the wires of an external battery holder with batteries equivalent to the internal batteries in parallel with them for perhaps twice the service life.

Although there is a rumor that the internal battery support cuts out after a period of time even if there is still adeqiate power left in the batteries.  Perhaps the cutoff is voltage related, and continuous usage tends to artificially reduce the supplied voltage.

"Up too" is not the same as "At least"
Covered in Up Too is 1 hour - more or less.
So many things to consider.
I would suspect SS's test/conclusion was based on Lab type conditions (as suggested prior).
I'm usually wary of advertised maximums and claims.
Wouldn't honesty in advertising be nice - with no deception or trickery?

Indeed, "up to" isn't the same as "at least"; but it doesn't say "at least".

We know from experience it's roughly 8 hours.