How to remove or decommission an old alarm system safely

By the Home Security Systems & Alarms editorial team · Research-based (no hands-on testing) - see how we evaluate · Last updated November 5, 2026

How do you remove an old security system? Confirm you own the equipment, close the monitoring account in writing and cancel your city alarm permit, then check that the panel is not powering any smoke detectors. After that: disconnect the siren, unplug the transformer, disconnect the backup battery (black lead first), take down the keypads, sensors and panel, cap and label the wires, and recycle the battery. A plug-in, low-voltage system is a manageable DIY job; a hardwired transformer or panel-powered smoke detectors mean calling a professional. Just want it off and left on the wall? See how to disconnect a house alarm system. What removal costs and whether you need an electrician are covered below.

Almost every guide to this job treats it as a demolition question. Kill the power, unscrew the beige box, snip the wires, patch the drywall. That advice is not wrong, exactly. It is just answering the easiest part of the problem and skipping the two parts that can cost you money or, in one specific case, put your household at risk.

The panel is the last thing you touch, not the first. Before it comes off the wall you need to know who legally owns it, whether the city permit in your name has been cancelled, and whether that box is quietly acting as the power supply for your smoke detectors. Get those three wrong and you can end up returning equipment you already threw away, paying renewal notices for a system that no longer exists, or discovering the hard way that the hallway detector went dead the day you pulled the transformer.

This page walks the sequence in the order that protects you, with the physical work near the end where it belongs.

The order that matters

Work through these in sequence. Each one can change what you do in the next.

1. Establish who owns the equipment.
2. Close the monitoring account, in writing, and keep the confirmation.
3. Cancel the alarm permit with your city or county.
4. Find out whether the panel powers any fire or carbon monoxide devices.
5. Decide whether you are decommissioning or fully removing.
6. Power down in the right order.
7. Remove the hardware and deal with the wiring.
8. Dispose of the battery and electronics properly.

Step 1. Find out who owns the box

This is the step people skip, and it is the one with an invoice attached.

ADT's published residential terms and conditions are explicit. Paragraph 7 states that all equipment installed by ADT is owned by ADT unless ADT has agreed in a separate written agreement to give the customer ownership, and that pre-existing equipment that was already the customer's property stays the customer's property. It goes on: on termination ADT has the right to "remove, disable or abandon" its own equipment, the customer must provide access for that removal, and ADT has "no obligation to repair or redecorate" the premises afterwards. For a base alarm control unit, keypad, touchscreen, DVR or similar recording device, the customer returns it as directed or pays an unreturned equipment fee. A separate clause allows ADT to repossess or disable equipment if payments are missed.

Two honest caveats. First, the copy of that form we could retrieve is ADT's own published document numbered 5401UE07, dated 03/14 in its own footer, so it is authoritative as to what ADT publishes but not necessarily identical to the agreement you signed in a different year. Second, ownership rules vary by provider and by how the deal was structured, and the same company can sell a system outright in one promotion and lease it in the next. Read your own agreement, or call and ask the provider to state ownership in writing before you unscrew anything.

Three broad cases, and what each means:

• You bought the equipment outright. It is yours. Remove, keep or sell it as you like.
• The equipment was leased or provided under contract. Do not put it in a skip. Ask for return instructions and a written confirmation that the account is closed and nothing is outstanding. An unreturned equipment fee is a real charge, not a threat.
• The system was already in the house when you bought it. This is the most common case and usually the simplest: a panel abandoned by a previous owner, with no account attached to you. If you are in this position and have not yet decided whether to remove it, our guide to what to do with an alarm system you inherited covers the alternatives first.

Step 2. Close the monitoring account properly

If there is still an active account, cancel it before the hardware comes down, not after. Removing equipment does not terminate a contract, and a panel that stops communicating usually generates trouble signals rather than a polite account closure.

Contract cancellation has its own traps, particularly around notice windows, automatic renewal and early termination charges, and they deserve more room than this page gives them. Our guides on cancelling ADT without paying a fee and what the contracts actually say go through the notice periods and the arithmetic. The short version for this page: get the cancellation in writing, get a confirmation, and keep it. You may need it later to prove to a city alarm office when the system went out of service.

Step 3. Cancel the alarm permit, because nobody does it for you

Here is the part no removal guide we found mentions at all, and it is the one that generates bills after the panel is already in the garbage.

Most cities that run an alarm ordinance require the alarm user, not the alarm company, to hold a permit, and require the user to cancel it. Two official examples make the point.

Portland, Oregon. The Police Bureau's alarm unit answers the question directly: "If I discontinue my service with my alarm company, do they notify the Police that I have cancelled my service?" The answer is a single word. No. The same page adds elsewhere that "your alarm company does not alert the Police Bureau when you cancel your account with them. You must contact each separately." Cancellation is by email or phone to the alarm unit. Portland permits are not transferable, residential permits run $25 a year and commercial $125, permits are free for residents aged 62 and over who supply Oregon ID showing the same address, and failing to register an alarm system within 30 days of installation carries a $100 fine.

Austin, Texas. Stricter on process. Cancellation "must be made in writing using the Alarm Permit Cancellation Web Form" and the permit "cannot be canceled by phone." The city lists "the alarm is disconnected or deactivated" as a valid ground for cancellation, which is exactly your situation, but also states that outstanding response fees must be paid before the permit can be cancelled. And the reason this matters: Austin charges $220 for each response to a non-permitted location, on top of a Class C misdemeanor carrying $75 for a first occurrence and $100 for later ones.

Put those together and you get the two failure modes:

• You cancel monitoring, remove the panel, and leave the permit open. Renewal notices keep arriving for a system that no longer exists, and in some cities an unpaid renewal turns into a late fee.
• You cancel monitoring but leave a local, siren-only system on the wall. A neighbour hears it, police attend, and you are now generating responses at a location with no valid permit. That is the expensive version.

Permit fees, fine schedules and cancellation procedures vary enormously between cities, and the rules follow the current occupant rather than whoever installed the panel. Our alarm permit and false-alarm fine index documents the published rules for major US cities from official municipal sources, including which cities require no permit at all. Check yours, then send the cancellation the way that city accepts it, and keep the confirmation with your monitoring cancellation.

Step 4. Find out whether the panel is powering your smoke detectors

This is the safety step, and it is the reason we would rather you read this page than watch a video.

On many older hardwired systems the burglar panel is not just monitoring the fire devices. It is supplying their power. The Honeywell Ademco VISTA-15P and VISTA-20P installation guide, which covers a very large installed base including panels badged and installed by ADT, describes connecting up to 16 two-wire smoke detectors across zone 1 terminals 8 (+) and 9 (-), with an end-of-line resistor at the last detector, and connecting four-wire smoke or combustion detectors to zones 2 through 8 with power drawn from the panel's auxiliary power terminals through a supervision relay. The manual is specific enough to warn installers not to put four-wire detectors on zone 1.

The consequence is simple. On a system wired that way, cutting power to the panel cuts power to those detectors. They are not battery devices with an independent life. They go dark with the box.

There is a counterweight, and it is also worth knowing. ADT's residential terms, paragraph 16, state that any smoke or carbon monoxide detectors described in the contract are "supplemental devices only and are not intended to be part of a primary fire alarm or carbon monoxide detection system", and that the customer alone is responsible for complying with applicable codes on placement and maintenance. In a great many homes, therefore, the panel-connected detectors sit alongside independent code-required smoke alarms, and removing the panel leaves the primary protection intact.

Both things can be true in different houses, which is why the answer is to look rather than assume:

• Open the panel enclosure and look at zone 1. Wires on terminals 8 and 9 with a resistor at the far end point to a two-wire smoke loop.
• Look at the ceiling detectors themselves. A detector with a removable battery drawer and a test button, mounted on a standard round base, is usually independent. One with four wires running into a low-voltage base and no battery compartment is usually panel-powered.
• Check the keypad zone list if it still works. A zone labelled FIRE or SMOKE tells you the panel expects fire devices.
• Count what is left. If removing the panel would leave any bedroom, any hallway outside a sleeping area, or any floor without a working smoke alarm, you have a fire-protection job to do before you have a removal job.

The U.S. Fire Administration's guidance is worth stating plainly here: put smoke alarms inside and outside every bedroom and on every level including the basement, choose interconnected alarms so that when one sounds they all sound, replace the whole alarm 10 years from its manufacture date, and treat disabling an alarm as "a deadly mistake." USFA also says that only qualified electricians should install hardwired smoke alarms. If your removal creates a gap, the cheapest honest fix is a set of interconnected battery or ten-year sealed alarms; the correct fix for a hardwired-only house is an electrician. This page is general information and not a substitute for your local fire code or your fire marshal's advice.

Step 5. What to do with an old security system: decommission, remove or reuse?

You have three sensible choices with an old security system: leave it in place but dead, take some or all of it down, or put it back to work with a new monitoring company. The table compares the first two; reuse is covered just below it. These are different jobs with different costs, and the loud option is not always the right one.

One point in favour of keeping the wiring: existing door and window contacts and their cable runs are the expensive part of any hardwired system, and several providers will connect a modern panel to sound legacy wiring. If there is any chance you will want monitoring again, our guide to using old ADT equipment without ADT explains which panels can be reused and which are locked for good, and the monitoring comparison covers what a takeover account costs against starting fresh. Thinking of selling the parts instead? Check whether used ADT equipment is worth selling first; the wiring is usually worth more left in place.

Step 6. How to disconnect a house alarm system (power down in the right order)

To disconnect a house alarm system without removing it, cut its three outputs in this order: the siren, the AC transformer, then the backup battery. That leaves the panel dead but on the wall, which is the "decommission in place" option above, and it can be powered back up later. Stopping the monitoring company or the police from being contacted is a separate job, the account closure in Step 2; disconnecting power is what silences the keypad, the siren and the trouble beeps. If the panel powers your smoke detectors (Step 4), disconnecting it switches those off too.

An alarm panel has two power sources and a siren. Remove them in the wrong order and the siren is the thing that reminds you.

1. Disarm the system if it still responds. If you do not have the code, a system with no monitoring cannot call anyone, but it can still make noise. Expect it.
2. Deal with the siren first if you can reach it. Disconnecting the bell or siren output before you cut power spares you a tamper scream. On many panels this is a clearly labelled pair of terminals.
3. Remove AC power. Most residential panels are fed by a plug-in transformer in a nearby outlet, often in a closet or basement and sometimes secured with a screw through the outlet plate. Unplug it. If the transformer is hardwired into a junction box rather than plugged in, stop: that is an electrician's job.
4. Disconnect the backup battery. With AC already off, take the black connector off the negative terminal first, then the red from positive. This is the order ADT's own battery document uses, and it is the electrically conservative one, because with the negative lead still attached a tool touching the grounded metal enclosure while the positive terminal is exposed can short a sealed lead-acid battery. Note that published vendor instructions genuinely disagree on this point, which we cover in detail in our panel battery replacement guide.
5. Confirm it is dead. No keypad backlight, no LEDs on the panel board, no beeping. If anything is still lit, there is a power source you have not found.

If the system starts beeping rather than going quiet at any point in this sequence, the panel is reporting a trouble condition rather than resisting you. Our guide to why an alarm panel keeps beeping decodes what the display is actually saying and how to silence it.

Step 7. The physical removal

With the system confirmed dead, this part is ordinary DIY.

• Photograph everything first. The inside of the panel, the terminal strip, every wire colour, the zone list on the door. Ten minutes of photos is the difference between a future takeover being a quote and being an excavation.
• Keypads. Usually a plate that lifts or slides off a wall bracket, with two or four low-voltage wires behind it. Disconnect, unscrew the bracket, cap the cable ends.
• Door and window contacts. Surface-mounted contacts are usually screwed or taped to the frame. Recessed contacts sit inside a drilled hole in the frame and often pull straight out, leaving a small hole that takes a wooden plug or filler.
• Motion detectors and glass-break sensors. Lift or twist off the bracket, disconnect, cap.
• The exterior siren or bell box. Frequently the most awkward item, because it is high up and may be sealed against weather. If it is at a height that needs a ladder you are not comfortable on, this is a reasonable thing to pay someone to do.
• The main enclosure. A steel box screwed into studs or masonry. Once empty it comes off like any other bracket, and it usually leaves the largest patch.

How to remove an old alarm keypad from the wall

1. Power the panel down first (Step 6). A wired keypad is fed from the panel, so once the transformer and battery are off its wires are dead. Confirm the backlight is out before you start.
2. Release the housing. Most wired keypads are a front case clipped or screwed to a back plate or wall bracket, with the screw or release tabs usually on the bottom edge. If it does not give easily, look up the installation guide for the model name printed on the keypad rather than prying.
3. Photograph, disconnect and cap. Take a photo of the terminal connections, then disconnect the wires; a wired keypad typically has four (two for power, two for data). Cap each conductor separately and label the cable "alarm keypad, out of service".
4. Remove the bracket. Unscrew the back plate, then either fold the capped cable back into the wall if you are keeping the wiring or follow the wiring rules below if you are not.
5. Patch. Fill the screw holes and the cable hole and paint; the keypad usually leaves a rectangle of unfaded paint behind it.

Wireless keypads have no wall wiring: lift the keypad off its bracket, take the batteries out and unscrew the bracket. Before any keypad goes in the bin, check Step 1: a leased or ADT-owned keypad may have to be returned.

Expect to patch and paint. Recessed contacts leave neat holes, keypads leave rectangles of untouched paint, and the enclosure leaves fixings that may be into masonry.

How to disconnect or remove an old ADT alarm system

An old ADT system comes down the same way as any other: follow Step 6 to power it off, then take the keypads and panel down as above. The difference is ownership. ADT's residential terms say equipment it installed stays ADT's unless a separate written agreement says otherwise, and they let ADT ask for a control unit or keypad back or charge an unreturned equipment fee. So if the account was yours, ask ADT in writing whether it wants the panel before you take it off the wall, and keep the answer.

If the system came with the house and nobody at the address has an ADT account, the panel may still be worth keeping: our guide to using old ADT equipment without ADT shows which panels can be reused. If the only reason you want it gone is a low-battery beep, replacing the ADT panel battery or disconnecting it may be all you need. ADT-badged panels differ by generation, so use the manual for your model for the terminal layout.

What to do with the wiring

The most common forum question about this job is whether it is safe to just cut the wires. The technical answer is more useful than the folklore.

Alarm cable is low-voltage Class 2 wiring, and with the panel de-energised it is not carrying anything. The relevant rule is not about shock risk, it is the National Electrical Code provision on abandoned cables: Article 725.25 in older editions, renumbered 722.25 in the 2023 edition. It requires the accessible portion of abandoned Class 2 cable to be removed, unless the cable is identified for future use with a tag durable enough for the environment. Cable concealed inside a finished wall does not meet the code definition of accessible and is not required to come out. Your locally adopted code edition and your building department have the final word, so ask if you are unsure or if the work is part of a permitted renovation.

What that means in practice:

• Remove the loose runs. Cable stapled along a basement joist or coiled in the attic going nowhere is accessible and is the part the rule is aimed at.
• Cap and label rather than cutting flush. A wire nut or cap on each pair, plus a tag naming the room and the device it served, satisfies the "identified for future use" idea and is worth real money to whoever installs the next system.
• Leave enough slack. Cutting a cable flush at the drywall means the next installer has to open the wall to find it.
• Write it down. Tape a note inside the panel location or in the electrical panel listing what was removed and when. The next owner of the house will thank you, and so will you in five years.

Disposal, including the battery

The metal box contains one item that should not go in a bin: the backup battery, a sealed lead-acid cell.

Call2Recycle's published program guidelines list small sealed lead acid (SSLA/Pb) among the rechargeable chemistries the program accepts, for batteries weighing under 11 pounds, and specify one battery per bag, or covering the exposed terminals with non-conductive tape where no bag is available. Wet-cell batteries are not accepted. The program is free, and its drop-off locator returns nearby sites by ZIP code. Most auto-parts and hardware retailers also take sealed lead-acid batteries over the counter.

For the rest:

• Panel board, keypads, sensors and sirens are electronics and belong in municipal e-waste collection rather than household waste.
• Leased equipment goes back to the provider, in the manner they specify, with a record of what you sent.
• The steel enclosure is scrap metal and is usually accepted at any metals recycler.
• Anything with a lithium cell in it, which on newer systems means some wireless sensors and hubs, follows the same battery-recycling route rather than the bin.

What it costs to remove an old alarm system

Doing it yourself costs little beyond filler, paint and wire caps, and the backup battery can be dropped at a free Call2Recycle site. Paying someone is the variable part. Angi's cost guide, updated October 20, 2026, puts the average cost to remove old house alarms at $150, with most homeowners paying $100 to $300 and an overall range of $50 to $500: about $150 to $500 or more for a wired system, $0 to $150 for a wireless one and $100 to $400 or more for a smart-home system, with electricians charging $50 to $100 an hour, often with an hourly minimum or trip fee. That is a national cost-guide estimate, not a quote, and local rates vary.

Electrician or alarm company: who should remove an alarm system?

You often do not need either for a plug-in, low-voltage system. When you do want help, match the person to the problem:

• An electrician suits a transformer wired into a junction box, or a job that includes replacing panel-powered smoke detectors. The U.S. Fire Administration says hardwired smoke alarms should be installed only by qualified electricians. Because many electricians charge a minimum, Angi suggests bundling the job with other electrical work.
• An alarm company suits a panel you may reuse, an unknown installer code, or smoke detectors tied into the panel in a way you cannot trace. Ask whether it does removal at all and what the visit costs.

Who may do alarm work varies by state, so ask your state licensing board or the contractor. In New York, for example, the Department of State says a business that installs, services or maintains alarm systems needs its license, that owners working on their own property are not in that business, and that master electricians must still file with it. That page does not mention removal specifically, so in New York ask a hired contractor for the license number.

The removal labour is rarely the number that surprises people. These are, and each is covered earlier on this page:

• Unreturned equipment fees. ADT's residential terms let it require the return of a control unit or keypad or charge an unreturned equipment fee, so check ownership (Step 1) before anything goes in the trash.
• Permit charges that keep coming. A permit you never cancelled can keep generating renewal notices, and in Austin a police response to a non-permitted location costs $220 (Step 3).
• Drywall repair. A full strip-out costs the most to patch; decommissioning in place or keeping the wiring costs the least (Step 5).
• Replacement smoke alarms. If the panel powered your smoke detectors, independent alarms belong in the budget (Step 4).

To keep a quote honest, ask for the specific job (decommission in place, remove the visible hardware, or full strip-out) rather than "remove the alarm", and ask whether patching is included. If a new system is going in afterward, check which providers charge an installation fee before you compare quotes.

Before you finish: the paperwork check

Removal is the visible part. These are the items that close the loop:

• Written confirmation that the monitoring account is closed with a zero balance.
• Written confirmation that the city or county alarm permit is cancelled, or a note that your jurisdiction never required one.
• Proof of return, if any equipment was leased.
• Photographs of the wiring, saved somewhere you will find them.
• A note of the date, kept with the house documents, so a future dispute about a fee has an answer.
• Confirmation that every sleeping area and every floor still has a working smoke alarm.

Common questions

Can I just rip out an old alarm system myself?

Physically, an unmonitored low-voltage burglar panel is within reach of a confident homeowner. Legally and practically, three checks come first. Confirm you own the equipment, because ADT's published residential terms state that equipment ADT installed is owned by ADT unless a separate written agreement says otherwise, and that a base control unit or keypad may have to be returned or an unreturned equipment fee paid. Close the monitoring account in writing. Cancel the alarm permit with your city, which does not happen automatically. Only after that does the screwdriver come out, and only if the panel is not powering your smoke detectors.

Does cancelling my alarm monitoring also cancel my city alarm permit?

No, and cities say so directly. Portland Police Bureau's alarm unit states plainly that the alarm company does not alert the Police Bureau when you cancel your account, and that you must contact each separately. Austin requires the cancellation in writing through a specific web form and states that a permit cannot be cancelled by phone, with any outstanding response fees payable first. If you skip this you can keep receiving annual renewal notices for a system that no longer exists, and if a local siren still summons police you are now doing it without a permit. Austin charges $220 for each response to a non-permitted location.

Will removing the alarm panel disable my smoke detectors?

It can, and this is the check almost every removal guide skips. Honeywell Ademco Vista panels, including the ADT-badged versions, can power smoke detectors directly. The VISTA-15P and VISTA-20P installation guide describes up to 16 two-wire smoke detectors connected across zone 1 terminals 8 and 9, and four-wire smoke detectors on zones 2 through 8 drawing power from the panel's auxiliary output. Cut power to that panel and those detectors stop working. Separately, ADT's residential terms describe contract-supplied smoke and carbon monoxide detectors as supplemental devices only, not a primary fire alarm system, so in many homes there are also independent alarms. Establish which situation is yours before you disconnect anything.

Do I have to remove the old alarm wiring in the walls?

Generally not the part inside a finished wall. The National Electrical Code rule on abandoned cables, Article 725.25 in older editions and renumbered 722.25 in the 2023 edition, requires the accessible portion of abandoned Class 2 cable to be removed unless it is identified for future use with a durable tag. Cable concealed behind drywall does not meet the code definition of accessible. The practical approach is to cap and label the cable ends rather than cutting them flush, both because that is what the tagging provision contemplates and because a future takeover panel can reuse the same runs. Your locally adopted code edition governs, so check with your building department if in doubt.

What do I do with the panel battery and the old equipment?

The backup battery in the metal box is a sealed lead-acid cell and does not belong in household waste. Call2Recycle's published program guidelines list small sealed lead acid, abbreviated SSLA or Pb, among the rechargeable chemistries the program accepts under 11 pounds, and require one battery per bag or non-conductive tape over exposed terminals where no bag is available. Most auto-parts and hardware retailers also take sealed lead-acid batteries over the counter. The panel board, keypads and sensors are electronics and belong in municipal e-waste collection, unless the equipment is leased, in which case it goes back to the provider.

How much does it cost to remove an old alarm system?

Doing it yourself costs little beyond patching materials, and the backup battery can be recycled free through Call2Recycle. Angi's cost guide, updated July 8, 2026, puts professional removal at about $150 on average, with a range of $50 to $500 depending on whether the system is wired, wireless or smart-home. Unreturned equipment fees and uncancelled permit charges can cost more than the removal itself.

How do I remove an old alarm system if I don't have the code?

You do not need the code to power a system down. Disconnect the siren if you can reach it, unplug the transformer, then disconnect the backup battery, black lead first. An unmonitored panel cannot call anyone, but it may sound until both power sources are off. If the transformer is hardwired into a junction box rather than plugged in, that step is a job for an electrician.

How do I disconnect a house alarm system without removing it?

Disconnect the siren output if you can reach it, unplug the panel's plug-in transformer, then disconnect the backup battery, black lead first, and confirm no keypad lights remain. The panel, keypads and wiring stay on the wall and the system can be powered back up later. If the transformer is hardwired into a junction box, that step is a job for an electrician, and if the panel powers your smoke detectors, disconnecting it switches them off too.

How do I remove an old alarm keypad from the wall?

Power the panel down first so the keypad wires are dead. Release the keypad housing from its back plate or bracket, photograph and disconnect the wires (a wired keypad typically has four), cap each one separately and label the cable, then unscrew the bracket and patch the holes. A wireless keypad lifts off its bracket once the batteries are out. Check first that the keypad is not leased equipment you must return.

Do I need an electrician to remove an old alarm system?

Usually not for a plug-in, low-voltage system, which is a manageable DIY job once you have checked ownership, the permit and the smoke detectors. Call an electrician if the transformer is wired into a junction box or you are replacing hardwired smoke detectors. Angi's cost guide lists electricians at $50 to $100 an hour, often with an hourly minimum or trip fee.

What should I do with an old security system?

You can leave it in place but dead, remove the visible hardware and keep the wiring, strip it out completely, or reuse it with a new monitoring company. Keeping the wiring is often the sensible middle ground. Whichever you choose, close the monitoring account, cancel any city permit and recycle the backup battery.

How we researched this

Every technical and procedural claim on this page is drawn from published manufacturer documentation, published provider contract terms, official municipal alarm-program pages or federal fire-safety guidance, each listed below with the date we checked it. We have not physically removed an alarm system for this article and we do not claim to have. Where a claim is a code provision we have named the article number and said plainly that the locally adopted edition governs, because code adoption varies by jurisdiction. The two cities quoted are examples chosen because their published answers are unusually direct, not because their rules apply everywhere; permit and fine rules differ substantially city to city. Panels vary by model, firmware and installer configuration, so your own manual and your own contract outrank this page every time.

Sources

• Angi - Cost To Remove Old House Alarms (cost guide, updated October 20, 2026): average $150, most homeowners $100 to $300, range $50 to $500; wired $150 to $500+, wireless $0 to $150, smart home $100 to $400+; electricians $50 to $100 per hour, hourly minimums and trip fees. National estimate, not a quote (accessed 2026-11-05)
• ADT LLC - Residential Terms and Conditions, form 5401UE07 (official PDF, dated 03/14 in its own footer): paragraph 7 Ownership (equipment installed by ADT is owned by ADT absent a separate written agreement; right to remove, disable or abandon; no obligation to repair or redecorate; return of control unit or keypad or an unreturned equipment fee), paragraph 15 (repossess or disable on non-payment), paragraph 16 (smoke and CO detectors are supplemental devices only, not a primary fire alarm system) (accessed 2026-07-28)
• Portland Police Bureau - Alarms Unit: the alarm company does not notify the Police Bureau when you cancel service and you must contact each separately; how to cancel a permit; permits not transferable; $25 residential and $125 commercial annual fees, free for residents 62 and over with Oregon ID; $100 fine for failing to register within 30 days; City Code Chapter 14B.10 (accessed 2026-07-28)
• City of Austin - Alarm Administration (Austin Police / Development Services): cancellation must be in writing via the Alarm Permit Cancellation Web Form and cannot be done by phone; "the alarm is disconnected or deactivated" is a valid ground; outstanding response fees payable before cancellation; $220 for each response to a non-permitted location plus Class C misdemeanor at $75 first and $100 subsequent (accessed 2026-07-28)
• Honeywell Ademco VISTA-15P / VISTA-15PSIA / VISTA-20P / VISTA-20PSIA Installation and Setup Guide (manufacturer manual): up to 16 two-wire smoke detectors across zone 1 terminals 8 (+) and 9 (-) with an end-of-line resistor at the last detector; four-wire smoke or combustion detectors on zones 2 through 8 powered from the auxiliary output with a power-supervision relay for reset; "Do not use 4-wire smoke detectors on zone 1" (accessed 2026-07-28)
• U.S. Fire Administration (FEMA) - Smoke Alarms: placement inside and outside every sleeping area and on every level including the basement; interconnected alarms so that when one sounds they all sound; replace the entire alarm 10 years from the manufacture date; hardwired alarms should be installed only by qualified electricians; "Disabling a smoke alarm or removing the battery can be a deadly mistake" (accessed 2026-07-28)
• Call2Recycle - Rechargeable Battery and Cellphone Program Guidelines (published program document): small sealed lead acid (SSLA/Pb) accepted among rechargeable chemistries under 11 lb; one battery per bag, or non-conductive tape over exposed terminals where no bag is available; wet-cell batteries not accepted (accessed 2026-07-28)
• New York Department of State - Security or Fire Alarm Installer Application (form DOS 1587-f-a, Rev. 12/24): license for businesses that install, service or maintain alarm systems; owners on their own property not in that business; master electricians not exempted from filing (accessed 2026-11-05)
• National Electrical Code, abandoned Class 2 cables: Article 725.25 in earlier editions, renumbered 722.25 in the 2023 NEC. The accessible portion of abandoned Class 2 cable shall be removed unless identified for future use with a durable tag; cable concealed within a finished wall does not meet the code definition of accessible. Adoption and edition vary by jurisdiction (checked 2026-07-28)