Does the Turkey Alarm System Work During Power Outages?

During the change of seasons, you can count on bad weather to wreak havoc on the electrical system with flickering lights and blinking clocks. What happens to the farm alarm system? Does the turkey alarm system work during power outages? The answer is yes.

Agralarm’s turkey alarm system, Agralink, includes a battery backup and operates on cellular connectivity that is separate from your power, internet or landline. If a bad storm comes through your farm, and the power goes out, the turkey alarm system continues to protect your turkey houses and alerts you immediately by text and voice so you can get your generators working in order to keep the turkeys comfortable.

Let’s get into some of the details of how the turkey alarm system works during critical times.

Why Does the Question Matter?

In order to keep the turkeys in the turkey house healthy, keeping ventilation working is critical to keeping the heat out. However, if the fans stop, the turkey house needs fresh air quickly, or the sensitive birds begin to deteriorate.

Researchers at the University of Tennessee proved that in an enclosed, controlled environment house, a power failure can lead to bird losses in less than 15 minutes (Tabler et al., 2025). They also point out that birds close to market weight are especially vulnerable because they produce heat that needs to be removed.

The question for growers is this: When the power stops, will your alarm still be protecting your turkey house? With Agralink, the answer is yes.

How Agralink is Always Working when the Power Goes Off

Plenty of farm alarm systems work well on a sunny afternoon. The true test is whether they keep working during the exact event when you need them for most. Agralink was designed around that test, with 3 key features.

1. Battery Backup Keeps the Farm Alarm System Alive

Agralink includes a built-in battery backup. When utility power drops, the monitoring system keeps running on the battery, so your sensors continue to monitor and report.

As soon as the power outage occurs, your cell phone will alert you immediately of the power outage.

Cellular Connectivity Means No Land Lines

Many older farm alarm systems dial out over a landline or rely on the farm’s internet router. Both of those connectivity solutions can go down in the same storm, taking out your power.

Agralink communicates over cellular networks, which means it is separate from your power, internet, or landline. You’ll get notifications regardless if your power is on or off.

Table 1. How alarm communication paths hold up when the farm loses power

Mississippi State University Extension recommends testing every alarm call out method before each new flock, whether it uses a landline, internet, or cellular service (Moon, 2025). Having a path that stands on its own, apart from your farm’s electricity, is what makes that testing pay off when a real storm arrives.

What Happens in the First Few Minutes

When the notification hits your call list, and notifies those assigned to the turkey house, that person knows that heat inside will begin to build quickly, threatening the turkeys’ well-being.

According to the University of Tennessee, a standby generator system is designed to detect a utility power loss, start the generator, and transfer power, typically within a minute (Tabler et al., 2025). When everything works as planned, there’s no change, or very little change. Agralink’s job is to make sure you know the status either way.

Table 2. A typical power outage timeline in an enclosed turkey house

Your Generator Works Best with an Alert Supporting its Job

Many turkey growers have invested in a backup generator. Even though they are heavily relied on, they too can fail.

The University of Tennessee publication cites an analysis of poultry losses in which about 45 percent involved the generator, the automatic transfer switch, or related switches (Tabler et al., 2025). The authors note that better maintenance could have prevented most of the unforeseen events.

With Agralink, you get a notification in the event the power drops. If the generator starts as expected, your Dashboard shows conditions unchanged.

Turkey Heat Stress

Turkeys are highly susceptible to heat stress. Large, fast growing birds put out a lot of body heat. A house full of turkeys can warm up quickly if the ventilation system stops working.

Agralink lets each grower set the threshold for what’s too high or too low for the turkeys. When temperatures start climbing, you’ll know again immediately with the notification system, giving you time to respond while your birds are still within the comfortable range.

Power outages are only one of the risks Agralink monitors. Here is a quick chart of conditions that Agralink tracks.

Table 3. Critical risks in turkey houses and how Agralink monitors them

Getting the Right Alert to the Right Person

An alert is only helpful if it goes to the right person that is responsible for the turkey house(s). That is why Agralink lets you build custom call lists for each house, location or team.

You can decide who gets contacted first, second, third and so on, and whether each person prefers a text message or a voice call. Many growers like voice calls overnight, since a ringing phone is much harder to sleep through than a text.

If you manage several farms, you can monitor unlimited locations from a single Dashboard and view every house from your phone, tablet, or computer.

Works With Your Current Controller

If you’ve already made an investment in a controller, you do not need to tear it out. Agralarm connects with most existing controllers and works with most existing alarm systems. Let us know which controller you have, and let us help you save time and money on a farm alarm system.

Sensors for Turkey Houses

Turkey houses are filled with dust, moisture, and debris from daily cleanup. The environment can be tough and with constant exposure to equipment, it can make it work harder than normal resulting in a shorter life.

Agralink sensors are built to stand up to dust and moisture in harsh conditions. The type of sensors Agralink supplies are for temperature, humidity, ventilation, power status, and water flow, so when you check your Dashboard, you are getting a complete picture of every house.

Beyond the Outage: Data Collection

Once you have reliable monitoring in place, Agralink becomes one of your best management tools.

Historical Trends and Reports

Agralink keeps a history of the sensor data so you can review trends and make adjustments to your growing conditions. Better environmental visibility tends to mean better bird performance and quality.

After a storm, you can look back at exactly when the power went out and how the turkey house temperatures responded. You can export PDF reports for your own records and for integrator requirements.

A Readiness Checklist

Below is a checklist you can use before every new flock comes into your turkey house(s).

• Test your alarm system, including batteries and every call out method, before placing birds (Moon, 2025).
• Set your generator to run a weekly cycle and check the hour meter to confirm (Moon, 2025).
• Keep the generator fuel tank full, along with spare filters, belts, and coolant (Moon, 2025).
• Schedule annual professional service for your generator and transfer switch (Tabler et al., 2025).
• Review your Agralink call lists so the right people are listed in the order to get an alert.
• Confirm your temperature thresholds based on the age and size of the current flock.
• Walk through your power outage plan with family and employees so everyone knows how it works and what role they play.

Quick Answers to Common Questions

Will I still get an alert if my farm internet is down?

Yes. Agralink uses cellular connectivity, so it sends alerts whether your internet is up or down.

Do I need a landline for Agralink to call me?

No landline is required. Alerts travel over the cellular network as SMS messages and voice calls.

How fast will I hear about a power outage?

Agralink sends SMS and voice alerts within seconds of detecting that power is lost, giving you a time to get backup systems up and running.

Can I check on my houses during the power outage?

Yes. You can open the Agralink dashboard on your phone, tablet, or computer to watch temperature, humidity, and ventilation readings.

Agralink keeps watch through every outage with battery backup, cellular alerts, and power detection that work on their own. Use it alongside a well maintained generator and you have a system that protects your assets. Contact Agralarm today to discuss a turkey alarm system that’s right for you.