nuisance alarm

[codamol]

Hey guys,

Looking for some help with an alarm.

Installed for customer, new alarm panel, caller system, keyfob panel and pet friendly PIRs. All tested and working ok i thought.

Have had two instances of alarm going off, calling customer via the caller system and no evidence of intruder or anything.

Customer has changed locks through out the house as she had break in previously and is very concerned.

When i installed the system, the wiring was already in place from previous system, all PIR circuit boards had been removed, shells left as tho they were intact.The alarm panel was destroyed, capacitors removed all wires cut and basically someone was not happy with it/her (ex tenant or something havent asked dont really know).

So the fault at the moment is after being set for between 30mins to just over an hour the alarm goes into entry mode, then times out and the alarm goes off. Ive checked everything i can think of, and only things i can think it might be is maybe a high resistance fault on the trip circiuit or a faulty PIR.

Long post for that simple question, 1)faulty wire or 2)faulty PIR.

I can post the event log but it all points to the front door/entry point as the problem.

 

[Sidewinder]

Bad connection on the entry point switch or faulty switch?

 

[Barx]

Is it a new contact (is it a contact or pir near door) on the door. Is the gap between the magnet and contact too big. It may work when your there but as the door cools down and shrinks slightly at night it may just be too much. Do the wires run along side mains wiring that could induce emf onto the alarm cables and possibly make the panel thinks the circuit has opened. Try a different 'pair' the cable to eliminate a faulty core. TBH honest it could be any number of things. What panel is it? does it support soak testing. If so, soak test. If not then would it be a possibility to set the zone as a chime and listen for the chimes to see if any pattern. Obviously telling the punter how to turn chimes off so it's not going all night

 

[codamol]

and again the gremlins eat my reply omg.

Thanks guys for replies.

@Barx its a PIR near door so no contacts/magnets. No idea where the wires run as they were from preexisting damaged alarm so could be piggybacking the mains for all i know.

Ill try different pair in cable after reterming them as sidey suggested.

No hint of soak testing in engineers manual, its Honeywell G4 accenta panel.Will have to reread it to see about setting as chime.Any hints ;D EDIT found online manual that mentions chimes, will try that.

Its my first alarm installed bar the wiring done by whoever, and it seemed so easy grrrrrrr.

 

[kme]

2 points.

1. wiring issues with pre-installed are, unfortunately, still your responsibility.

2. The final entry / exit shouldn`t really be PIR - I`d have piggybacked onto the cabling, and fitted a mag, TBH

KME

 

[Barx]

Ever thought the original was sabotaged / de-activated because it used to go off all the time

 

[codamol]

@KME, 1)Never said it wasnt my responsibility, only mentioned it wasnt my wiring so i dont know actual pathing for it.

2)why shouldnt it be a PIR, just because its by a door or are magnets/contacts more reliable?

@Barx, it wasnt because it went off all the time, the tv distribution in the attic was attacked too, all wires cut and pulled out, few other things had anger vented on them as well.

 

[Barx]

is it above or near a radiator?

 

[codamol]

Nope, nearest rad is 2m away. It is above front door looking back into room, double checked it is set for large dogs, but they are usually locked in kitchen.Ill try the other tests as suggested earlier and let you know what happens.

 

[Adrian]

try turning the sensitivity down on pir or up the pulse count or change for a microwave/pir detector.

to make it chime press chime then zone number which should be zone 1 to stop it press chime then 0

 

[kme]

Mags are preferred (required by approval companies iirc), as there is much less chance of interference; and final exit set is a damn site easier.

I know you didn`t say anything about responsibility, I was just noting that, if you use something existing as part of your install, its best to verify that there aren`t any problems first

I`d fit a mag on a 4 core, so you can carry the N/C and AT loops, and pick up a spare pair at the pir......unless they`re using all six cores; in which case you`d have to lose the AT circuit......

 

[codamol]

Thanks all for help.

Alarm was originally itted by local named alarm company and they fitted the PIR by door, is it new requirement by approval companies? Ive no idea if they are approved, just asking as ive just fitted like for like, would it be an idea to do away with the PIR there and fit a mag instead? Then i would have to set zone as timed for exit , am i right?

Thought i had covered testing for problems as i had to ID all cables and tested that they werent disconnected in length, havent tested for any high resistance tho, just quick loop test per pair.

 

[NozSpark]

Personally I'd have a mag contact on the door as an entry/exit zone and retain the PIR in the hall as a timed inhibited zone,,,

But if you are continuously getting a fault on a zone then I'd look at changing the PIR and then maybe rewire the zone

 

[Doc Hudson]

havent tested for any high resistance tho, just quick loop test per pair.

Hmm? I think a full test of the resistance down all legs of every cable would have been essential before taking on any existing wiring. All legs of the same cable should be of a near identical resistance. You could have a basic loop continuity but a very high variation down one or more legs which may cause problems.

Doc H.