Intruder Alarm Questions and Answers

Jnealon

The manufacturers just don't give out credit like they used to and as result I have noticed that suppliers just don't have the large volumes of stock.

KoolKid

And suppliers (and installers) dont want to carry large quantities either.

cbr900

The external bell on my Astec alarm system does not ring if the house alarm is triggered,the internal one rings fine though,can anyone recommend a company to check this for me? Located in Dublin 7..Tia

KoolKid

If the panel is not showing SABB fault then I would say you need to replace external bell.
Worst case senario, its the panel .

cbr900

Update..Thanks Koolkid for fixing my alarm issue,prompt service..

pele10

Looking at getting an alarm into an 5th floor apartment. It would only really be required for the entrance door as other doors are glass and onto a balcony. Windows would not be accessible either for an intruder.

Been looking around and systems are all very expensive with monitoring etc.

Basically I am looking for a wirefree alarm with possilbly a sensor on the apartment door and a motion detector in the living room.

Anyone got any suggestions?

KoolKid

I take it the apartment is not wired.
Signet 100 (with PSTN dialler) with wireless Pir & Contact would probobly be about €600
Monitoring & maintenance about €300 per year .

pele10

koolkid wrote: »

I take it the apartment is not wired.
Signet 100 (with PSTN dialler) with wireless Pir & Contact would probobly be about €600
Monitoring & maintenance about €300 per year .

We are renting the apartment at the moment, there are some wires around the door, so it could be wired. Would not be looking for any sort of monitoring or indeed maintenance. Are the one off alarm system that can be installed for a more reasonable price than €600?

I intend buying my own place towards the end of this year and will be installing a monitored system, however don't think the landlord will be willing to stump up that sort of cash.:(

KoolKid

If wired maybe €500. (You still need the main control equipment etc.)
Sorry I misunderstood your original post re monitoring.

altor

pele10 wrote: »

Looking at getting an alarm into an 5th floor apartment. It would only really be required for the entrance door as other doors are glass and onto a balcony. Windows would not be accessible either for an intruder.

Been looking around and systems are all very expensive with monitoring etc.

Basically I am looking for a wirefree alarm with possilbly a sensor on the apartment door and a motion detector in the living room.

Anyone got any suggestions?

From what your saying you are intending to bring the system with you. You could get a wired system and use the cables that are there. About €450 would be around the price with what your looking to cover.

Big Dee

Hi all

I have recently had a HKC SecureWatch wired alarm fitted to my house. I requested and received the text modem part that texts you when the alarm goes off etc as we do not work far from the house. I give the installers my number, that of my wife and my mother in laws. They sent a test text but neither my wife or I received it. He then tried his own number and his assistants. Both phones beeped almost immediately. They checked and reentered our numbers several times, but still no texts!:mad: The mother in law then rang to say she had received several messages.
The only common denominator is that both my wife and I are with Three Mobile. We have 086 and 087 numbers from 10 years ago. Is there a special prefix required for 3 mobile? Has anyone encountered this problem before?

Thanks in advance.

KoolKid

It could possibly be an issue with your provider. Is modem GSM or connected to your land line?
If its on your landline check can you text all the numbers from your home phone.

Big Dee

koolkid wrote: »

It could possibly be an issue with your provider. Is modem GSM or connected to your land line?
If its on your landline check can you text all the numbers from your home phone.

Thanks koolkid
It's connected to the land line - they had to wait till I got my broadband up and running before they installed the text modem.
My home phone does not have a text facility so I can't check this.
My provider is Eircom so I will give them a call and report back here if I get a result.

altor

Big Dee wrote: »

Hi all

I have recently had a HKC SecureWatch wired alarm fitted to my house. I requested and received the text modem part that texts you when the alarm goes off etc as we do not work far from the house. I give the installers my number, that of my wife and my mother in laws. They sent a test text but neither my wife or I received it. He then tried his own number and his assistants. Both phones beeped almost immediately. They checked and reentered our numbers several times, but still no texts!:mad: The mother in law then rang to say she had received several messages.
The only common denominator is that both my wife and I are with Three Mobile. We have 086 and 087 numbers from 10 years ago. Is there a special prefix required for 3 mobile? Has anyone encountered this problem before?

Thanks in advance.

Hi Big Dee,

You say it will text other numbers but not you or your wifes so it must be something to do with 3 mobile not Eircom. All eircom will do is forward on the message from the alarm to your phone.

hmadro

koolkid wrote: »

Asok ,if you are in an Apartment then get onto your property managemant to chase up the owners. Any apartments we would do would have a 90 minute cut out on the internal siren,

Hi Kookid,

been reading your comments with a lot of interest lately, you seem to be some kind of expert in your field but that it is a matter of opinion and you would know all about expressing them but hey thats allowed. You give some really sound advice here, theres no doubting that, however heres mine.

I would like to clarify a couple of your expert points from past posts

1 Regarding the use of EOL resistors being non compliant in EN 50131-1 systems, this is not true, no where in the standard does it mention resistors as mandatory in a Grade 1 or 2 system. That was the case in IS 199 systems, but that standard is now defunct since 2003. Now Grade 3 and 4, thats a different matter, but then again your favoured so called feature rich panels Astec and Ge don't meet this standard, right ?. And yes before you start Signet does, along with the Galaxy range, however thats for another day.

2. Secondly if you are installing systems in apartments with 90 minute internal bell cut out times, you my friend have been installing non compliant systems. Have a careful read of the standard and you will note the maximum ring time for an internal and external bell is 15 mins with a minimum of 90 secs allowed, the strobe must flash continuously until the system is unset. I expect you will be calling back to these systems and rectifying them, that would be right thing to do .

With all the years of experience and varoius inspections under your belt, i thought you would be aware of the above but hey as I say every day is a school day.

Just an Opinion and a right to reply, thats what boards is all about after all.

Would love to meet for a coffee, if your not too busy and discuss this great little Irish Industry we work in and the great changes that are a coming soon.

delly

hmadro wrote: »

Just an Opinion and a right to reply, thats what boards is all about after all.

Indeed, but you will learn to be a little less hostile please. Feel free to express your opinions, but as a first time post you have zero credit starting off and should take some time to see how discussions are conducted while displaying respect to your fellow posters.

hmadro

delly wrote: »

Indeed, but you will learn to be a little less hostile please. Feel free to express your opinions, but as a first time post you have zero credit starting off and should take some time to see how discussions are conducted while displaying respect to your fellow posters.

Didn't realise i needed credit in order to post an opinion, hostile I don't agree with, they are facts, just relaying whats in the standard, call it clarification but hostile, c'mon:pac:.

KoolKid

If you are going to make claims that Astec & SigNet do not conform to standards I would advise you back these up with some facts. Remember you personally can be held responsible for what you post. I have had Astec panels & signet panels inspected recently by NSAI. Both got a clean sheet, no non-conformities.
Is there something you know that the NSAI dont??
Regarding internal cut out times. I inform customers of the vunerability of all bells cut out after 15 minutes. The timers are then adjusted at the customers request & noted in the as fitted document. I have never had a system fail inspection on these issues,so why would I need to be calling back?

hmadro

koolkid wrote: »

If you are going to make claims that Astec & SigNet do not conform to standards I would advise you back these up with some facts. Remember you personally can be held responsible for what you post. I have had Astec panels & signet panels inspected recently by NSAI. Both got a clean sheet, no non-conformities.
Is there something you know that the NSAI dont??
Regarding internal cut out times. I inform customers of the vunerability of all bells cut out after 15 minutes. The timers are then adjusted at the customers request & noted in the as fitted document. I have never had a system fail inspection on these issues,so why would I need to be calling back?

Nobody made the claim Astec or Signet don't comply, I simply stated that eol resistors are not a requirement in EN 50131-1 GRADE 1 OR 2, secondly an As Fitted Document should only be used if the specification changes on the day of the installation i.e. SDP is a proposal and an AFD is the job as its is fitted, an AFD does not give you or your client the right to increase bell times, the standard is as it is, 15 mins max ext/int bell with a min of 90 secs. Therefore it non conforms, clear as mud, vulnerbility has nothing to do with it, IS199 standards may have been optionial but EN 50131-1 standards are mandatory, hence there introduction. Ask your inspector on your next inspection, look forward to his reply. Anyhow Koolkid, I am only pointing out the standards as there written, you can interpret them as you please but the above is all correct, read them, I do on a daily basis. I take it thats a no for coffee so, no hard feelings.:pac:

KoolKid

hmadro wrote: »

I ... stated that eol resistors are not a requirement in EN 50131-1 GRADE 1 OR 2,

There is nothing to say we are not allowed work above the standards. The standard of a system is determined by the lowest grade device. ie if you fit a grade 3 panel & use 1 grade 2 device then the system is grade 2. Fitting of EOL resistors is common sense & even if I were installing a Grade 1 system I would fit them. A system without them is just way too vunerable. If you were fitting a grade 1 system would you not bother with tampers just for the hell of it.? If you want to put petty arguments ahead of your customers security thats fine. I am not sure what your agenda is here, but if you want to debate the good & bad of the standards feel free to start a new thread.

hmadro wrote: »

secondly an As Fitted Document should only be used if the specification changes on the day of the installation

Exactly! A change in timer setting is a change to the specification

hmadro wrote: »

AFD does not give you or your client the right to increase bell times, the standard is as it is, 15 mins max ext/int bell with a min of 90 secs. Therefore it non conforms, clear as mud, vulnerbility has nothing to do with it, IS199 standards may have been optionial but EN 50131-1 standards are mandatory, hence there introduction. Ask your inspector on your next inspection, look forward to his reply

Wrong.....
I asked & dealt with various issues , including these,on previous inspections.
The inspectors respone.. Aye thats fine as long as its in writing by the customer..
Your issues seem to be with the standards & whatever certification body you are dealing with. I would suggest you take it up with them.

Stoner

hopefully that's the end of that exchange. New helpful posters are always welcome, the uninformed out number the informed here by a significant factor so those of us that know tend to team up to help those who don't, it's has worked now for some time. That's the aim of this forum to help people in a respectful way.

pipkato

Hello. I’m going to have a first time alarm fitted in an old house. I’ve been lurking here and having a scan across this really useful ‘sticky’ on alarms, but I’m still confused about the options open to me. So I hope someone can understand my queries and help.

1. The terraced house in question has the following that need securing:
3 Doors
11 windows (8 with easy access)

2. I’ll be trying the obvious Eircom Phonewatch, but I’ve no idea whether their system is good, bad, or indifferent. The monitoring is attractive, although I hate the idea of giving any more money to that company. Are there any competitive all-in alternatives to Eircom that include monitoring?

3. Should the alarm be wireless or wired? I’ve seen some wireless DIY systems on the web that look do-able, but I’m not sure if I’d lose the option of certification and therefore any home insurance discount.

4. Some of the moderators on this board mentioned the Risco Agility system. It looks powerful and expandable with options like IP access for browsers, remote IP Camera monitoring etc. which appeal to me. Is this a good choice? Any recommended alternatives? Can anyone suggest a Dublin installer? Any idea what price I should expect to pay?

In fact I’d appreciate any general advice or pointers to links that might go some way to helping me decide.

Thanks.

Jnealon

hmadro wrote: »

Hi Kookid,

been reading your comments with a lot of interest lately, you seem to be some kind of expert in your field but that it is a matter of opinion and you would know all about expressing them but hey thats allowed. You give some really sound advice here, theres no doubting that, however heres mine.

I would like to clarify a couple of your expert points from past posts

1 Regarding the use of EOL resistors being non compliant in EN 50131-1 systems, this is not true, no where in the standard does it mention resistors as mandatory in a Grade 1 or 2 system. That was the case in IS 199 systems, but that standard is now defunct since 2003. Now Grade 3 and 4, thats a different matter, but then again your favoured so called feature rich panels Astec and Ge don't meet this standard, right ?. And yes before you start Signet does, along with the Galaxy range, however thats for another day.

2. Secondly if you are installing systems in apartments with 90 minute internal bell cut out times, you my friend have been installing non compliant systems. Have a careful read of the standard and you will note the maximum ring time for an internal and external bell is 15 mins with a minimum of 90 secs allowed, the strobe must flash continuously until the system is unset. I expect you will be calling back to these systems and rectifying them, that would be right thing to do .

With all the years of experience and varoius inspections under your belt, i thought you would be aware of the above but hey as I say every day is a school day.

Just an Opinion and a right to reply, thats what boards is all about after all.

Would love to meet for a coffee, if your not too busy and discuss this great little Irish Industry we work in and the great changes that are a coming soon.

The internal bell issue would be classed as a minor non conformance imo.
Personally I would not do it as that's what the rearm is for but that's only my opinion

KoolKid

Jnealon wrote: »

The internal bell issue would be classed as a minor non conformance imo.
Personally I would not do it as that's what the rearm is for but that's only my opinion

The rearm is fine. The problem I have with the internal cut out is, on a system with no form of monitoring, your system can be totally useless in the space of an hour. I explain this to my customers & if they decide they want bell cut out loger I do it.
Have never even got a minor for it .
I think the thing here is the relationship you have with the inspectors. At the end on the day an alarm systems main job is to make the customer fell safe & secure in their home. If a longer bell time does that so be it.
The same goes for the entry/exit times.

altor

pipkato wrote: »

Hello. I’m going to have a first time alarm fitted in an old house. I’ve been lurking here and having a scan across this really useful ‘sticky’ on alarms, but I’m still confused about the options open to me. So I hope someone can understand my queries and help.

1. The terraced house in question has the following that need securing:
3 Doors
11 windows (8 with easy access)

2. I’ll be trying the obvious Eircom Phonewatch, but I’ve no idea whether their system is good, bad, or indifferent. The monitoring is attractive, although I hate the idea of giving any more money to that company. Are there any competitive all-in alternatives to Eircom that include monitoring?

3. Should the alarm be wireless or wired? I’ve seen some wireless DIY systems on the web that look do-able, but I’m not sure if I’d lose the option of certification and therefore any home insurance discount.

4. Some of the moderators on this board mentioned the Risco Agility system. It looks powerful and expandable with options like IP access for browsers, remote IP Camera monitoring etc. which appeal to me. Is this a good choice? Any recommended alternatives? Can anyone suggest a Dublin installer? Any idea what price I should expect to pay?

In fact I’d appreciate any general advice or pointers to links that might go some way to helping me decide.

Thanks.

Hi pipkato,

From what you saying your house is not wired for the alarm so a wire free system unless you can get the house cabled for the alarm. The wire free system will be more expensive than the wired but to get cables installed for the alarm will cover this cost.
With regard to the doors and windows you need covered you need a contact on your front door plus inertia contacts on your other doors. The windows i would cover would be the accessible ones, e.g. any window you need a ladder to get access to them.
Any PSA registered company can install the alarm for you and connect you up to a monitoring station, Phonewatch are not the only company that monitor alarms.
You can buy the Risco Agility system pre programmed in a pack and add sensors on yourself if thats what you wish to do but the alarm cant be monitored by a monitoring station as your not certified to install alarms. You should also advise your insurance company of same.
The agility and the power max pro are the only two alarm panels that i know that can have ip cameras installed on them. I am not to sure of the quality of the cameras or price of adding this on to either system.


ADI supply the power max pro.
Unit 5, Ballymount Business Park
Ballymount Road, Walkinstown,
Dublin 12, Ireland
T:01 450 1366

REW supply the risco agility.
Unit 17 / 18,
Finglas Business Centre,
Jamestown Road,
Dublin 11

Tel:01 858 0960

itsallaboutme!!

Hi I've been reading through the posts on here trying to see if what I wanted to ask has been covered already. Cant seem to find it but if I've missed it I do apologise:o

Ok so I moved into my house almost 3 years ago now, came fitted with an aritech cs350 alarm. All we were given by the estate agent was the code which we never bothered to change(bad idea i know but we dont know how:o). anway all has been fine with it except for one thing. The alarm will go off even when it is not set and when we enter the code to disarm it reads "tamper" "bell tamper". now this was happening very rarely and mainly when it was extremely cold or windy out so we figured it was to do with that. but recently it has been going of alot more and even when the alarm is set. it has gone off 5 or 6 times in the last week. twice at 3am and each time states the same bell tamper thing. on one occassion it went off at night and when we disarmed it, it stated "G4 downstairs" and we cannot figure out where this zone is.we have tried setting the alarm and opening doors and windows to find it but to no avail. phew so after that long post Im wondering does anyone have any ideas on what the problem could be, rough idea of costs to sort problem and recommend someone reliable in Blanchardstown area that could do the job??

Thanks in advance and once again apologies if this has been covered and ive missed it:)

KoolKid

Hi,
The Bell tamper is one of 3 things.
1) The external bell (SABB) is faulty
2) The is a loose or damaged connection somewhere between the panel & the external bell
3) The lid or the base on the external bell is loose.

G4 is not a zone description, it indicates an alarm activated by gross attack level 4. This is borderline on what will activate an alarm & what the panel will ignore. If this was a once off I would not worry about it unless it happens again.
Depending on your code permissions you may be able to check back in the log.
To view the log-

• Enter your code
• Press arrow down until E-Log Time/Date displays
• Press the correct key
• The screen will show Display Log. Press the correct key again
• The first(most recent) log entry will display. Usually 01 disarm
• Press arrow down to go back to older events (arrow up to go forward)
• Look for an event saying Alarm. Press 0 for zone description Press 0 again for time & date of event.
• To leave menu press XXX until Finished? displays & then press the correct key.

altor

itsallaboutme!! wrote: »

Hi I've been reading through the posts on here trying to see if what I wanted to ask has been covered already. Cant seem to find it but if I've missed it I do apologise:o

Ok so I moved into my house almost 3 years ago now, came fitted with an aritech cs350 alarm. All we were given by the estate agent was the code which we never bothered to change(bad idea i know but we dont know how:o). anway all has been fine with it except for one thing. The alarm will go off even when it is not set and when we enter the code to disarm it reads "tamper" "bell tamper". now this was happening very rarely and mainly when it was extremely cold or windy out so we figured it was to do with that. but recently it has been going of alot more and even when the alarm is set. it has gone off 5 or 6 times in the last week. twice at 3am and each time states the same bell tamper thing. on one occassion it went off at night and when we disarmed it, it stated "G4 downstairs" and we cannot figure out where this zone is.we have tried setting the alarm and opening doors and windows to find it but to no avail. phew so after that long post Im wondering does anyone have any ideas on what the problem could be, rough idea of costs to sort problem and recommend someone reliable in Blanchardstown area that could do the job??

Thanks in advance and once again apologies if this has been covered and ive missed it:)

Hi itsallaboutme,

It sounds like you have a faulty sensor on the system. It can cause the alarm to go off at random. A sensor on the downstairs loop. With regard the external bell, does a fault light stay on on the alarm keypad ? If not i would think it is either faulty or has a loose cable.

With regard prices you should get a few prices off different companys in your area. Call out and service should be about €80.

itsallaboutme!!

thanks for the replies.

koolkid the only code we have for the alarm is the one that the estate agent gave us to set it. we tried the steps you outlined but after we enter the code the alarm just goes to full set and we cant get any further

altor no warning lights at all stay on the keypad once we disarm the alarm when it sounds.

really frustrating as it went off a few times last week and touch wood has not gone off since i last posted on here:rolleyes: will try ringing round a few places for quotes thanks for the advice:)

KoolKid

itsallaboutme!! wrote: »

koolkid the only code we have for the alarm is the one that the estate agent gave us to set it. we tried the steps you outlined but after we enter the code the alarm just goes to full set and we cant get any further

You code does not have privledges set to view the log.