Keypad on alarm worn out

miketheDIYman

Advice needed on replacing my keypad - I fitted my own alarm system many years ago ( when it was legal to do so ) so I know my way around the system but need a little advice on disconnecting my existing keypad and reconnecting a new one - now its an Aritech one so not sure if they are readily available ( maybe on Amazon or eBay ) so also can I use another brand for this item - any advice will be much appreciated as I am on State Pension now so have a tight budget. I know how to get into maintenance mode but is this ok when disconnecting a vital part of the system ?

altor

miketheDIYman wrote: »

Advice needed on replacing my keypad - I fitted my own alarm system many years ago ( when it was legal to do so ) so I know my way around the system but need a little advice on disconnecting my existing keypad and reconnecting a new one - now its an Aritech one so not sure if they are readily available ( maybe on Amazon or eBay ) so also can I use another brand for this item - any advice will be much appreciated as I am on State Pension now so have a tight budget. I know how to get into maintenance mode but is this ok when disconnecting a vital part of the system ?

Good news is it's still legal to fit your own alarm.
You may just need to clean under the rubber buttons to get that keypad up and running again. If you don't want to take a chance of shorting anything just down power the system, mains and battery, while doing same.

KoolKid

You would need the same make of keypad. These are no longer manufactured but ebay or Amazon etc might yield positive results.
Cleaning the buttons and the contacts on the PBC may improve performance. I would always put the system into engineer and remove the keypad entirely while doing this.

miketheDIYman

Thanks Altor & KoolKid for your replies, so if I find a matching replacement do I just need to go into engineer mode or should I also disconnect the battery and mains power ? Is there an independent battery in exterior bell that might activate it even with other power sources disconnected ?

altor

miketheDIYman wrote: »

Thanks Altor & KoolKid for your replies, so if I find a matching replacement do I just need to go into engineer mode or should I also disconnect the battery and mains power ? Is there an independent battery in exterior bell that might activate it even with other power sources disconnected ?

I'd try cleaning the back of the keypad and buttons first.
It's usually all it needs.
If you do get another keypad and decide to change without powering the system down then make sure the cable cores in the keypad do not touch as it will blow a fuse in the control panel.
Powering down prevents this.
External bell does have its own battery, providing this is still good it will ring if you down power the system.

KoolKid

miketheDIYman wrote: »

Thanks Altor & KoolKid for your replies, so if I find a matching replacement do I just need to go into engineer mode or should I also disconnect the battery and mains power ? Is there an independent battery in exterior bell that might activate it even with other power sources disconnected ?

If you have engineer access then putting the system into engineer mode will prevent it activating while disconnecting & reconnecting the keypad.
If you are anyway nervous of blowing the fuse by all means power the system down by removing the mains power & battery. This will probably cause the external bell to activate though. Generally I disconnect & reconnect the +(positive first) once that is in place you are a lot less likely to blow a fuse with the other 3 cables.