Gardtec 800 series battery and engineer code

[dominoman]

I have just moved in to a new house with a Gardtec alarm. We have the activation code but not the engineer code.

The man who came to service and reset it charged us £100 (70 for callout plus 30 for the battery). Seems much too expensive for the battery?

He then told us that to reset the engineer code he needs to install a chip. Is that correct? How much should we be paying.

I'm a fairly competent DIYer but I don't know anything about alarms. Any advice would be much appreciated.

 

[Hoover]

You are in London so you are paying London rates.

Depends on the size of the battery and battery manufacturer on price but i am guessing your looking at a 7Ah battery for around that sort of cost from an installer. (you could probably get a battery for £20 from screwfix at that size dont know the manufacturer mind)

If the NVM is locked then he will need to replace that chip (or get the previous company to unlock it with a valid eng code) to reset as mentioned, not familiar with that panel so cant say how easy it would be.

I dont think the price was that bad to be honest

 

[dominoman]

Thanks. That's reassuring that the price isn't way out.

I'm keen to avoid replacing the whole system, as the sensors and wiring all seems to be fine.

Is it possible to change the keypad and alarm unit, while keeping everything else as is? Is this a DIY job, and do I need to stick with GardTec, or are the proximity sensors all pretty standard so I can use an alternative manufacturer for the keypad and alarm?

 

[Hoover]

Well thats your call what do you have on it?

Things have changed a fair bit over the years, wrt to DIY if you can follow some of the bad installation manuals out there you would be okay but some are worse than flat pack manuals.

Get quotes to replace the kit, see what they come up with.

 

[Serg]

Can't see reason to replace chip as manual doesn't say about to do reset to defaults

When resetting the GardTec 800 Series to factory defaults several levels of resetting
are available, these are:-a) Pressing 1, 9, YES, NO during initial power up will revert the Master Code
and Engineer Code (not locked engineer code) back to factory defaults.
b) Pressing 3, 7, YES, NO during initial power up will revert all system settings
back to defaults with the exception of the User Names and Zone Descriptors.
c) Pressing 4, 6, YES, NO during initial power up will revert all system settings
back to factory defaults.
d) Pressing 5, 5, YES, NO during initial power up will revert all system settings

 

[Hoover]

usually doesnt if the NVM can be locked, you need the correct code or replace the chip.

The NVM's are not very expensive usually, its whether they need to be desoldered to remove old ones, and new one soldered in and the newer the panel the harder it is to remove the NVM as a rule

 

[sparkymarka]

Can't see reason to replace chip as manual doesn't say about to do reset to defaults

When resetting the GardTec 800 Series to factory defaults several levels of resetting
are available, these are:-a) Pressing 1, 9, YES, NO during initial power up will revert the Master Code
and Engineer Code (not locked engineer code) back to factory defaults.
b) Pressing 3, 7, YES, NO during initial power up will revert all system settings
back to defaults with the exception of the User Names and Zone Descriptors.
c) Pressing 4, 6, YES, NO during initial power up will revert all system settings
back to factory defaults.
d) Pressing 5, 5, YES, NO during initial power up will revert all system settings

So if it is engineer locked what do you do ? Pcb change ! Only problem is you won't know untill you have tried it , then it's too late ...

 

[Serg]

So if it is engineer locked what do you do ? Pcb change ! Only problem is you won't know untill you have tried it , then it's too late ...

Can option b) or c) reset even locked engineer code?

 

[sparkymarka]

No.... That's why it's called engineer locked ... Can only be unlocked with the valid engineer code.. Or send it back to be unlocked , cheaper to replace if they still make it , 800 not made anymore. That's if it's an 800 it could be one of many gardtec 's

 

[EightyTwo]

I think I'd be inclined to swap the panel and keypad(s). You may also need to change the resistors in the detectors and contacts (if it's been wired as FSL). If the keypads aren't the full text, LCD ones, I'd definately upgrade!

The quote sounds good - we'd charge twice that for a "non-maintained" customer. Maplin are currently charging £40 for a Yuasa 7Ahr battery...