Replacement Alarm System - Your recommendation

[MattyB801]

Hi All,

I hope you can help.

I own 2 bed detatched house that has an old Gardtec alarm system installed. However, prior to us moving in, the house underwent a fair amount of refurb work, and the original system got quite beaten around in the process (i.e. keypad damaged, pirs painted over / damaged, some wiring cut back)

The majority of the wiring still remains and appears to be in good condition, and i'd like to re-instate an alarm system. I consider myself to be relatively handy from a DIY point of view, so happy to take this on (with guidance obviously!)

The system currently (or at least used to) consist of a:

* Panel in airing cupboard upstairs
* Key Pad next to front door
* Internal Sounder in entrnace hall
* External Bell Box (front)
* External Dummy Bell Box (rear)
* 3 PIRS upstairs (bedrooms and landing)
* 2 PIRS downstairs (kitchen and living room)
* 2No. Door Contacts (front and rear)

Like I say, the majority of the wiring is still there, although I will test this as I go before refitting new PIRs, and extend and replace wiring as necessary. Am I right in thinking I can do this with a 9v battery connected to each wire at the end of the run, using a multi meter at the panel? Or there a easier way?

I'm looking to replace the entire system (other than wiring) and was looking for any recommendations for the following items:

* Panel and Keypad
* Internal Sounder
* External Bell Box
* Door Contacts
....plus any other items you recommend I may want to add?

I have already purchased a new set of 5 PIRs, which are Bosch Blueline Gen2s, which seem to be a good bit of kit on first inspection (usual bosch).

I'm happy to have an unmonitored system and am not looking for dialling out or anything like that, although it might be nice to add an SMS system in future?

My budget for the panel and keypad is £75, Internal Sounder £25, External Bell Box £25 and then door contacts/wiring is whatever it is. I'd like something quite simple and easy to set up and maintain, as both me and the missus will need to know how to work it on a daily basis!

Your thoughts and assistance is much appreciated,

Matt

 

[Europlex]

1st thought.

DON'T put the control panel in the airing cupboard.

The continuous heat cooks the battery.

Fitted wardrobe, larder, cupboard under the stairs, or garage are a few suggestions.

 

[MattyB801]

Thanks, but hands are tied on that one really, as that's where it was originally installed by the pro's, and there really are very few other locations. All the cables are also all terminated in there......how quick will it kill the battery? I can live with £15 every couple of years.....

 

[Europlex]

Well, my company has one in a airing cupboard, Panel + a Power supply, 1x7Ah battery in each.

As this system is connected to signalling it has 2x service calls a year, that equates to 2x 7Ah Batts being replaced every 6 months.

I know, it sounds as though I'm not practising what I preach. This system was a takeover, customer will not have the system relocated. Must love spending ££s every 6 months!

 

[joe-90]

They are normally good for about 5 years if you use a decent heavy duty one. Only ever had a Ucell fail before that.

 

[roberta1000]

Lead-acid batteries work and last best at around 25 degrees C. Their useful life is halved for every (roughly) 7-8 degrees C. So a 5-year life would be reduced to around 6 months at a temperature of around 50 degrees C.

(Quite a warm cupboard though )

 

[sparkymarka]

Even less when somone stacks 25 towels against it ! Lol !

 

[EightyTwo]

Europlex has a point - we have one customer who goes through a battery every 6-12 months but his airing cupboard is like an oven with little lagging and everything running flat out all the time.

We have many other airing cupboard jobs where the batteries last 2, 3 or four years. It depends just how hot they are and how many towels/pillow cases/duvets are crammed round them!

You can check cable by twisting or untwisting pairs and checking for short/open circuits or using a cable tracer. The 9V battery trick will be fine if the cables are in one piece and not shorted.

Lots of choices for kit. People on this forum like Texecom. Pyronix TwinAlert for the internal sounder and Deltabell for outside. Contacts are up to you but beware of grade 3 ones, they are expensive, can be tricky to wire up and the gaps need to be pretty close. The CQR ungraded ones should be fine for you - choose between surface or concealed and white of brown...

 

[MattyB801]

Thanks for all your comments re: panel location. I'll investigate the option of moving into an alcove in the bedroom. 6 months is a bit excessive for battery replacement actually!

Many thanks 82. I had a look this eve and I was thinking:

Texecom Veritas or Excel panel with associated RKP (do I really need an LCD display?)

Pyronix Twin Alert looks good for under £10! As does the deltabell.

Good shout on the twisting of pairs, makes life easier. Should I be labelling which cable is which at the panel end?

Ok, point taken regarding the door contacts.

 

[socdesign]

I tend to stick to the Honeywell Galaxy range of panels. A G2-12 can be picked up new with next day delivery on Ebay for £30. About the same for a keyprox LCD keypad.

The good thing about these panels is that there are always plenty of low cost add-ons available on Ebay. You can add RF, IP-Comm's with phone control, Etc. If you choose to upgrade at a later date, the peripherals are compatible across the range.

Good solid proven panels and the remote keypads are fairly unobtrusive too.

 

[EightyTwo]

I can't give you a recommendation on the Texecoms - we don't use them! We use Scantronic i-ON or 65/85/95 panels in houses.

Get yourself some white insulating tepe and a fine write-on-anything marker pen. You can write directly on white cable or make little "flags" with the tape to write on brown cables.

If you're going to move the panel location, get a junction box with two choc block strips in it (eBay 380607975948) and some 8-core cable. Put the JB in the airing cupboard and extend all the cables to the new location. Remember that all the PIRs will have a 12V supply so you only need to extend this on a single pair. You can have multiple zones in one cable as long as you mark everything up. Don't put sounders and zones in the same cable. It's worth writing it all down and putting a note in the panel and the JB (write on the inside of the lid?) so that you can work it all out in five years time!

 

[joe-90]

Texecom are good, cheap and bullet proof.

 

[wermy]

Texecom gets my vote after just fitting mine in the last couple of days.

Relocation of our unit was easy using an expander to go where the tails terminated. You then run a single link off to where you want the panel.

Programming via a USB lead and the Wintex software was so much easier than via the RKP. You can set it via the computer, run tests and see what errors you have. I like the quick set option, saves having to put your code in to set and the option to turn the keypad sounds down.

Save your money on the internal sounder and spend it on the better panel and RKP.

 

[MattyB801]

Thanks for all your help.....I guess its between Texecom Veritas R8, Texecom Excel or Honeywell Galaxy G2-12.

I'll be looking to make my order once i'm back from hols in 2 weeks, so whatever comes up cheapest at the time (although I do like the idea of the keyprox system, which might sway me).

Thanks again
Matt