sixwheeledbeast

As you can see people don't agree. It's all down to if you see it as a box pushing game or a service industry IMO. You can push as many shiny new boxes as you want but customers want a good service, it's the peace of mind and trust in your system and installer people should focus on.

I still say a good, well maintained, fit for purpose system wouldn't need ripping out. People are too quick to add to the E-waste pile IMO. It's easy to say you swap your car or phone more regularly than your alarm but most of this consumer stuff is designed with a short lifespan in mind and you are trapped to a platform. A lot of my electronic equipment is 10 years old but its well looked after, I'd only plan to replace it when it's unserviceable.

Doesn't mean the standby battery is large enough tho. Depends if that was checked when it was fitted.

If it's well looked after it's unlikely to need replacing. Either way the wires could be reused if in good condition. .

Alarm systems need regular maintenance to avoid issues like this, SLA batteries have an expected life of 4 years for good quality ones. I would suggest you have the system serviced by the installer. Alternatively if you are feeling competent to DIY, it would be sensible to check the voltage and charging rate with a multimeter, when you replace the battery otherwise you will be back up there again next power cut. It is up to you if you want to isolate the mains before opening the cover, most engineers would not but they would also be unlikely to poke there fingers near the mains terminals.

Merged thread, please do not repost the same topic again. It just fragments questions for future reference and search results. This is covered in the site guidelines. Thanks

Digi Output 7 is most likely already setup for your needs, you may just have to invert it in the output menu.

Some installs need labelling especially if you have a lot or it isn't you coming back. I would argue some installs are not worth labelling. For example if domestic I would often wait until all the devices are up and flash them on the battery while wiring up so they can then be labelled in the finished controls. Sometimes old skool is still the best.

I personally still connect the set even if you only use one, it's good to see if the device has been activated even if unset. As above FTA is a stand alone bus that doesn't go back to the controls. You will likely need to invert any outputs as PE24 only has -ve sinking.

Self Contained Bell, uses it's own lead acid battery to sound the siren when triggered from panel. Self Activating Bell, uses the panel voltage to sound the siren when trigger is low, or "hold off" voltage is removed which "self activates" the bell from it's NiCd. Many modern SAB's have a SCB style mode.

SCB where designed that way. Tamper return will be +ve if the HO is +ve, you can see the tamper link is still fitted

So it's for an old SCB then

I would test with a meter first but I assume:- 12v+ = +ve 12v- = trig HO = -ve ST = tamp return B = beacon? strobe Failing that the 999 D'COM terminals are likely negative sinking panic and intruder.

Aux + -, HO and ST over on the left would be may guess.

Blown a fuse in the main controls. When was the last time the system was serviced? Maybe worth considering having a service if it's been a while.

I would argue that's completely different a modem has speed limitations. If a modem could do broadband speeds without having to have the line engaged it may still be in use. There are a good few companies that still prefer fax for example. The time to be received is similar to an email so it's still fit for purpose.

Phone line polarity hasn't been an issue for 20 years or more. All approved devices had to be made compatible with either polarity, starting around the touchtone era, well on POTS stuff anyway. I would still use foil on glass if required, you say it's passed it. I'd say it's proven and works well in the right situation.

I would say any ethernet device would be how to decide on the products origin. Why use Hik cameras and trap your self to TVI DVR when you could use a vast choice of other 4 format cameras if using analogue solution.

Yes I also have a Besson one. Solid piece of kit Works fine for me at the moment

As above if you are experienced you can tell a good bit from how the fuse blows. The greater the load the more the fuse wire goes splat. Also make sure you replace for the exact same value, it's too easy to fit the wrong fuse as 20mm come in a variety of ratings.

One of those 700L rebrands I believe. If you can find a keypad just swap it over, although you maybe better just upgrading for something that comes as a panel and keypad if you feel competent to do that.

I recall it as 15 minute activation not 30 minutes. Seen as the bell timer would be 15 minutes the alarm current after 15 minutes will be different on an SAB. Was sure the standard says something along the lines of "12 (24) hours standby including one full activation"? Still useful chart tho, not a bad thing to be overspec standby capacity wise.

Texe have a wireless smoke kit that will work independently but it's not Exodus brand it's Rick O Shea. I would use something like Aico 180 Series for low voltage supply. Fire alarm controls a bit overkill for your standard domestic house.

Only issue with Texe ones is they rely on a working alarm system and have no redundancy if the alarm fails, in any fault or fire condition. Just something to consider.

From what I can find out Iso-Tech are RS rebrands, most seem discontinued and now rebranded as RS Pro. https://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/digital-multimeters/8732367/ As I say above if your looking for a quality meter new you can't beat the Fluke 117. I wouldn't be without the Non contact, Auto-V and Lo-Z features now. If I where looking again I'd consider the 117/323 combo kit can be handy to have a clamp meter in some situations.