MarkJohnson

Thanks to all for your help

Al, hardcore as in not great quality?

Good morning gents! Well, somebody certainly had a fun Sat evening, I can tell you that much! Here is the end result. The system works fine. It doesn't look particularly tidy and I think the extension piece is a little long, but I prefer it to be lose and dangling (!) so there is no stress on the cables. 1. I stripped back the wiring 2. Slid on some 2mm diameter shrink wrap 3. Twisted each pair of wires together 4. Added a small bit of solder 5. Used a heat gun on the shrinwrap The only slight issue is that I was a bit overzealous with the gun in terms of temperatures and melted the plastic sheath of one of the wires, which has now exposed the metal in the cable so taped that up with a tiny bit of gaffa tape (I didn't have any electrical tape at the time). I have highlighted this with a blue square in the image. The cupboard will be up against the wall, with a gap between wall / cupboard of about 8 to 10mm so the wiring will sit there quite happily. Feedback (however critical) is welcome - can't improve ourselves without it!

Another point I omitted - the cut cable is not long enough to join via soldering. An extra 5mm or so in length is needed at points A and B as there isn't any extra pull available on the cable. As such, it looks like I am going to have to cut a small length of cable (marked X in image below) and use that to join cables A and B. Is that likely to cause issues with the sensor?

Ok so I went home and had a go at soldering. I think I am making a pigs ear of it as the CCA cable strands are really delicate and flimsy. Also, bearing in mind, this was done on a kitchen table with plenty of light. Doing this on a ladder high up, might yield even worse results. (a) Be brutal, how bad is my soldering? Image below shows the 3 steps - twist the wire, make a hook, hook onto corresponding wire, add solder to bond together (b) If my soldering is judged to be real bad, is using a crimp really not advisable?

OK great. I might have some electronics solder already. I know that I definitely have lead and lead free solder for plumbing use but that won't be suitable as mentioned above. Also it is on a large cumbersome reel. Last q - how do I put the system into standby / switch it off - the wiring is live, I don't want to short / damage anything! It's a Texecom Premier Elite 24.

Thank you for that - I believe there is an offcut of CCA lying about, I will have a go on that. Do I need any particular flux or solder? I have regular plumbing flux and solder, not sure if this is correct for this specialised application?

Thanks for everyone's input - are we thinking that a regular soldering iron will be able to solder the joint OK? I didn't think it would work. I do have a blow torch for plumbing duty but that is probably not right in this application.

Thanks for the replies folks. With regards to solder, I don't think it would work, primarily because it's basically aluminium cable (CCA) and also it is 2.4m up, so a bit awkward to solder on a ladder. But the CCA issue here is the real problem, otherwise I'd have soldered the damn thing already.

Just to clear up on the above, my choices (unless you guys have a better suggestion) at the moment to fix this mess are: (1)Lever splicing connector: https://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/WA415.html (2) Some crimps: https://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Main_Index/Cable_Accessories_Index/Crimp_Lugs_and_Tools/index.html (3) A small, 2a connector strip (two-way): https://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/TLCON2.html

Morning gents! Based on a lot of background reading I did on this forum, a Texecom Premier Elite was fitted about 6 months ago and a great alarm it is too! Problem I have now is that when cutting off some cornice at the top of the ceiling, we completely forgot that the telephone and alarm cable was run through there. As such, we cut through the damn thing. I'd like to patch this up as it leads to a key patio door sensor. The bigger issue is that the cable is crappy CCA (copper clad alu) as opposed to quality cable. Don't ask how or why that was used. So I guess question is how do I connect this crappy cable back up again? Can't solder it. I can only think of something like this (a pack of ten is a couple quid and they are tiny): https://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/WA415.html Also, as the system is 'live' and I don't wish to short anything, how would I power it down temporarily?

Nope, no rodents running around

Any recommendations?

Hello folks, I have gone with a wired Texecom Premier Elite system and have ordered the bits today. And, having done that, I realised that aside from the bell box, I need an annoying / loud siren inside the property. Any suggestions? Something uncomfortable enough for the burglar so he wouldn't want to spend much time inside. EDIT: found this, but don't know if it is any good? Installation is into a ground floor flat...Kinetic Sound Bomb 2 https://www.kinetic-group.co.uk/kinetic_security/products/internal_sounders/sound_bomb_2/

Got it. I guess it's one of those less is more situations! Out of interest, notwithstanding the wall and that it faces into the living room, wouldn't sensor 4 be able to pick up something if the door to the flat door is flung open?

Do you mean not to worry as in, "yes, add a sensor there" or don't worry as in "don't add sensor 3, it will be fine without it." Which type of worry is it?

One more question...is it worth having a PIR sensor in the top left corner of the hallway (right above / next to entrance to bedroom 2), looking at the keypad (location 3), as at the moment, the only thing protecting the keypad is the door contact sensor on main door to the flat...if somebody manages to defeat it / it malfunctions, the keypad isn't guarded as it were. Is this a necessary addition or am I overloading / overdoing it? Location 3, below...

Morning folks, sorry for the delay, but a small update for you all, with the added Brucey Bonus of a couple questions! In terms of cabling, I've run 6 core to most locations and ordered some Elmdene door contacts (flush mount for wooden doors, surface mount for aluminium sliding patio doors in living room / master bedroom, EOL resistors as recommended, so thanks for that! In terms of PIR sensors, I've gone for Texecom's Premier Elite DT sensor, as recommended (thank you Mr DataDiffusion) so I get both volumetric and microwave coverage. So far, so good. However, I still have some sensor positioning questions...pics to illustrate. Locations #1 + #2 are fine, I think we agree on that. Main issue is what to do about the big open space that is the kitchen / living room? (1) Location #5 is about 5.5 metres away from the large patio doors but still faces / look at them. This would cover the living room area. Is this an ok location for the DT sensor or should it be elsewhere in the room? (2) I'd like a DT sensor in location #3 if possible, as that will cover anybody trying to sneak in via the bathroom...would location #3 be ok? I would like to avoid location #4 as it is directly above a vertical radiator, whereas with #3 it is further away from the rad. (3) If I go with #5 and #3, because of the beam that is boxed in by the plasterboard, they wouldn't see each other hence won't false alarm? Or would they?!

I was just going to use 4 core for the door sensors, and run 6 core cable for the PIR sensors...I don't need 12 core anywhere, do I?

Great help, thank you. I am sure I will have a couple more questions, but for the time being, I roughly know what is needed. Going for Texecom Premier Elite range, wired.

Thank you, useful info, I would have slipped up on that. Another thing I was thinking... At position 3, why don't I go for one of these, mounted on the ceiling, would it be ok in between a row of downlights? Ceiling height is 2.6m exactly. Texecom RF360 Ceiling Detector Pic of living room area to illustrate my point:

Great, thank you for that. I think I will go with a Texecom system. Just found out that Texecom don't do door contacts to my knowledge so I will source these from somebody else eg. Honeywell. Door contacts will wire using 4 core and PIR sensors with 6 core. In terms of connectivity, is it best to go for a wifi module so that the system can alert me via an app or is GSM with a pay as you go sim best?

Hello chap! I've done another little diagram: D = contact sensor location The area marked with a yellow box is stairs to small basement / storage area. This is also where the fuse box is located. Shall I stick the control panel there and the keypad opposite entrance door?

Good morning folks, very helpful advice, thank you. So positions #2 and #4 are fine. With rgds to a PIR sensor for the living room, I think I might remove radiator next to position #6 and have it there... There will be 3 door contacts in all - front entry door marked X, bed 2 and garden patio doors out back. Follow up questions: 1. Should I note have a PIR sensor in the corridor where entrance to flat is, just a door contact? 2. Any views on how far away the control panel needs to be away from the keypad or can both be next to each other?

Hello folks, I'm in the midst of researching alarms (Texecom, Honeywell, Pyronix) and would like some advice on where theoretically it would be best to position PIR sensors. Property is a ground floor flat, all across one level. Front door looks onto a busy street, while the back is a garden. I have done a plan to show you here: My questions / issues are: 1. Bedroom 1: PIR faces large bay window, might be an issue with light throughout the day? Location 2 probably better. 2. Hallway: PIR 2 overlooks entrance door and down the hall, so no issues there I don't think? Entrance to flat is marked with an X. I was thinking to put keypad next to door - should control box be mounted as far away as possible from keypad? I have a basement, can put it there if that is the best thing to do. 3. Bed 2: PIR #4 can be mounted in corner above patio doors. 4. I have lots of radiators in the flat, most of these are vertical radiators around 180cm high x 35cm wide, sitting 30cm off the floor, so topping out at 210cm or so. The ceilings in the living room area are approximately 2.25m hence I am concerned about possibility of placement in locations 6 and 7 for example and this is why I was thinking about #8 as a possibility, above the patio doors, in the middle, logic being away from sources of heat (rads). Location #9 I don't think will work well as it is next to a Velux window as shown on the plan and light will shine down through it and play havoc with the PIR. 5. Outside bell box decision is simple - outside, on the wall, above bay window. Would be grateful for any words of wisdom / correction. Thank you!