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False alarm (pir)


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Morning ?

 

Just a quick question please. 

 

Our old alarm had a few false alarms in its time. Our newish one (a texecom premier elite) has also suffered two. Both at night. One just now. Always scares you right up cos its so loud with the internal sounder. And every time I think the neighbours are going to hate me and the kids cry. 

 

Anyway, apart from one time it's always been the lounge pir that sets it off. 

 

If you got called out to this sort of thing, what be your standard procedure please?

 

Can you install two pirs and have it so they both have to register to set off an alarm? 

 

Would you move it? It's in a corner near patio doors.

 

Sorry I know it's vague but any thoughts would be welcomed thanks.

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14 minutes ago, bennynoneck said:

Morning ?

 

Just a quick question please. 

 

Our old alarm had a few false alarms in its time. Our newish one (a texecom premier elite) has also suffered two. Both at night. One just now. Always scares you right up cos its so loud with the internal sounder. And every time I think the neighbours are going to hate me and the kids cry. 

 

Anyway, apart from one time it's always been the lounge pir that sets it off. 

 

If you got called out to this sort of thing, what be your standard procedure please?

 

Can you install two pirs and have it so they both have to register to set off an alarm? 

 

Would you move it? It's in a corner near patio doors.

 

Sorry I know it's vague but any thoughts would be welcomed thanks.

Well I assume it's definitely an alarm signal?

 

You need to test the PIR and cable, resistance checks? Voltage checks ?

 

Position can also be a problem yes

 

 

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Sorry the key thing I should have added that this pir is wireless. There are a few more like this in house that don't false alarm though. 

 

As I said many years ago when I put in a system in my previous house, if you took all the guidance from texecom you wouldn't be able to put these pirs anywhere because they have to be a certain distance from steels, radiators, windows, air, and walls! The biggest problem for me in placement are steels as both ends of my living room have steel lintels. Also both ends have floor to ceiling glass windows  / patio doors although I can't remember if they are not meant to be facing through a window or not. 

 

Could a placement issue be so intermittent? 

 

Many thanks for the reply.

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Intermittent issues and things like this are where engineers earn there salt.

Being experienced you generally have an instinct of what it maybe from the environment or system log and then you can use your tools to see if you can confirm this (multimeter tests, reproducing the issue etc)

When it's down to placement problems you would minimise this at installation time, steel wouldn't be of a concern from a false activation POV but could reduce signal to the panel, you can check for this tho.

 

As an installer coming out to the job if all the tests were inconclusive you would likely just swap it, as a return visit would cost more to the company then a passive and battery. Doing nothing would help no-one here.

It's a different situation for yourself, I would be thinking about re-siting it with a new battery initially. Other tests you could do is to mask it off completely proving that it's not detecting something in the room or swapping it with another room.

Plenty of options and things to try to pin it down, but what we would do is probably different.

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7 hours ago, bennynoneck said:

Morning ?

 

Just a quick question please. 

 

Our old alarm had a few false alarms in its time. Our newish one (a texecom premier elite) has also suffered two. Both at night. One just now. Always scares you right up cos its so loud with the internal sounder. And every time I think the neighbours are going to hate me and the kids cry. 

 

Anyway, apart from one time it's always been the lounge pir that sets it off.  

 

If you got called out to this sort of thing, what be your standard procedure please? Apart from the obvious, anything in the room moving , look for spiders inside and out, is it secure,could whatever its screwed to move?

 

Can you install two pirs and have it so they both have to register to set off an alarm?  Yes this is called beam pairing, but with a quality quad you should not need to, I cant remember the last time my alarm went off.

 

Would you move it? It's in a corner near patio doors. Its more what its looking at rather than where it is. Is it looking at a moving heat source 

 

Sorry I know it's vague but any thoughts would be welcomed thanks. I love being vague, it gives me that heir of mystery 

 

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Just now, Logan said:

I reccomend either increasing the pulse count on the pir if possible  or using a dualtec

i dont, without knowing the cause just slowing down the sensor is hiding the issue and making for a potential no detection

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22 minutes ago, james.wilson said:

i dont, without knowing the cause just slowing down the sensor is hiding the issue and making for a potential no detection

QFA 

Dual-techs are designed for specific environments, and usually have a cheaper pir in them. People think because of the name and they cost more they are better, but in a small room like lounge they are worse than a cheap pir. Upping the pulse count only hides the problem and lowers your security. You need to find what causing it. If the detector is old change it for a quad element like an Optex RX 

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Hi all. Many thanks. 

 

I believe it was kit 2:

 

https://texe.com/uk/products/series/wireless-kits/premier-elite-series/

 

So just a standard pir. I have another in the hallway and another in the kitchen and a wired one upstairs and a wired dt in garage. And a contact on the front door.

 

I hope you can see the basic pic of my layout. Pir is in bottom right corner. 

 

I doesn't point to anything that moves. We have no pet. It does point to a wireless thermostat which on the wall opposite to the window if that helps.

 

Im thinking of putting it in the opposite corner next to the window but then that's near a radiator which I guess is no good. And if I have it by the bay window it will be looking back at the windows and patio doors. These pour through light in the morning (although not at 4am in the morning lol).

 

It is secure to the wall. It's about 3 inches from the corner so is secured on one side. I just used the same location as the previous pir which was put in by a company before I moved in. 

 

Cheers again. 

Screenshot_20200426-155916.png

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Looks the best location fo both rooms if its wireless you could swap it with another detector if the fault follows the detector then replace it, if the fault reoccurs in the lounge then its something environmental that your missing, I see nothing in that plan (unless you missed out some helium balloons from a recent party) that would cause fa's  

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Yer I wouldn't use any of the wireless kits apart from 0005 on the odd occasion it has most of what I need.

Agree with above, looks like the most sensible position, I'd swap it with one from another room for now. If the fault reoccurs in the same room swap for a quad or possibly DT.

 

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Many thanks I will follow all your advice to hopefully get this sorted.

 

Just one last thing - could it go off by something a postman walking past the bay window or lights of a car or a loud car or something? There is a small gap in the blinds in the bay window at night. 

 

Ill see how much a quad is. Probably worth the investment to be honest.

 

FYI I was hoping you'd all scream it was the wireless thermostat interfering or something! Ah well. 

 

Cheers again. 

Edited by bennynoneck
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You never know there maybe wireless interference but you have to start somewhere and you have no evidence of that.

PIR's cannot detect through solid objects whereas the microwave part of a DT can.

Your looking for something that could cause a sudden change in temperature of >5C within the 90 viewing angle of the passive.

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24 minutes ago, bennynoneck said:

Many thanks I will follow all your advice to hopefully get this sorted.

 

Just one last thing - could it go off by something a postman walking past the bay window or lights of a car or a loud car or something? There is a small gap in the blinds in the bay window at night. 

 

Ill see how much a quad is. Probably worth the investment to be honest.

 

FYI I was hoping you'd all scream it was the wireless thermostat interfering or something! Ah well. 

 

Cheers again. 

PIR wont really see through glass but if the sun is glaring in and its suddenly shadowed who knows, they are unlikely to be activated by white light though most passives have white light filter lenses 

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All great info thanks. 

 

https://www.citysecuritysystems.co.uk/intruder_equipment/intruder-detectors/texecom-premier-compact-qd-w

 

I assume this is what I'm after? It's a wireless quad. If so that's a decent price I'll order one tonight, maybe two and beam pair them lol. 

 

I'm going to move it maybe a foot away from the corner just in case it's a draft from between the patio doors and curtains. 

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I usually fit the Elites so GDB-0001 but if it's a quad then it's better than non-quad, which I would never fit.

Beam Pair would be excessive IMO, but you could beam pair with the existing instead of buying two.

Still think I wouldn't be throwing money at it until I have an idea what the issue is first.

 

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I was half joking about the pairing but my reasoning is that if I get this then it's potential piece of mind. If that goes off then I know there's a placement issue. If not I have an extra pir to use and if that old one goes off in the new place then I guess I have my answer. 

 

I don't think I have the patience and clarity of mind to study thr manual to beam pair pirs!

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But on a serious note does anyone know that if I set a global bell delay, will that still set off the internal sounder immediately? It says 'this timer controls the delay between an intruder alarm occurring and the bell/strove output activating' which I read to be the case.

 

The internal siren wakes me up immediately so this would give me a few seconds before the external bell activates. Bad practice I can imagine but until I get this sorted perhaps.... 

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