Basic Problems
Many people will have an outside alarm company install their home security system. The installer is paid a basic industry wage and will sometimes have a helper, whom is making a lot less.
Soldering Gun
This is the first problem. Many installers are directed by their company, to install the system quickly. Many companies leave the design of the system and location of equipment to the installer.
Installers will take short cuts when running the wires, use double sided tape rather than screws, place equipment in bad locations and much more.
Secure the Panel
The main panel should be located in a secure place with easy access, but remain hidden. Some installers will place the panel in a closet. This is bad, because the homeowner will later fill up the closet, blocking access. A good place for the panel is in a utility room. The wires should be protected by raceway or conduit, it not installed inside the wall. Never install the panel or wires near high AC power. Never have a wire run beside an AC wire. Have a keypad installed at the panel for emergency access or service. If using a voice type panel, then install a speaker at the panel. Lock the panel and hide the key. It is better to have the panel reset into the wall, rather then mounted on the surface. It will be harder for someone to knock the panel off the wall. Use fire sealant to protect any wire entry points into the panel. Use fire rated blocking above and below the panel if installing it in the wall.
False Alarms
The next main problem I see is false alarms. There are several reasons for a false alarm. One big cause is bad wiring. Installers fail to place wires high and out of the way of other contractors. For this reason, the wire can get damaged. Someone installing sheetrock on a wall could put a nail into a wire. I have seen wires placed next to lights or run along side of electrical wires. This can cause noise into a panel and produce false alarms. Another big reason for false alarms is bad connection. Many installers will use cheap connectors to join wires together. A good installer will solder the joint and cover it with tape. Many times an installer will nick a wire when stripping the insulation back. If the wire is nicked, it can break at a later point. If you find a problem with a wire or device, check the connections first. Chances are you will find a broken wire.
Noise / Spikes
Noise or spikes into a panel cause the most headache's in the industry. These are caused by electrical jolts or the power going up and down. Any wire entering into a panel from the outside world, should have surge protection on it. This includes power, phone, data network lines and camera's. Installers will place a small battery at the panel to power the system if the AC power goes out. This is a false sense of security. The proper way to use battery back-up is to install a UPS (back-up battery system) between the AC outlet and the panel. If the home power is lost or spikes, the UPS will still supply a steady power source to the panel. The panel will not see a change and thus reduce false alarms. If the UPS battery goes dead, you then have the panel battery as a backup, but for just a few hours. On a good setup, a system can run as much as a week without AC power. The number of batteries needed will depend on the power needs of the system. Some homeowners will replace the panel battery with a single 100 amp hour deep cycle battery to back up a system. This is about the size of a car battery and cost more, but it really works great. It also requires a special charger that can be purchased extra.
Phone Lines
False alarms can come in across a phone line as well. The best way to protect from this kind of spike is to install a surge filter at the point the phone line connects to the outside of the home and place a second filter at the point the phone line connects to the panel. Unless it is a major power spike, the two filters will help reduce false alarms.
Never have your alarm dial directly to the police. Always dial to a monitoring company. They can check to see if the alarm is real or false, thus reducing any extra cost to you. Lock up the outside phone box. It is harder for someone to cut a phone line if they can not get to it.
Protecting Wire
A security system will sometimes have a smoke detector attached to it. An installer will use fire protection rated wire to make the connection between the panel and the device. The problem comes when there is a fire. The wire used to power the panel does not have the same fire rating and will burn quicker. The phone line wire does not have the same fire rating, the back-up battery does not have the same fire rating. During a fire, the smoke detector should sound off and report an alarm unless the fire has damaged the phone line.
The phone line is your life protection during an alarm. The proper way to install a phone line for an alarm system is to (a) use fire rated wire, (b)place the wire in a metal conduit (3) fire protect any connections. As a back-up for the phone connection, you can use a cellular connection. Again, make sure their is proper fire protection.
Other Causes
Many other false alarms are caused by the equipment in the field. This can be door contacts, motion detectors, glass breaks and so on. Cheap equipment will break down. False alarms can cost the homeowner lots of money. Make sure the installer is installing quality equipment.
Bad Design
Bad design is a big reason why homes get broken into, when there is a security system installed. The best protection is to cause an alarm before damage is done to the home. To do this, you can use outside motion detectors, IR Beams, or any of the many other devices, that will alert you to someone getting near your home. All points of entry should be protected by hard wired devices. Never use a wireless device on a door or window. The battery can go dead, which would produce a trouble in the system. At this point, someone could open the door and walk in to your home and never set the alarm off. Wireless contact devices should be used for an attic door inside the home or to protect an object inside the home.
Windows
Many installers will use a contact at the lowest point of the window. This is a bad location as water can collect in this area. The device can become damaged and fail to work properly. There should always be 2 sets of contacts placed on a window. One set should be placed 6 inches above the bottom of the window sill and the other placed in the middle of the window. This allows the homeowner to open the window 6 inches during the summer months and still be able to arm the system at night. All wires to the contact should be hidden. The contact should be the same color as the window to reduce the chances of someone seeing it with ease.
Doors
Door contacts should be installed so that any outside rain water can not get to the back of the contact. A good way to protect a contact from a short cause by rain water is to use silicone on the back of the contact. A good place to install the contact is in the door jam at the back of the door. Use a plunger style type of contact. This is the hardest to see and hard for someone to jump out. This type of contact reacts when a plunger is depressed. Never allow paint to get on the contact, as it will keep the plunger from working correctly. I like to use two plungers on a door. They are linked together so it one goes off the system will alarm. This way if one plunger goes bad, I have the other as a backup. Contacts that use magnets can be faked out. I never trust a contact that uses a magnet.
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Nov 07, 2011 10:52:48
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