Hi,
I would love to buy a few parts and mess about with them on my kitchen table. No particular goal in mind.
I joke. Mostly.
My son (autistic) and I am have been playing around with arduino and built a working alarm for his sister's dolls house. He is thrilled, she is annoyed and I am happy I got him off his Nintendo switch for a few hours. He has correctly noticed we do not have a real one, but do have 2 old bell boxes on the side of the house. He wants to fit a 'real one' and made me go up a ladder to look at the boxes. There was a central radio panel but never used it in the 11 years we've been here (owner), never had an attempted break in. I think the central panel got knocked off the wall in some redecoration and not put back. Wife is not really sure we need an alarm, but I have seen the local break in rates are no different to the national rates.
Recent house repipe means all the boards are up and I can run cables. Even if I fit no pirs or panel or sounder, now is a good opportunity to run some cables. Got quotes for wired + bells only but all came back for 'wireless'. I appreciate running cables (having done it) is a ghastly job, so I felt they probably did not want the work, even though I said I could run the cables. I appreciate that a real system is **nothing like** arduino, but if I end up with a pile of bits in a box and kept the boy of his screens for a few hours here and there, then goal achieved.
When you put the floorboards opportunity next to 'no alarm' situation next to the son's interest, the solution really really does look like purchasing an alarm and running cables.
What would you do differently, how can you advise:
1. I run cable and put the floor boards/carpet back (I could do with reducing the nag factor right now), leave the cables hanging out to attach later. Would you run 6 core to each pir, or 3 pirs off one 8 core?
2. Probably thinking texecom since reasonable DIY support and not too exp, maybe anything in veritas range (they all seem the same? are they the same?)
3. If you get texecom, get the wintex software - just easier, Looks like it is £5. Also says premier elite, not veritas. Veritas does not need wintex, veritas kits with the keypad state this is the programming tool no need for wintex?
Thank you for reading.