Guest Josh Posted October 13, 2003 Posted October 13, 2003 Hi Guys, I've just installed my first system(Hurrah ) at home consisting of a Nexus 8 and a whole bunch of mag contacts and Focus PIRs. The instructions with the system are quite good but assume that you are an engineer with years of experience!!! (I'm an Electronics Engineer so know my way around a DVM etc. ) What I'm after is some advice on the commisioning of the system, I've powered up the system, configured the zones and performed a 'walk test' throughout the house and all of the sensors appear to be working and I don't have any fault codes on the panel. Do you guys have any recommendations on commissioning tips? Do I need to 'soak test' the system? and if so, how? Should I 'load test' and measure the supply voltage at various points around the system? and what sort of volt drop is acceptable? Is any of this documented? Good site, by the way, gave me some good tips Thanks very much for your help Josh
Guest dale Posted October 13, 2003 Posted October 13, 2003 I would just switch it on, if there are faults you will know about it soon enough. I personaly don't soak test as unless there is a real reason (ie you have a potential source that could cause false alarms) then it should just work. Obviosly make sure you havent run cables near mains cables and make sure PIR's arnt pointing at heat sources that can change quickly (ie central heating boilers). Dale
JB_ Posted October 13, 2003 Posted October 13, 2003 Switch it on, make any meter reading's up and do the paperwork on the way home in the van. Oops, i think i've said too much.
Guest Peter James Posted October 13, 2003 Posted October 13, 2003 The whole point of meter readings are to make sure that the panel is installed to the specification that it was designed. I.E. if the system in full alarm is drawing 1Amp but the cpu psu is only rated at 500mA then theres somthing wrong.banghead Any engineer that does the paperwork in the van is asking to be called out in the middle of the night for not doing his job correctly in the 1st place. Proper engineers would check and record resistance of each circuit and tamper, battery charging current system current not in alarm and system current in alarm. To check that you have the correct size battery it should be no less than 10x the current being drawn when not in alarm (eg 180mA drawn not in alarm= minimum battery 1.8 Ah) Pete
Guest dale Posted October 13, 2003 Posted October 13, 2003 I would imagine the system would be a kit Pete, so all the parts should be exactly right for that system - one of my family got the kit from Maplin and all the parts were all to spec. Also if the unit was drawing too much current, either the quickblow would go or the thermal cut out would trip, either way it should not happen. I agree you should check the voltages, but if its DIYer then just switch it on, cause chances are it will either work or it won't! If it dont, take it back, or get a proffesional out to check it. Dale
Guest Peter James Posted October 14, 2003 Posted October 14, 2003 Dale I didnt think that the guys system would be under speced he asked how the proffesionals do it I replied. I was also trying to point out to JB why meter readings are taken, there is a reason for them and although the diy system could be an exeption, meter readings is a very serious part of the install (thats why you get two points from the auditor if you get them wrong) But I suppose theres alarm engineers and theres alarm engineers. And if everyone did class A installations there would be no need for NSI Bronze or Silver. Pete
Service Engineer Posted October 14, 2003 Posted October 14, 2003 As proffesionals we should always carry out a full commissioning of the installed alarm system, hoping you were joking JB_ Resistances, current draws (mains & no mains), voltages etc. Just because the equipment is new doesnt mean it cant be faulty. Check it all, then check again. ........................................................ Dave Partridge (Romec Service Engineer)
An Engineer Posted October 14, 2003 Posted October 14, 2003 I think this Nacoss Gold, Silver Bronze is a farce. I used to work for a company that falsified commissioning certificates for many jobs done before the inspectors were due. Nacoss would book there visit with them over a month in advance which gave plenty of time to make sure all the customer files were "complete". Because the inspector would ask my boss to present him with three installations that he could check, my boss was able to make sure he had at least three jobs absolutely perfect. I know theres a lot more to the audits than just this, but its a major part. This has given the Longsight, Manchester based company Nacoss gold status. What would be the most accurate way to audit companies would be to call at the premises unannounced and for the inspector to choose three jobs himself. This would mean that only the very best and most deserving companies would get Nacoss Gold. Do you know what I'm getting at here?? Anyone can falsify records. Nacoss are saying OK, show me your very best work, when really they should be picking at random to keep alarm companies on there toes. When the public see Nacoss Gold they are given the impressiion that this must be one of the best companies when really they may just be the most dishonest. Can I name and shame?? Service Engineer My opinions may not reflect those of my employer, managers, colleagues, customers, friends, family or pet rabbit.
Guest Peter James Posted October 14, 2003 Posted October 14, 2003 Warwick Well not all company's or inspectors are the same. Our inspector asks to see the list of certificates that we have issued since his last visit, then he will ask to see the files on say 5 or six of those sites, he will then ask me to call the customer to ask if he can inspect those sites. The only way we would get away with a dodgy site (and we dont have any) is if it were too far away for the inspector to visit or if we pretend the customer is out. Our inspector is also very sharp he is familiar with the programming of panels as well as the ussual visual observations and he asks to see particular programming. I do our in house technical audits and I dont cheat either as an ex engineer I also know all the cheats and what a dodgy meter reading form looks like. It takes just as long to do the job correctly in the as it does to do the job incorrectly so why would I do the job incorrectly? at the end of the day its my house the bank reposses if the business goes bang. Im sure that nsi would be interested in any information you pass to them in confidence and you would be doing every hardworking honest nacoss company a favor. Pete
An Engineer Posted October 14, 2003 Posted October 14, 2003 Obviously there are loads of companies out there that are well deserving of their Nacoss 'badge' and I'm not suggesting any of the members on this site would be anything other than that. I think my old boss was so disorganised and greedy that any Nacoss work was left to the last minute every time. I totally agree with you and feel that it is in fact easier to do the paperwork correctly at the time of install. But when your as disorganised as they were, its easier to make up figures (and they look accurate enough if you put a little thought into them, ie some detectors will give exactly 5 ohms more on tamper circuit than alarms circuit) than to return to up to 20 jobs. I wander if different inspectors do things differently then? I'm not making up what I said, but the way you describe your inspections would seem the correct way. Maybe it is because my old boss has had the same inspector for years?? Service Engineer My opinions may not reflect those of my employer, managers, colleagues, customers, friends, family or pet rabbit.
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