Walk Testing Alarm Sensors After Installation.
Walk Testing Alarm Sensors – When you install an alarm system remember that when power first reaches the sensor from the control panel it will take a few minutes to warm up.
It’s the only time in the sensor’s life you should have to do this because the zone loop will be continuously powered even when the panel is deactivated – recommissioning an old panel that’s been disconnected will lead to the same initial delay. Once the system has warmed up for at least 3 minutes, and with the system (or the siren) deactivated, you can carry out your walk test.
There are a few key things you want the walk test to tell you. The first is whether the sensor can detect movement over its entire target area, paying particular attention to areas of vulnerability inside doorways, near hallway entries, doors to offices or computer rooms, or the area accessed by a vulnerable rear door.
The second thing you want to know is whether the system activates if there’s movement just outside its target area. Will a person walking past a doorway when the system is on home mode activate the lounge room sensor when heading to the bathroom? Pay attention to potential obstructions that might impact on intrusion detection.
Will the sensor covering the rear door pick up the activity of a midnight snacker in the kitchen? Also consider including sensors in the home mode that will not be activated by ordinary night activities within the home yet will enhance security if they remain part of the system.
A perfect walk test covers a range of ambient conditions during commissioning but there’s no point pretending that’s always possible. Given you’ll likely be hurrying, try to install the sensor in sympathy with these sorts of issues – avoid sunny windows and thermal drafts, pull the home arm back away from sleeping areas where possible, stay well within the maximum detection range and install sensors to cover one another.
In open plan environments, facilitating a home arm mode might mean installing external sensors in key locations – we tend to think that’s best practise in anyway.
You can read more about external alarm sensors here or read more SEN news here.
“Walk Testing Alarm Sensors After Installation.”
