Two-Zone Remote Keypad Burglar Alarm Control Center (490-0451) Choosing Location Faxback Doc. # 33419 CHOOSING A LOCATION FOR THE ALARM CENTER The supplied alarm center controls your alarm system's functions and is the main connection point for all sensors, other connected devices, and power. Because no two homes are the same, we can only provide the following guidelines for choosing a mounting location for the alarm center. Mount the alarm center where it cannot be easily seen by an intruder or casual visitor (such as in a closet or pantry) Mount the alarm keypad where you can quickly access it after you enter your home. Never mount the alarm center in a garage, basement, attic, or other location where it will be subjected to temperature and humidity extremes Mount the alarm center near an AC outlet that is not controlled by a wall switch. If you plan to connect an automatic telephone dialer to your alarm system, mount the alarm center near a telephone jack. To make installing hookup wire easier, mount the alarm center in a location central to the doors, windows, and rooms you plan to protect. PLANNING YOUR INSTALLATION Before you start to install your alarm system, we recommend that you make a security plan for your home. Even if you only plan to install a minimal system, take the time to plan a complete one. This will help you if you later decide to expand your security system, (see Faxback Doc. # 33430). NOTES: Remember during planning that wiring should be hidden, not only for cosmetic reasons, but to improve the security and effectiveness of the system. Plan to place outside alarm sirens and lights in high locations, out of reach under normal circumstances. This increases the range of the devices and helps prevent tampering. Floor Plan To help you determine what your security needs are, you should draw a basic floor plan of your home. This plan should show the following information about each room and the inside and outside of your home or office: Room name Interior and exterior walls Location of all openings (doors and windows) Location of each AC outlet and telephone jack Planned location of outside alarm sirens and/or lights Measurements of all rooms and interior/exterior walls Where you plan to install the alarm center After you complete the basic floor plan, make three copies of it. Label each copy as being the plan for one of the three zone types (instant, delayed, and panic/tamper). Read through the information in the rest of this document and decide what sensors and other parts you want to install and where, and mark them on the appropriate floor plan. Then draw a line connecting the sensors you want to assign to the labeled zone type on each copy. This will show how the sensors will be wired to each other and the alarm center. For example, if you want to install a panic button in the bedrooms and a tamper switch on a wall safe, on the Panic/Tamper floor plan, draw a loop connecting those two sensors and ending at the location where you want to install the alarm center. When you finish, these drawings will show the layout of each zone and the location of each sensor assigned to that zone. (See Faxback Doc. # 33413.) NOTES: Since a violation of the panic/tamper zone immediately sounds the alarm (even if the system is armed), do not assign sensors protecting doors and windows to the panic/tamper zone unless you plan to install a remote keypad outside the zone (to let you arm and disarm the alarm system without triggering a false alarm). The different illustrations show possible layouts for a home security system. Your floor plan will probably differ. CHOOSING A LOCATION FOR THE REMOTE KEYPAD The remote keypad supplied with your alarm system lets you arm and disarm the system, change the system's operation, and see status information about the system. You can use the supplied remote keypad and purchase up to three additional keypads (Cat. No. 490-0452) to use with your alarm system. NOTE: You can also use Radio Shack Cat. No. 490-0484 remote keypad with the alarm system. For more information, see "using a 49-484 keypad with the Alarm Center" on Faxback Doc. # 33427. Consider these points before you decide where to install the remote keypad. Mount the remote keypad in a location where all family members who will use it can reach it. For many installations, it is best to mount the remote keypad near the main entry of your home. The remote keypad supplied with your alarm system is not weatherproof. Do not install it in a location where it will be exposed to excessive moisture. Mount the remote keypad in a location where it is not exposed to temperatures outside the range of 32-122 degrees F. CHOOSING SENSORS Sensors are the eyes and ears of your alarm system. When violated, they send a signal to your alarm center that activates the alarm. Sensors are usually classified into two types: Perimeter Sensors - These sensors protect areas such as doors and windows. Types of perimeter sensors include door and window contacts, window foil, glass-breakage detectors, and infrared photorelays. Area Sensors - Types of area sensors include ultrasonic and infrared motion detectors, vibration detectors, and panic buttons and tamper switches. You can place area sensors such as motion detectors in wide areas such as your living room, or in access areas such as halls. You can place panic buttons just about anywhere. NOTES: Your local Radio Shack store carries a full line of sensors. Decide which entrances or areas an intruder would be most likely to use, and place sensors at those entrances or areas. Most intruders enter homes through doors, so you should take steps to protect these entrances first. See "Glossary of Terms" on Faxback Doc. # 33417 for information about the sensors mentioned in this section. The sensors you can connect to the alarm system should be either normally open (NO) or normally-closed (NC), except that you can have only normally open sensors in your Panic/Tamper Zone. NOTE: You cannot mix normally-open and normally-closed sensors within one loop Normally-open sensors stop electricity from flowing when not violated. When violated, a normally-open sensor completes the electrical path and signals the alarm center to sound the alarm. Normally-closed sensors allow electricity to flow when not violated. When violated, a normally-closed sensor breaks the electrical path and signals the alarm center to sound the alarm. NOTE: Normally-closed sensors are considered to be more secure than normally-open sensors. Here are the most common types of sensors. NOTES: Unless otherwise noted, you need two-conductor hookup wire (such as Cat. No. 278-863) to connect the sensors to the alarm center. Refer to your Radio Shack catalog for specific types and catalog numbers of each sensor listed here. Magnet Switches Magnet switches are available in both normally-open and normally-closed types. When mounted, a magnet switch either opens or closes when the object it is attached to is moved, signaling the alarm center to sound the alarm. You can use magnet switches for doors, windows, or anywhere you want the alarm to sound when something is moved. Plunger (Contact) Switches Plunger switches are available in both normally-open and normally-closed types. You can install a plunger switches inside a door frame on the side with the hinges. This type of switch cannot be seen when the door is closed. You can use plunger switches for doors, windows, or anywhere you want the alarm to sound when something is opened or moved. Metallic Foil Tape Metallic foil tape is a normally-closed type of sensor. You install metallic foil tape on the glass just inside the outer frame of windows that are not movable, such as plate glass or glass inserts in doors. If the glass is broken, the tape also breaks and signals the alarm center to sound the alarm. You mount metallic foil tape around the perimeter of the glass then connect it to a normally-closed circuit. Glass Breakage Detectors Glass breakage detectors are a type of vibration detector and are available in both normally-open and normally-closed types. You attach a glass breakage detector near a window. If the window is broken or struck, the glass breakage detector signals the alarm center to sound the alarm. Vibration Detectors Vibration detectors are available in both normally-open and normally-closed types. When these sensors detect vibration on any surface, they signal the alarm center to sound the alarm. Motion Detectors Here are the most common types of motion detectors: Ultrasonic - These sensors send out an inaudible high-frequency sound. This sound bounces off objects in the protected area and returns to the sensor. When an object moves in the protected area, the pattern of the sound waves changes, signaling the alarm center to sound the alarm. Infrared - These sensors work similarly to ultrasonic motion detectors, except that they use invisible infrared light instead of high-frequency sound to detect motion. Microwave - These sensors work similarly to ultrasonic motion detectors, except that they use radio waves instead of high-frequency sound to detect motion. NOTES: Some motion detectors have a built-in alarm sounder and can be connected directly to an alarm siren or other sounding device. If the type of motion detector you select has tamper protection you might need six-conductor hook-up wire (Cat. No. 278-874) to connect it to the alarm center. Otherwise, you need four-conductor hook-up wire (Cat. No. 278-386) to connect motion detectors. Panic Buttons/Tamper Switches Panic buttons and tamper switches are normally-open types of sensors. A panic button lets you sound the alarm at any time, even if the alarm center is not armed. A tamper switch instantly sounds the alarm if someone tries to open the secured object. You can mount these switches on the alarm center, a gun cabinet or anywhere you want the alarm to instantly sound if you press the switch or someone tampers with it. CHOOSING LOCATIONS FOR SIRENS AND LIGHTS Pre-Alarm Buzzer When the alarm system is armed and a delayed zone is violated, the alarm center activates a pre-alarm for the amount of time you set (see "Setting the Exit and Entry Delay" on Faxback Doc. # 33425). After that delay time elapses, the alarm system sounds the alarm siren and other connected security equipment. To hear the pre-alarm, you must connect a small sounding device such as a piezo buzzer (Cat. No. 273-068) to the alarm center. NOTE: If you connect a Cat. No. 49-484 remote keypad to the alarm system, it can sound a built-in prealarm during the entry delay (See "Using a 49-484 keypad with the Alarm Center" on Faxback Doc. # 33427). Consider these points as you decide where to install a sounding device: Mount the device where you can hear it during the entry delay. Do not mount it on or near the alarm center. The sound might lead an intruder to find the alarm center and possibly disable the system. Alarm Siren When a sensor is violated and the system is armed (or the panic/tamper zone is violated), the system can activate the alarm siren (such as Cat. No. 49-487) connected to the alarm center. Consider these points as you decide where to install an alarm siren: Mount the siren outside your home where you, your neighbors, and the police can hear it. If you mount it in an area that is not protected by that alarm system (such as outside eaves), mount it inside a siren enclosure (Cat. No. 49-486) to discourage tampering. Security Strobe When a sensor is violated and the system is armed (or the panic/tamper zone is violated) the system can activate a security strobe (Cat. No. 49-527) or other types of lights connected to the alarm center. NOTE: You can connect a security strobe to the same outputs on the alarm center as you use for the alarm siren. For more information, see "Connecting an Alarm Siren and/or Light" on Faxback Doc. # 33422. When deciding where to install a security strobe, choose a location outside your home where the strobe's light is highly visible. CHOOSING A LOCATION FOR AN AUTOMATIC TELEPHONE DIALER For a higher level of security, you can connect an automatic telephone dialer (Cat. No. 49-434) to your alarm system. An automatic telephone dialer connects to your phone line and automatically calls one or more preset phone numbers if the alarm sounds. NOTE: Many automatic telephone dialers (such as the recommended dialer) can use the alarm system's battery power to dial numbers if AC power is disconnected. When deciding where to install an automatic telephone dialer, select a location that is: Near a phone jack Near an AC outlet Not easily accessible to an intruder CAUTIONS: If you connect an automatic telephone dialer to your system and want to program it to call your local police department, check with them first. Some police departments do not accept calls from automatic telephone dialers. If your police department does not accept calls from automatic dialing equipment, you can program it to call a friend or private security service who can notify the police department, if necessary. Some automatic telephone dialers deliver a prerecorded voice message to the desired number when activated, while others transmit an electronic signal to a private security service. In most cases, private security services charge a fee to accept calls from automatic dialing equipment. For more information, call the police department and private security services in your area. MAKING A SHOPPING LIST When you complete your floor plan and system planning worksheet, use them to prepare a shopping list of the items you need to complete your system. NOTES: Before you actually purchase any items on your shopping list, read "Installing the System" on Faxback Doc. # 33420, "Operating the System" on Faxback Doc # 33424, and "Customizing the System" on Faxback Doc. # 33425, in these documents. Depending on your installation, these documents might contain additional information you will need to select the proper items. Refer to your floor plans to determine how much hookup wire you will need to connect all sensors and security devices to the alarm center. SAFEGUARDING PLANNING RECORDS After you plan your system and purchase all the items you will need, don't forget to store all drawings, worksheets, receipts, and other documents in a secure place. Don't throw them in the trash where a potential intruder might find them. (SP/EB 5/25/96)