Veritas 8 intermittent tamper alarm

[AvoUser]

Hi,

I have an intermittent problem with my Veritas 8 system - the internal sounder goes off every now and then and the tamper light flashes red. I can reset it and the tamper light & sounder go off and the system functions normally for a while - sometimes for just minutes before the fault reoccurs, sometimes it's ok for weeks!

- the problem has only occurred when the system is unset
- the external sounder does not sound when the panel is sounding
- none of the zone lights illuminate

History: I installed the whole system 20 years ago. About 10(?) years ago I replaced the panel with the current Veritas 8 panel.

I remember the bell box had a battery in it which would now be 20 years old and I'm wondering whether this is dying and is causing the problem.

Any theories on what's happening and what I could do about it would be much appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Darkwood]

Welcome to the forum -

Could be numerous issues, I would to start put a jumper link in your global tamper to see if the problem is on any zones but a 20yr old SAB unit is probably in need of replacement too so I would put that on your shopping list regardless.

Did you run the wiring under the carpet across the door ways upstairs, this often leads to worn cables over the years as they get repeatedly walked on.

 

[Darkwood]

Could be numerous issues, I would to start with put a jumper link in your global zone tamper to see if the problem is on any zones but a 20yr old SAB unit is probably in need of replacement too so I would put that on your shopping list regardless.

Did you run the wiring under the carpet across the door ways upstairs, this often leads to worn cables over the years as they get repeatedly walked on.

 

[AvoUser]

Thanks for reply. No cables under carpets - everything is out of harms way. You're probably right about a new SAB unit. Diagnosing the problem is obviously difficult because the problem come and goes.

 

[ruston]

If it is the old type bell box ,the taper spring could be weak with age and pressure from the cover screw.
It could also be the panel lid is not secure and the tamper spring in there is pleasing itself.

Follow what Darkwood has said , and eliminate zone faults . I would also eliminate Bell box faults.

 

[telectrix]

same as above. my favorite culprit would be the back tamper on the bell box, but it's guesswork at this stage.

 

[KWCFC]

You can prove the tamper on the Bell box by getting your multimeter out and testing between the 0v and the tamper return. If the resistance is high or you cant get a fixed reading then thats your issue

Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk

 

[AvoUser]

Thanks to all of you for your replies. I can see I'll need to borrow my friend's long ladder to get at the bell box. God knows why I put it so high.

 

[telectrix]

You can prove the tamper on the Bell box by getting your multimeter out and testing between the 0v and the tamper return. If the resistance is high or you cant get a fixed reading then thats your issue

Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk

or test withmeter on volts from bell + to tamper return. should get approx. 12V.

 

[AvoUser]

Ok, I've had a look in the panel and replying to telectrix and KWCFC:

- across the tamper and bell terminals (C & B) there is 1volt showing
- across the 0v and tamper terminals (D & C) it shows 20k ohms

Also, replying to Darkwood, there doesn't appear to be a Global Tamper labelled as such. There is an auxilary tamper connection (with jumper link in place) and the only other "Tamp" is the terminal in the SAB group referred to above.

Thanks

 

[KWCFC]

Ok, I've had a look in the panel and replying to telectrix and KWCFC:

- across the tamper and bell terminals (C & B) there is 1volt showing
- across the 0v and tamper terminals (D & C) it shows 20k ohms

Also, replying to Darkwood, there doesn't appear to be a Global Tamper labelled as such. There is an auxilary tamper connection (with jumper link in place) and the only other "Tamp" is the terminal in the SAB group referred to above.

Thanks

Looks like the bell tamper judging by that. Try putting a link between the 0v and the tamper return. (C & D I think)

If that solves the issue then you need a new bell.

Or you can just leave it linked out which means the bell would work as normal in an alarm condition but if someone was to take the lid off the bell and open the tamper switch, the panel won't sound like it should. (BODGE)

 

[AvoUser]

... Or you can just leave it linked out ...

That's a bodge I like.