Which system to get

[Philament]

I will be installing a security system in our new house and I am torn about which system to get, the elk M1 or the omnipro?

I will be automating the house in the future, but right now I don't have the time and I just want to get the security and fire portion in.

I think it will need about 5 door contacts, 3 motion detectors and a few wired screens. I will also be doing the smokes. I will be having a company monitor the system and I will also be installing an Acti IP camera system.

I am pretty good with this type of stuff as I have set up access control systems, IP camera systems, commercial HVAC controls, etc so it doesn't have to be "user" friendly. Also cost is not so much of an issue.

Any thoughts are appreciated and I am open to other systems as well. At the end, it probably doesn't matter too much, because they both are good and I am guessing most comments are going to attest to that, but any feedback is welcomed.

 

[RAL]

The question of the Elk vs the OmniPro comes up from time to time. 
 
Here's an earlier thread that may provide some pros and cons, or at least get you thinking about specific questions.
 
http://cocoontech.com/forums/topic/29528-elk-m1-gold-beats-all/

 

[fcwilt]

I've done both.
 
If you think you may be using some of the "automation" capability of either system, one advantage ELK has is it is more modular and can be more compact when you start to expand the system.
 
If I did a system today I would probably go with ELK after I had re-visited both systems to update myself on the current state of each.
 
Frederick

 

[pete_c]

Here went the OmniPro 2 route mostly because of the small foot print.
 
Today though relating to support I would lean to the Elk M1 as it appears to me that they care more about their users-clients.
 
I have seen Elk M1 advertised in the Electronic House magazine and really have never seen the Leviton Omni Pro stuff advertised on same magazine.  Maybe though I have never noticed.

 

[Philament]

So I think I will go with the elk with cellular monitoring with alarm relay. I was originally thinking of using wired screens on the same zone, but recently decided to only put the wired screens in the same room on a zone so I will have to get an expander. Probably will end up with about 20-24 zones total after the water & temp sensors.

Sounds like I should have a nice system as long as I don't screw up the install.

One question, does the M1 use 2 or 4 wire smokes?

Thanks for the input

 

[RAL]

One question, does the M1 use 2 or 4 wire smokes?

 
The Elk supports both 2-wire and 4-wire smokes.  Wiring for 2-wire smokes is a bit more straightforward, as you don't need EOL relays for power supervision. 
 
Use 18 gauge FPL rated cable or better.
 
Note that the smokes need to be wired in a daisy chain.  You don't want to make home runs, as then you won't be able to wire a proper daisy chain unless you pull cables with 2x the conductors to each location (e.g. 4-wire home run cables will allow you to make a daisy chain 2-wire smokes).

 

[Philament]

So if I am going to use a system sensor i4 module, I probably should just use 2 wire? It seems like there would be no benefit to 4 wire with that module. I will run 4 conductor regardless since there is basically no cost difference for that.

I am thinking of using about all 12 detectors (1 per bedroom + a redundant hallway one, 1 in garage and 1 in mind shop area, 1 in laundry room, mechanical room and downstairs family room).

Is this a good set up? Seems like it would be to me.

 

[RAL]

So if I am going to use a system sensor i4 module, I probably should just use 2 wire? It seems like there would be no benefit to 4 wire with that module. I will run 4 conductor regardless since there is basically no cost difference for that.

I am thinking of using about all 12 detectors (1 per bedroom + a redundant hallway one, 1 in garage and 1 in mind shop area, 1 in laundry room, mechanical room and downstairs family room).

Is this a good set up? Seems like it would be to me.

 
If you are referring to the COSMOD2W and COSMOD4W modules, the particular module works with either 2-wire or 4-wire smoke detectors.  I would go with the COSMOD2W and connect it to 2-wire smoke detectors.
 
When you use either type of COSMODxW module, it connects to the alarm panel as if it were a 4-wire smoke detector.  This allows it to report CO and trouble conditions in addition to fire alarms. 
 
As to where to locate the detectors, I wouldn't put a smoke detector in the garage, as exhaust fumes from the cars may trigger them.  The shop area also might not be a good place due to high levels of dust.  For these spots, heat detectors would be a better choice.   A heat detector is also usually recommended in the mechanical room rather than a smoke detector.

 

[Philament]

Seeing as the module only works with co/smoke detectors and I read on a previous discussion that using multiple fire zones could be problematic when resetting a trouble, am I better off just not using the module and just use the M1 with 4 wire smoke/heat detectors all daisy linked?

 

[RAL]

I would use the COSMOD2W module and wire it as shown in the instructions.
 
The heat detectors need to go on one or more separate zones, and should not be daisy chained with 2-wire smokes.

 

[mikefamig]

The one biggest reason that I chose the Elk over the OmniPro is that the OP includes  five serial ports on the panel that add significantly to the cost of the panel. I only needed one serial port to attach an XEP so the Elk looked like the smarter choice economically speaking. I did later end up adding one serial port to the Elk to accommodate UPB lighting control which I hadn't anticipated.
 
Mike.

 

[Del91574]

Seeing as the module only works with co/smoke detectors and I read on a previous discussion that using multiple fire zones could be problematic when resetting a trouble, am I better off just not using the module and just use the M1 with 4 wire smoke/heat detectors all daisy linked?

Use the module.
 
In the areas where you would be installing heat detectors, they can be installed on their own zone. Different method of operation, they physically trip and short the circuit vs. electronically, which requires a method of resetting and supervision on the power, which is where the inherent design issue comes into play.

 

[Philament]

What are people using for keypads? I like the idea of a touchscreen in the master, but I read something about using ekeypad instead of M1KPNAV. I probably will use the m1kp or the the low profile one for the most of them.

 

[Del91574]

You need to consider what happens if there's a glitch or firmware update to the 3rd party device....or loss of network connectivity and what that means to the operation of your system.

 

[Philament]

Has anyone installed alarm screens lately?  I know of a few companies that make them (maxwell, supreme alarm screens, and a local place), but where have people purchased them through?