ELK-M1 GOLD INSTALLATION

[felixrosbergen]

By the way...if you're planning to use ELK KP2 keypads keep in mind they don't have speakers in them like the KP1 do. However they have the benefit of being able to be flush mounted. You can add a speaker 'behind' the keypad and the recessed box for it has holes for this already. That is great..but the speaker needs to be connected to the ELK and will not connect to the keypad. So if you plan this route you should run something from the ELK to the speaker locations to drive that speaker. In my case i just ran 2 cat5's to each keypad and tied a few of the cat5 conductors together to drive the speaker.

 

[gasbie]

Electrically it all works (assuming it is 'big' enough for the job). The lower the gauge the more current it can carry. 22ga is all that's needed for most security stuff. Therefore 18ga will work fine. You just have all the other issues to deal with/look at. Since 18ga is larger it can be a bit more cumbersome to work with (but really not too bad, especially stranded). Then with fire wire you really want to reserve red IMHO for life safety/critical stuff. Some people use it for keypads since they are critical to access a panel. But I would not start using the firewire frivolously on other stuff just to use it. Buy a smaller role or sell it here to somebody else that may need a smaller amount. I would use the 18/4 you bough for cameras before the firewire. Or it will be fine for motions and glass, just a bit overkill.

Thanks steve. So you recommend using the 18/4 to carry power to my camera, right, even though it is a stranded cable? I will go with the small roll as recommended. Thanks

 

[gasbie]

By the way...if you're planning to use ELK KP2 keypads keep in mind they don't have speakers in them like the KP1 do. However they have the benefit of being able to be flush mounted. You can add a speaker 'behind' the keypad and the recessed box for it has holes for this already. That is great..but the speaker needs to be connected to the ELK and will not connect to the keypad. So if you plan this route you should run something from the ELK to the speaker locations to drive that speaker. In my case i just ran 2 cat5's to each keypad and tied a few of the cat5 conductors together to drive the speaker.

MavRic, thanks for the advice. It really helps cos I didn't know that I have to run speaker wires from the keypad to the panel. Thanks again

 

[gasbie]

Quick question, does all fire wire cable (18/2 or 18/4) have red jacket. I just bought one and it has grey jacket. Is this right? http://www.jack2rack.com/security-alarm-ca...l-box-gray.html

AFAIK, all FPLR wire (aka fire wire) is red. I don't see an FPLR rating on the wire you linked to. One could argue the web site is wrong for stating it can be used for smoke sensors, etc.

here is FPLR wire http://www.homesecuritystore.com/c-169-fire-wire.aspx

Hey WayneW, Is this a shielded fire alarm wire?

 

[WayneW]

Hey WayneW, Is this a shielded fire alarm wire?

Does not appear to be. Personally, I have never seen shielded wire needed/used for alarms. AFAIK, shielding is for audio & high speed data. Maybe the high end addressable fire alarm system use shielded?

 

[gasbie]

Hey WayneW, Is this a shielded fire alarm wire?

Does not appear to be. Personally, I have never seen shielded wire needed/used for alarms. AFAIK, shielding is for audio & high speed data. Maybe the high end addressable fire alarm system use shielded?

Thanks for the quick response. So the regular red jacket firealarm should be good for the ELK purposed, right?

 

[gasbie]

is this a good one although its not shielded. http://www.icables.com/18-4-18awg-4c-solid...c-solid-fp.html

 

[gasbie]

ok, I have moved on to the camera installation part. I want the camera to record only when it senses a motion whenever the alarm is activated. Do I need a special camera for this action? or do I need to wire my camera in a certain way to do this? I will be using the monoprice dome security camera. Thanks

 

[gfs]

I want to integrate M1G with homeseer in a new (old) house. anyone know anyone in los angeles area who is installer?