Help with New Elk Basic questions before I order?

[programmergeek]

After reading through all the posts I decided to order a Elk m1 gold for my new house. A couple of questions:

Where is the best place to get it?
Who is good for monitoring?
I do not have a phone line as of now, How do I add cellier to it or is there someone that can monitor over the internet?
What wire should I run to the key pads and sensors? I want to run wire so if I upgrade inthe future I am good, is cat5 ok to run to all the sensors and keypads?

Thanks in advance for all your help.

 

[BraveSirRobbin]

After reading through all the posts I decided to order a Elk m1 gold for my new house. A couple of questions:

Where is the best place to get it? Automatedoutlet.com
Who is good for monitoring? A lot of people here use NextAlarm
I do not have a phone line as of now, How do I add cellier to it or is there someone that can monitor over the internet?
What wire should I run to the key pads and sensors? I run 22gauge, 4-conductor to the keypads and 2-conductor to the sensors. You should also think about running a Cat5e to the keypad locations for future use (you can use just the Cat5e in lieu of the 4-conductor if you wish). You should also consider running Cat5e to thermostats. Lots of other wiring suggestions in our wiring guide. Motion sensors and glass breaks will take 4-conductors. Also take a look at the security system install How-To
I want to run wire so if I upgrade inthe future I am good, is cat5 ok to run to all the sensors and keypads? I think it is a waste of cable to run Cat5e to the sensors, but that is my opinion... Thanks in advance for all your help.

 

[Steve]

I second BSR's answers, but for the Elk I would suggest Cat5 as primary for keypads and homerun them to a data bus hub (M1DBH). I use 22/2 for doors/windows and 22/4 for pir/glassbreak but others like to standardize and use all 22/4, etc.

 

[BraveSirRobbin]

I second BSR's answers, but for the Elk I would suggest Cat5 as primary for keypads and homerun them to a data bus hub (M1DBH). I use 22/2 for doors/windows and 22/4 for pir/glassbreak but others like to standardize and use all 22/4, etc.

This is a good statement and shows some of the options available to you. I prefer to use a traditional data bus hub as I didn't want the hassles of terminating Cat5e for the keypads (you use four conductors only). But a lot of other people like the fact that they can quickly disconnect their keypads from the expansion hubs if necessary rather than hassle with screw terminals.

I was thinking of making sure you had Cat5e in case you wanted to add a touch screen later also...

 

[programmergeek]

Perfect tanks for all the input, where is the best place to get 22-4 fire rated wire for the sensors? Also who has a good price and service on the system? Where have people been happy purchaseing from.

 

[Steve]

I have a DBHR now and will be tossing it for a DBH on my relocation. It's a pita to break out the screwdriver and rewire stuff when troubleshooting, etc. I have used both and rather spend the extra 5 minutes crimping and EZ45 connector on up front. But certainly you have options. But even if you use the regular DBHR, you can still just use the Cat5.

Missed the other question on phone - there are cellular kits available, search around here, there are a few posts (I forget the brands, et right now). NextAlarm can monitor over broadband with their ABN now and is supposedly will have direct broadband monitoring of the Elk in the future.

 

[BraveSirRobbin]

But even if you use the regular DBHR, you can still just use the Cat5.

Not if you want to use both a touchscreen and a keypad in the same location in the future...

 

[Digger]

Perfect tanks for all the input, where is the best place to get 22-4 fire rated wire for the sensors? Also who has a good price and service on the system? Where have people been happy purchaseing from.

be careful about using fire rated wire for the burg circuits. "Some" AHJ's (Authroities Having Jurisdiction such as an electrical or fire inspector) will give you a hard time with that. I think someone on Cocoontech had the problem earlier this year.

If budget permits consider putting a zone expander on each floor etc. It will make things easier if you want to expand later and it will minimize some of the wire pulls now.

 

[Mike]

I think I used bassburglaralarms.com for the fire rated cable. When I needed it the usual places I shopped didn't have it at that time (AutomatedOutlet, etc).