New Elk install - what am I missing?

[AceCannon]

Here is my tentative parts list. I'm not so sure about power requirements, but I suspect I will need extra 12v DC current from an additional power supply. I am surface mounting the components in my (lockable) wiring closet, so no cans are planned. I do intend to punch down the cat5e from each keypad to patch panels, then run patch cables to the DBH.

Any obvious omissions here?

Item Descript Quant

M1GKS system w M1G, KP2, battery, 2.5A PS
M1KP2 keypads x2
M1KPAS arming sta
M1XIN input exp x2
M1XOVR outpt/relay
M1XEP ethernet
M1XSP rs232
M1DBH databus hub
ELK-44 speaker (siren)
ELK-SL1, ELK-WK1 strobe and mount
ELK-SP12F speaker x8
Bosch ISMBLP1P motion x8
ELK-106055 prox reader
ELK-W035A prox wiring harness
AT-13B prox fob x2

EDIT: I dunno abt the back boxes for surface mounting the KP2's. How much of a PITA is it to convert a location with a 1-gang box to a KP2 back box mount? I know one of my locations has a PVC pipe right next to the 1-gang LV box I placed for the keypad, so it won't work there crammed between the stud and the pipe. Pics to follow.

The first pic shows the orange 1-gang from the front. The pipe is hidden by the insulation. The second pic shows the back of the orange 1-gang box at the very top of the pic. PVC pipe runs right next to it. These pics are pre-drywall, but the drywall has been up for a long time now.

 

[networkcrasher]

I know one of my locations has a PVC pipe right next to the 1-gang LV box I placed for the keypad, so it won't work there crammed between the stud and the pipe. Pics to follow.

I can't quite remember, but that may depend on your drywall's thickness. I don't recall that surface mount KP2 box being very deep.

 

[tmbrown97]

the boxes aren't that expensive - you should get at least one and take a look. In one particular place I mounted one it was in an end wall with one 2x4 on the long side sandwiched between 2 2x4's on the short side (basically a 3" wide opening) - but that was the optimal placement and where my wire was - so a little creative cutting of the backbox on the chop-saw and I got it to fit there even with the SP12 speaker mounted inside.

I see you have 12 SP12's listed - are those to be inside the keypads or elsewhere? Honestly though, if you do the same creative back-box work I did, I think you can make it work. I went with the M1 specifically because I thought that keypad - flush-mounted - was the best looking option.

Otherwise it seems like you have the basics - lots of motions, lots of speakers... you didn't say but I'm assuming doors/windows are pre-wired? And you didn't mention glass-breaks - not sure if that's important - but considering when you're home with the system armed in stay mode, motions are turned off and windows only go off if someone opens them, not if they break and climb through, so glass breaks are a nice idea and provide warning even before they've made it inside - so they're more likely to run than to panic and do something stupid inside your home. Also didn't see mention of smoke detectors.

other than that, nothing glaring that's missing - depends on what all you want to accomplish. The more specific you get the more we can recommend.

 

[AceCannon]

the boxes aren't that expensive - you should get at least one and take a look. In one particular place I mounted one it was in an end wall with one 2x4 on the long side sandwiched between 2 2x4's on the short side (basically a 3" wide opening) - but that was the optimal placement and where my wire was - so a little creative cutting of the backbox on the chop-saw and I got it to fit there even with the SP12 speaker mounted inside.

I see you have 12 SP12's listed - are those to be inside the keypads or elsewhere? Honestly though, if you do the same creative back-box work I did, I think you can make it work. I went with the M1 specifically because I thought that keypad - flush-mounted - was the best looking option.

Otherwise it seems like you have the basics - lots of motions, lots of speakers... you didn't say but I'm assuming doors/windows are pre-wired? And you didn't mention glass-breaks - not sure if that's important - but considering when you're home with the system armed in stay mode, motions are turned off and windows only go off if someone opens them, not if they break and climb through, so glass breaks are a nice idea and provide warning even before they've made it inside - so they're more likely to run than to panic and do something stupid inside your home. Also didn't see mention of smoke detectors.

other than that, nothing glaring that's missing - depends on what all you want to accomplish. The more specific you get the more we can recommend.

Thanks for your analysis.

1. I went ahead and got 1 back box for the location where I am quite sure it will work. Cutting through this damned drywall makes me nervous as hell. When I start doing it without my contractor at my side, it will only be more nerve-wracking.

2. The sp12's (8 of them) are currently planned to be in the same locations as the 8 motions. I intend to put each in a 1-gang LV box, then put the motion either covering the speaker (?omit the faceplate) or put it immediately adjacent to the box. I've got 1 cat5e to each of these locations and plan to use 2 pair for the motions, 2 pair for the speaker (doubling up conductors for the speakers). I don't plan for an sp12 to the keypad locations since the distribution of the motions will pretty much have the speakers distributed evenly.

3. Smokes - the sparky has wired the place to local code with 120v smokes and the appropriate tandem wire(s). I planned one GE 350CX to provide notification to the Elk when any smoke in the house trips (I ran cat5e to the smoke closest to the wiring closet). One thing I need to find out is what he did in the garages. I saw two devices next to each other, perhaps a smoke and a heat detector. I didn't think smokes were advisable in the garage. . I will ask. I wonder if the heats are hooked into the same tandem wire as the smokes.

4. Glass breaks. I have given it a lot of thought and abandoned them altogether. In a perfect world, I agree I would deploy those throughout the house. How much does a shotgun cost?

 

[tmbrown97]

The SP12 speakers are actually molded to the faceplate. You can break them free (as you'd do if mounting them inside the back-box) but then you lose your mounting. The piece is just a speaker attached to a faceplate as a single unit.

Smokes - you really should use firewire not Cat5 from the closest smoke to the alarm.

For my glassbreaks - I put them in the location where someone would be most likely to break in - and least likely to be detected. Shotguns are cheap but killing someone (as much as they deserve it the second the violate your home) brings too much liability.

Drywall cutting isn't that bad... just start small and don't go bigger than you have to - and keep working from the center out. Use a level to mark height and level. Worst case, repairs are a PITA but manageable.