DELInstallations said:The annunciation on a system keypad with a FA assigned to another area is going to be the sticking issue for remaining compliant.
IMHO, anything that is modifying a default action of a FA system is a really bad idea (fire reset would be the only item that I might consider, but in actuality it's not a difficult affair on the M1).
Fire bell should not timeout.
DELInstallations said:I realize all of that, however with a system such as an M1 vs. a combination system, the issue arises that the sounders and additional outputs can be assigned to a completely different area and actually never drive the specific outputs needed. Also, many of the systems that have multiple areas do not have a single key "silence"....they usually have dedicated annunciator keypads or similar. You're also going to get into systems that have specific NAC's and other circuits involved that are never considered or generally installed in 99% of the residential out there.
The minimums of a fire alarm bell can always be subjective....but would you want a fire alarm bell to time out for whatever reason or to sound until silenced/reset?
Del,DELInstallations said:I realize all of that, however with a system such as an M1 vs. a combination system, the issue arises that the sounders and additional outputs can be assigned to a completely different area and actually never drive the specific outputs needed. Also, many of the systems that have multiple areas do not have a single key "silence"....they usually have dedicated annunciator keypads or similar. You're also going to get into systems that have specific NAC's and other circuits involved that are never considered or generally installed in 99% of the residential out there.
The minimums of a fire alarm bell can always be subjective....but would you want a fire alarm bell to time out for whatever reason or to sound until silenced/reset?
DELInstallations said:Not arguing, but the issue is when a DIY attempts modify the system to be more "convenient" and easy that moves it towards non-compliance.
If someone starts negating the system alarm output on the M1 for the screamers that are touted, then that opens the door for a non-compliance installation quite easily.
The installation instructions are not a design guide for a compliant install, nor would or could they be used as such.
I would have to dig back through, but I know for sure that Ademco, Napco, Moose, and a few others had the UL default for fire bell to never expire, so it's unclear if there had been a change in the years since I last looked. I swear that the M1 also had the same default.
As far as the OP's questions, they were answered with valid statements.