FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) and Troubleshooting
    

My alarm system already resets after sounding the siren for several minutes.  Why should I add PeaceMaker?

In spite of the fact that alarm systems are designed to reset and re-arm themselves after several minutes of sounding a siren, there are many common conditions that result in false alarms with extended or repeated siren soundings.  These include a malfunctioning control unit that produces a steady-on siren, defective sensors that continually re-trigger an alarm system, and overly sensitive sensors that intermittently re-trigger an alarm system.  Improper alarm installation or use, such as accidentally arming a home’s motion detectors when there are pets in the house, can also result in intermittent alarm system re-triggerings.

Such home, business, car, and boat false alarms are still common even though the industry has focused on the false alarm prevention issue for years.  These false alarms not only annoy neighbors, but can also result in hefty city fines because of restrictive noise and false alarm bylaws.  They end up reducing the overall effectiveness of your own alarm system since neighbors will begin to ignore alarm sirens altogether if communities are regularly and repeatedly forced to endure these noisy false alarms.

PeaceMaker silences extended or repeated siren soundings produced by your alarm system.  And because PeaceMaker is a completely separate circuit from your alarm system, it will still function properly when your alarm system is malfunctioning.

But what if I’m actually being burglarized and PeaceMaker shuts off the siren?

Statistically, most burglaries occur in no greater than an 8 minute timespan.  PeaceMaker will still permit your siren to sound an alarm and to re-trigger several times during an actual theft.  Read through the Properly Operating Alarm description for details.  PeaceMaker will only silence the siren after repeated or extended alarm siren soundings, usually long after the burglar is gone.

Once the siren sounds, the thief must assume that the police are on their way regardless of whether the siren eventually turns off.  And since PeaceMaker only silences extended or repeated siren soundings, it will permit the siren to properly sound in those first few critical minutes when an actual break-in occurs.

I’m still not convinced.  What if the burglar is still there?

Remember that even without a PeaceMaker installed, a properly operating alarm system will still reset and silence the siren after a few short minutes.  Also, once inside your home, business, or car a thief may disable an alarm through force.  It is those first few minutes of siren sounding that alert neighbors and scare away thieves - and PeaceMaker does not prevent the siren from sounding in this case.

PeaceMaker is specifically designed to search for siren sounding characteristics associated with annoying false alarms, such as extended or repeated siren soundings, and to temporarily silence the siren only when these characteristics are identified in your alarm system.

Will it work with my type of alarm system?

Yes.  PeaceMaker is designed to work with almost all types of home, commercial, automobile, and marine alarm systems, as long as there is access to the wire running to a standard siren, bell, buzzer, beeper, or horn.  There are two types of sirens commonly used in alarm systems: 8-ohm "speaker sirens" and 6-15 volt dc sirens with built-in siren drivers.  PeaceMaker will function properly with either of these siren types.

What are the required electrical specifications of the siren, speaker, bell, or horn?

Direct current (dc) sirens, bells, buzzers, beepers, or car-horn relays must operate at 6-15 volts dc and have a maximum current load of 7 amperes.  Speaker sirens must have an impedance of 4-16 ohms and a maximum power load of 30 watts.

My car alarm honks my car horn in the event of a break-in.  Will PeaceMaker work on this type of system?

Yes.  There are special installation instructions and settings on the back of PeaceMaker for honking car horn alarms.

My alarm siren chirps when I arm or disarm it.  Will PeaceMaker get confused by this?

No.  PeaceMaker has built in intelligence to filter out and ignore short on and off pulses of the siren.

Is PeaceMaker easy to install?

Yes.  PeaceMaker simply attaches to the power and ground wire running to your alarm system’s siren - or to the car horn relay in the case of car horn alarms.  Because PeaceMaker uses the power from the alarm’s siren wire, it requires no batteries or separate power input and requires no maintenance.  This makes installation a snap.

Where should I install PeaceMaker?

PeaceMaker can be installed anywhere on the wire running to your siren.  It is recommended that PeaceMaker not be installed where it may be visible to a thief.  Rather, it should ideally be secured inside your alarm system box or out of sight in a closet or attic.  When installed in your car, it should be located inside the passenger compartment and out of sight under the dash.  PeaceMaker should not be exposed to moisture or temperatures outside of the -20C to +70C (-5F to +160F) range.

What does the indicator light do?

During a false alarm, and for 16 hours after a false alarm, PeaceMaker’s indicator light and built-in beeper will flash/beep to inform you that PeaceMaker silenced your siren, and the reason for the silencing.

What types of extended/repeated siren soundings does PeaceMaker detect and silence?

Type 1 - The siren remained on steadily.  Since a properly operating, triggered alarm system should reset itself after a short period of time, usually a few minutes, this type of extended siren sounding typically indicates a serious malfunction.  Possible causes include environmentally related failure (moisture, lightening, temperature extremes, vibration), electronic component failure, or program error.

Type 2 - The siren re-triggered continually.  The siren sounds for a few minutes, goes silent for a second or so, and then re-triggers.  This cycle is repeated over and over.  This type of repeated siren sounding is typically caused by a malfunctioning sensor which is continually sending an “I’m triggered” signal to the alarm system’s control unit.  When the control unit properly resets and re-arms the alarm system, it is immediately re-triggered by this faulty sensor.

Type 3 - The siren re-triggered intermittently.  The siren sounds for a few minutes, goes silent for several minutes or even hours, and then re-triggers.  This cycle is repeated over and over.  This type of repeated siren sounding can be caused by an over sensitive sensor, such as a car alarm’s vibration/sound sensor that triggers every time a truck drives by or home’s window sensor that triggers in high humidity.

This type of false alarm is also very common in homes with pets.  The owner leaves the house and intends to arm only the perimeter alarm system, but accidentally arms the interior motion sensors.  While he/she is gone, the alarm system is triggered whenever the pet moves about the house.

What does the RESET button on PeaceMaker do?

The reset button has four functions:

1.  It stops PeaceMaker from flashing/beeping.  The flashing/beeping is used to inform the operator of the reason for siren silencing.
2.  It clears all memory of alarm triggering history from its memory.  This is especially important for Type 3, which bases its decision to silence the siren on the previous 2 to 8 hours of alarm triggering history.
3.  It immediately stops PeaceMaker from silencing the siren.
4.  It locks in any changes a user makes to the row of 10 switches inside the back of the unit.

What if a burglar presses PeaceMaker's RESET button during silencing?

Unfortunately for him, PeaceMaker will stop its silencing and the siren will sound!  

Do I have to press RESET after a false alarm?

No.  You may press reset at your convenience to stop PeaceMaker from flashing/beeping, which it does to inform you of siren silencing.  Even if you don’t push the reset button, PeaceMaker will automatically enable siren soundings after Type 1, Type 2, and Type 3 false alarm conditions no longer hold.

After a false alarm, PeaceMaker will eventually run out of charge (typically in the 12 to 24 hour range) and will go to sleep.  This will have the same effect as pressing the reset button.  The next time the siren turns on, PeaceMaker will instantly recharge from the siren wire and will begin operating – silencing extended or repeat siren soundings.

Could PeaceMaker itself generate a false alarm siren if it malfunctions?

No.  PeaceMaker obtains power directly from the alarm system's siren wire.  If the alarm system isn't driving the siren, there is no power available for PeaceMaker to accidentally turn on the siren.

How can I test PeaceMaker without generating a lot of siren noise?

PeaceMaker Test Procedure.  After connecting PeaceMaker to your alarm system, it is recommended that you test PeaceMaker to ensure that it properly silences your siren when you repeatedly re-trigger your alarm.  If you want to avoid generating a lot of siren noise during this testing, temporarily set PeaceMaker's Type 1-2 switches to "down-down-down", Type 3 switches to "up-down-up", and Delay switches to "down-up-up".  This setting is shown below.  Set the Honking Horn switch according to your type of siren, bell, or buzzer.

To test PeaceMaker, perform the following steps:

1.  Press PeaceMaker's RESET button.  
2.  Trigger your alarm and allow the siren to sound for 25 seconds. 
3.  Reset your alarm system (don't reset PeaceMaker) and allow the siren to be silent for 45 seconds.
4.  Re-trigger your alarm system. 

If your siren is immediately silenced, PeaceMaker is functioning properly and your installation is correct.  Set the Type 1-2, Type 3, and Delay switches according to your specific needs and complete your installation.  If you repeat this test, be sure to first reset PeaceMaker by pressing its RESET button.

When my siren first sounds, PeaceMaker's indicator light takes about 10 seconds to turn on.  Is there something wrong with my PeaceMaker?

No.  When PeaceMaker detects the siren turning on, after being off for a long period of time, the internal circuitry of PeaceMaker needs to recharge before searching for extended or repeated siren soundings.  This process typically takes about 10 seconds.

After installing PeaceMaker, my siren won't sound at all.  What's wrong?

PeaceMaker's default state is to allow your siren to sound.  If it won't sound when you trigger your alarm, this indicates that you have improperly wired up PeaceMaker.  Check that the input and output wiring is correct and that the polarities of these wires are not reversed.

PeaceMaker doesn't seem to silence my siren.  What's wrong?

Follow the PeaceMaker Test Procedure described above to test your PeaceMaker.  If it does not properly silence the siren, check for the following:

Is the Honking Switch properly set?  If your car alarm honks the car horn when it is triggered or if your alarm's 8-ohm speaker siren "plays" a variety of tone patterns when triggered and some of these tone patterns have brief silent periods, the Honking Switch should be up (turned on).  This switch should be down (turned off) for all other types of sirens, bells, and buzzers.  More information on the Honking Switch is provided in the Detailed Setup Instructions.

Does your alarm system use an 8-ohm speaker siren?  Speaker sirens have driver circuits built into the alarm module rather than the siren.  The siren simply acts as a speaker.  If the polarity of the wires running from your alarm module to PeaceMaker is reversed, PeaceMaker's ALARM indicator may still light up during siren soundings, but it will never properly silence the siren.  Try reversing the polarity of the wire running to PeaceMaker if you are uncertain of the proper polarity and re-test your system, or have a qualified technician with a multi-tester check that the "+" wire is connected to the FROM ALARM terminal and "-" wire is connected to the COMMON terminal.

Does your alarm system use a 6-15 volt DC siren, bell, or buzzer?  Check that the input and output wiring is connected correctly.  If the polarity of PeaceMaker's input and output wires are both reversed, your siren will still sound but PeaceMaker will never properly silence the siren.

When PeaceMaker silences my siren, a loud buzzing noise comes from inside PeaceMaker!  What's wrong?

You have the wires running to/from PeaceMaker reversed.  The wire running to the "FROM ALARM" should run to the "TO SIREN" terminal, and the wire running from the "TO SIREN" terminal should instead run from the "FROM ALARM" terminal.