My alarm system is frequently giving me false alarms. What should I do?

Check The Zone Settings

Total Security systems include a Zone Setting called "Smart," which you can use to help prevent false alarms. The "Smart" mode will only trigger an alarm when the panel receives a signal from that sensor twice in a short amount of time.

Some settings even allow your sensors to trigger an alarm when the system is disarmed. This setting is good for things like a smoke alarm, but generally not what you want for things like a motion detector or a door contact sensor.

See the following documentation for the zone settings for your system:

• Total Security Zone Attributes

• GSM Zone Settings

• S02 Zone Types

Check For any Automatic Arming

Both the GSM and the Total Security systems have features that arm and disarm the system at scheduled times.

Total Security:

Please refer to this article for the steps to change the Auto Arm feature.

GSM:

Please refer to this article for the steps to change the Timely Arm feature.

Identify Which Zone(s) Are Triggering The Alarm

Sometimes, the false alarms may be reported from the same Zone repeatedly. If this is the case, it can help you narrow down if a sensor needs to be placed differently or if a battery needs to be replaced.

If you have confirmed that the Zone number that is alarming is the same every time, you can skip testing sensors in any other Zone.

Check Placement Of Sensors

Make sure that any Motion Detectors are...

• Not detecting motion from outside, through a window or open space.
• Not pointed at a central heating duct (rapid temperature change in a concentrated area can trigger the infrared sensor).
• Not detecting movement from any rodents in the house, or any pets you may own. If you own pets and do not currently have Pet-Immune Motion Detectors, please contact us and we can assist you. Note that Pet-Immune motion detectors will still detect larger animals (generally over 50 lbs.).

Make sure that any Door/Window Contact Sensors are placed within 1/4 inch of their corresponding magnets when the door or window is closed.

Replace Batteries

In some cases, some of the sensors can begin to trigger false alarms as the batteries get low, even before the low battery indicator is lit. If you are experiencing frequent false alarms from a single sensor, we recommend replacing its battery.

Check For Interfering Signals In The Area

We have found that various different interfering signals can sometimes inadvertantly trigger the alarm, or cause other strange behavior in the alarm system.

Check your surrounding area for things like:

• Neighbors who may have other wireless alarm systems
• Weather towers
• Anything else that emits a 433 Mhz wireless signal