Electronic Alarms and Home Security Devices - ADT Wireless Devices No Longer Work

I hope this is the right forum. First, I have an ADT monitored system with multiple wireless sensors, but I also like to do things myself.
A week ago I made some changes and I thought things were working. Now, now of my wireless devices will trigger the alarm. When I put the system into test mode, the wireless doors and windows don't "ding".
Here's what I think I did a week ago. I changed a basement hard-wired motion detector setting from Type 3 (Perimeter Burglary) to Type 1 (Entry/Exit Burglary). I also tried to add an additional keyfob at zone locations 52, 53, & 54 (for loops 2, 3, & 4).
The motion detector I know works as I now want. But I've now found that none of my wireless devices are working.
Maybe I messed up some fields I should not have by accident.

Do you have any ideas how I might solve this problem without calling ADT and paying a $100 ? service call?
Thanks, Eddie

First of all, what model system do you have? I am _guessing_ a Safewatch 3000/Vista 20p, but it makes a difference.

You can go back into *56 programming and review the settings for the other wireless zones. If the wireless motion is working, the other devices should be working.

Yes, it is an ADT Safewatch Pro 3000 Vista-20p. The problem is that no wireless sensor is working. I tried to remember what I had changed a week ago and in my initial post I described changing a hard-wired motion sensor on zone 8. That hard-wired motion device appears to do what I want. The last thing I remember trying to do was add a keyfob to wireless zones 52, 53 & 54. But I remember that I was never successful. What I didn't realize was that I might have disabled all of my wireless devices at that time (about a week ago).

The first problem I noticed was that some wireless zones reported a "fault" and others reported "check" about 4 days ago. The system was installed 2 and 1/2 years ago. At first I thought that the check was caused by the 2 year old batteries beginning to fail. And I surmised the faults were due to those units where the batteries were completely dead. Well, I've replaced the batteries in two sensors but still all wireless devices don't trigger the alarm.

I'm thinking that I must have disabled some field by accident. Can you think of one common RF field that if it was set incorrectly would cause all of the wireless devices to no longer work? When I do the test mode, only the hardwire devices work. Not a single RF device works at this point.

Thanks for any help,
Mr.Eddie

"Fault" means "open" in ademco speak. "Check" means that there was zone trouble.

I missed the motion being hardwired in the midst of the rest of the information.

No, there is no global setting that can turn off the wireless receiver. If one of those "checks" was "check 100" that means that the system isn't communicating with the wireless receiver. Could you have possibly disconnected the wireless receiver? If you replaced a keypad, for example, one of your keypads may have been an RF receiver model.

The fault and check notifications were with respect to a particular zone. For example, it might have read "FAULT 16 KITCHEN MOTION" or "CHECK 12 BATHROOM WINDOW". I can't be exactly sure of the text strings but they clearly came in the two flavors of "fault" and "check" and the number reported with each was clearly referring to a particular zone. I never observed a CHECK 100 message.

In my original post I mentioned that my system is currently monitored by ADT. And after reviewing some other posts, I was wondering if by my trying to add the keyfob zones 52, 53 & 54, ADT might have some feature that disables the wireless zones as a means to say "don't touch".

Again, thanks for your thoughts. I'm now wondering if the RF receiver in the alarm panel box may have been damaged by a power surge. We lost power in the neighborhood a few days ago and maybe when the power was restored it might have damaged the RF receiver. Maybe it was nothing I did in trying to program the keyfob zones and perhaps I'm chasing a red herring.

One last thought. Inside the alarm panel, I think on the RF Circuit Card, there is a red LED. When I press a button on my keyfob, I see the red LED blink for as long as I hold the button down. Maybe that means the RF receiver is OK and my programming somehow did disable the wireless devices.

Thanks,
Mr.Eddie

In addition to the information I just posted, in answer to your question "Could you have possibly disconnected the wireless receiver? If you replaced a keypad, for example, one of your keypads may have been an RF receiver model.". No I didn't touch a thing in the alarm panel box, not the wireless receiver nor anything else. I did open the box to inspect it after I noticed that no wireless devices were working.

All I can suggest is to go into the *56 menu, and look at each of your zones. If they are each still set as rf zones, and none of the zone types has been changed to disabled, then either your rf receiver has failed (unlikely, actually), or there is something else going on.

The probable reason that the keyfob never worked is that you have to assign it to a user code using the user code attributes (see page 6-4 of the V20p installer manual).

This is one of those things that is very difficult to diagnose via second hand information. I have a suspicion that it's something fairly basic, but you simply don't know what's out of place.

MrEddie, did you ever get it to work? I am having a similar problem with my RF receiver's red led flashing when I test my smoke detector but nothing happens. I think I have the zones set up correctly.

Thanks.

Review your zone settings and let us know what's set.

Review your zone settings and let us know what's set.

I have a Vista 15p and it is self monitored. My RF Jam option is turned off. My zone settings for the smokes are:

FIRST SMOKE DETECTOR
Zone 9:
Zone Type=09 (Fire)
Partition=1
Report Code=10
Input Type=3 (RF)
Loop=1

Zone 10:
Zone Type=06 (24 Hr)
Partition=1
Report Code=10
Input Type=3 (RF)
Loop=4 (Tamper)(I know this zone is not needed but I tried it to see if it would make the tamper on the smokes work)
Serial Number=A********

Zone 11:
Zone Type=08 (24 Hr)
Partition=1
Report Code=10
Input Type=3 (RF)
Loop=3 (Freeze)
Serial Number=A********

SECOND SMOKE DETECTOR
Zone 12:
Zone Type=09 (Fire)
Partition=1
Report Code=10
Input Type=3 (RF)
Loop=1

Zone 13:
Zone Type=06 (24 Hr)
Partition=1
Report Code=10
Input Type=3 (RF)
Loop=4 (Tamper)(I know this zone is not needed but I tried it to see if it would make the tamper on the smokes work)
Serial Number=A********

Zone 14:
Zone Type=08 (24 Hr)
Partition=1
Report Code=10
Input Type=3 (RF)
Loop=3 (Freeze)
Serial Number=A********

RF Receiver Device address = 00

I know the receiver always receives the signals from the smokes because the red led flashes every time I unscrew the detectors from the base but it does not trip the system. The system does get tripped when I hold a hair dryer to the detectors and this may be because it sends so many signals to it. I also get the zone check trouble every 12 hours.

I made sure the receiver was at least 10 ft away from any keypads and away from metal and I do not have any other RF receivers.

I have hardwired zones 1-6 and they work fine.

Thanks for your help, I have run out of options to try. :wall:

Ok, I think I see where you got a little turned around.

You tried to enroll these smokes as 3 individual devices.

The tamper and freeze functions are internal functions to the detector and don't require a separate zone.

Try enrolling each detector just once and delete all of the extraneous stuff you added.

Ok, I think I see where you got a little turned around.

You tried to enroll these smokes as 3 individual devices.

The tamper and freeze functions are internal functions to the detector and don't require a separate zone.

Try enrolling each detector just once and delete all of the extraneous stuff you added.

Ok I did that, now I have zone 9 and 10 for the two detectors on loop 1 and deleted all the other wireless zones, but still no luck. I have tried all kinds of configurations for the zones but still can't get it to work. The 5808w3's documentation says:

Loop 1: Heat/Fire
Loop 2: Hi/Low Maintenance
Loop 3: Freeze

This is how I had originally programmed it but wouldn't work all the time. There has to be something else besides zone configuration going on. Is there a way to reset the panel to factory defaults so I can start over?

Ok I did that, now I have zone 9 and 10 for the two detectors on loop 1 and deleted all the other wireless zones, but still no luck. I have tried all kinds of configurations for the zones but still can't get it to work. The 5808w3's documentation says:

Loop 1: Heat/Fire
Loop 2: Hi/Low Maintenance
Loop 3: Freeze

This is how I had originally programmed it but wouldn't work all the time. There has to be something else besides zone configuration going on. Is there a way to reset the panel to factory defaults so I can start over?

Found the reset command: *97, I'll try this and start over with all of my zones, I can't think of anything else to try at this point.

Hmm, you hadn't posted the model number before. I made the mistake of assuming that you had the much simpler single loop model:

From the install instructions:

"1. Enter the control’s Zone Programming mode.
2. Enter the zone number to be programmed.
3. Enter the applicable zone type when prompted. Program
• Loop 1 (Heat/Smoke) as a Fire zone (type 9 or 16),
• Loop 2 (High/Low Maintenance) as a 24-Hr. Trouble zone (type
19), and
• Loop 3 (Freeze Warning Sensor) as a 24-Hr. Aux. zone (type 8).
NOTE: Loop 2 High/Low Maintenance is supported only on
commercial control panels such as the Vista-128FBP.
4. When prompted, enter Input Type 03 (3 on some controls)
– Supervised RF Transmitter.
5. When prompted for the serial number, transmit from the detector
by activating the tamper switch. To do this, hold the base of the
detector in one hand, and rotate the detector counter-clockwise
on the base until it snaps open. Then return to clockwise position
until the detector snaps into place.
6. When the serial number is displayed, transmit from the detector
a second time by activating the tamper switch again as described
in Step 5. The current loop number (4) will begin to flash.
7. Manually change the loop number to the desired loop number for
the zone (according to the application).
8. When programming for this zone is complete, program other
zones for the transmitter as necessary (except for Tamper Loop
4, which does not require programming).
WARNING: The fire protection zone enrolled must always be
Loop 1. Otherwise, fire annunciations will not be reported by the
control.
9. Exit Programming mode when programming is complete, and
test the detector. Refer to the Testing Section."

Loop 4 (tamper) doesn't need to be programmed, it's an automatic.

Since you have a vista 20p, the hi/lo maint. function doesn't work anyway.

Remember, the base tamper will not trip an alarm condition, just a trouble. The alarm comes from the heat and smoke detection.

Hmm, you hadn't posted the model number before. I made the mistake of assuming that you had the much simpler single loop model:

From the install instructions:

"1. Enter the control’s Zone Programming mode.
2. Enter the zone number to be programmed.
3. Enter the applicable zone type when prompted. Program
• Loop 1 (Heat/Smoke) as a Fire zone (type 9 or 16),
• Loop 2 (High/Low Maintenance) as a 24-Hr. Trouble zone (type
19), and
• Loop 3 (Freeze Warning Sensor) as a 24-Hr. Aux. zone (type 8).
NOTE: Loop 2 High/Low Maintenance is supported only on
commercial control panels such as the Vista-128FBP.
4. When prompted, enter Input Type 03 (3 on some controls)
– Supervised RF Transmitter.
5. When prompted for the serial number, transmit from the detector
by activating the tamper switch. To do this, hold the base of the
detector in one hand, and rotate the detector counter-clockwise
on the base until it snaps open. Then return to clockwise position
until the detector snaps into place.
6. When the serial number is displayed, transmit from the detector
a second time by activating the tamper switch again as described
in Step 5. The current loop number (4) will begin to flash.
7. Manually change the loop number to the desired loop number for
the zone (according to the application).
8. When programming for this zone is complete, program other
zones for the transmitter as necessary (except for Tamper Loop
4, which does not require programming).
WARNING: The fire protection zone enrolled must always be
Loop 1. Otherwise, fire annunciations will not be reported by the
control.
9. Exit Programming mode when programming is complete, and
test the detector. Refer to the Testing Section."

Loop 4 (tamper) doesn't need to be programmed, it's an automatic.

Since you have a vista 20p, the hi/lo maint. function doesn't work anyway.

Remember, the base tamper will not trip an alarm condition, just a trouble. The alarm comes from the heat and smoke detection.

I did the reset and reprogrammed my zones. The instructions you posted were the instructions that I followed. I twisted the detector from the base and it set off the trouble on the panel the first time, after that it wouldn't set it off anymore. I have the 5808w3 smokes, a 15p panel, and a 5882 wireless receiver. I have followed the manuals on all of these devices and still have the problem.

The green led on the wireless receiver blinks rapidly sometimes and I don't know if this is a problem with it since I read it only blinked every 5 seconds or so. Since it isn't the red led blinking rapidly I can assume that it is not interference but nonetheless I turned off all radio emitting devices in my house (wireless fence, wireless router), still, it makes no difference.

I'm starting to think I have a defective device but I'm not sure if it would be the panel or the wireless receiver. The smokes are new and I have two of them and always send a signal to the receiver (red led on receiver blinks when I take them off their base) so I don't think those are the problem.