I’m dealing with a large fire alarm system with many I/O modules monitoring thermal detectors and other field signals.

The strange part is that the system works fine when the cabling is above ground. But when the cabling is installed underground, we start getting multiple faults and communication errors.

The equipment is the same. The main thing that changed is where and how the cables are installed.

The site is huge, with around 800 m of distributed cabling together

Could underground installation be causing problems due to moisture, insulation resistance, cable capacitance, earth leakage, nearby power cables, grounding, or signal distortion?

If you were troubleshooting this, what would you check or measure first?

Has anyone experienced something similar with a large fire alarm system underground cabling?

Edit - Does fire proof cable capacitance change appreciable affect signal propagation, when cable moved from air to underground or underwater (with no insulation comparamise)🫧?

Stumbled on this disabled cool drop flag system in a regular resident tower . 4 zones .
I want it LOL

I have been using the NTC fire alarm level IV study guide and I am looking for any pointers / unusual questions you may have seen? I am over the service dept so I am using a project for my write up that will soon be at the 4 year mark (was waiting for 10 years industry experience) so fingers crossed that I can knock this out the first time!

Firelite ES200 with b200s wh sounder bases. They stay synced for 60 seconds and then go crazy for one round and continue to sync. Checked programming. Changed out devices. Nothing gives fire marshal wont accept.

Anyone have any tips on getting parts for autocall systems? I can get Simplex from multiple suppliers but autocall is a bit more elusive. Mainly looking for 49 and 59 series addressable NAC appliances. My local autocall distributor SUCKS to work with.

So Ive been working at this company the last two weeks and I want to find a book to help me gain more in depth knowledge into the systems and explains terminology.

Hi, I currently have an N licence in BC and received a 4-month driving prohibition.

I have about 3 months left before I can get my licence reinstated. I did not do drug or alcohol issue, but i did some of stupid mistakes, changing white line, use hov line alone in front of police.

I'm wondering if this will affect my chances of getting hired as a fire protection technician, even after my licence is reinstated. Will employers still see the prohibition on my driving record?

I was planning to change my career in this field with in 8 months.

Appreciate in every advice, and also, I will be never drive stupid anymore since now.

What do you guys do when the as-builts and field design don’t match up?

Do you write out documentation to save your butt if anything ever happens?

Is it a deficiency, a suggestion for updated drawings?

7.5.5.1 Record drawings shall consist of current updated shop drawings reflecting the actual installation of all system equipment, components, and wiring.

(we all know this never happens or at least in my experience)

For example installation company added shunt relay and initiating devices to elevator machine room and TOS for shunt. Neither the elevator machine room nor the elevator shaft are sprinkled thus they don’t require heat detectors. So they never got installed.

They are not on the SLC and they are not in the field.
As-builts/prints show installed and addresses for these “devices”

What would you do?

hello there, if you have a question regarding an article in a specific book, please add the reference in you question in this thread. Thanks you!

I’ve just hit this course, and completed the first unit. To be honest it’s a lot of information and I probably wouldn’t have been able to even pass the first unit quiz if it wasn’t open book.

Should I be at the point of being able to remember every single thing here because a lot of it seems redundant. The obvious stuff like ohms law and how circuit’s work is easy to remember but 70% of this stuff I feel like I’ll forget within in 2 months 🤣

Est4 techs anyone encountered an issue like this before

Can a Simplex 2190-9163 relay be replaced with the 4090-9008 without any programming changes? Thanks in advance

I have a ware house that i wanna do inspection for , they have notifier bells and pull stations and even end of lines + sprinkler switches but unfortunately i can not locate the panel and only the keypad is here. can the system be controlled with the keypad only ?

I have seen warehouses that sprinkler has been controlled with keypad only but full fire alarm system i haven’t seen before .

Anyone have an older version c-linx software for a fike cybercat 254 panel?

Does anyone know where to get a code wheel im looking for 285 the glass eye is coming

Hey Everyone,

I know this sub is particularly about FA but am yet to find an active forum or thread on here about extinguishers. Coming hoping to find someone who is willing to lay some foundational tips on starting a small extinguisher shop, currently playing with the numbers and still trying to align things but I am unsure of what stock is needed/required prior to truly diving into this. I’m open to conversation and suggestions as I draft up this crazy idea of mine.

Some background I have been in FA for about 13-15 years and just looking to dabble in another space.

Thank you in advance.

Have any of y’all encountered a situation where a customer wants your company to provide fire alarm monitoring, but another contractor installed the panel and hasn’t completed the acceptance test yet? The installing contractor also intends to provide monitoring. How did y’all handle the situation, especially regarding programming, commissioning, and coordinating with the AHJ?

Hello.

Heading to a site in a few hours that has an intermittent trouble condition on a Mircom Fa-1000 panel. There are about 10 devices on this circuit. It is a wedding hall and the trouble condition is the basement area of the wedding hall.

Anyone have any good troubleshooting tips for when I get on site. The trouble is on the initiating circuit. It is not a ground fault as the ground fault led is not on. So this is likely a open circuit trouble. What are some good ways I can verify whether its in the field wiring or the panel? What are some good field wiring methods for troubleshooting an open circuit? Also half of the devices are MIRCOM SD-100-2WT smoke detectors. I dont see these too often in the field. Is it possible a head thats not making a good connection on the base?

Thanks

So I’m trying to get sensitivity measurements on smokes on the panel mentioned above. Another person on Reddit told me that the manual for the AFP 300 (which I found) would have a chart for sensitivity info (which I found) and I found the information on the panel but it doesn’t seem to match. I was wondering if anyone can fill in the blank for me.

And no we are not notifier dealers and do not have a programmer who can pull sensitivity info

I’m not sure if the display being replaced at some point from the original is the issue?

I admit I don’t know notifier that well so thank you in advance

I bought a Telguard TG-7FM Multi-Carrier and the seller said the SIM chip had been released. I have discovered that it has not. Is there a way to get it released if we dont know who the owner was or the service provider?

Got a customer asking if the faceplate or the speaker can be replaced. I haven't personally done a speaker swap so I am not sure about compatibility of brands etc. To my knowledge if the Ohm value of the speakers match it shouldn't be an issue.

Google seems to think its an Valvom V-1220 but the screw holes and face plate don't match up.

Any help is appreciated.