Hi DIY-ers this is Michael from Alarm Grid.
And today, I'm going to be talking about how an alarm
system backup battery works.
A backup battery keeps an alarm system
running when it loses AC power.
AC power is the power that's provided
from a plug-in transformer, and the wire
runs from the transformer to the panel,
and that serves as the primary power
source for an alarm system.
That is AC power.
But if AC power becomes lost, either because that transformer
was unplugged, maybe somebody cut the cable,
or there's just an electrical outage in the area,
then it will switch over to its battery backup.
The backup battery, in any case, they're
always rechargeable batteries.
They draw a small amount of power,
while the system is running on AC power,
it's slowly storing some of the power
from the AC power connection, the plug-in transformer.
Just slowly storing a small amount of power over time.
So that way when power is lost, the backup battery
is ready to kick in and keep the system running as well
as its communicator which I'll talk a little bit about that
in a second.
But it's important to understand that a backup battery is only
a temporary power source for a system.
A system shouldn't be expected to run on battery power
permanently.
It's only meant to keep the system running
until AC power can be restored.
You'll see different specifications
for different backup batteries.
You'll see some, like the minimum is usually
that it will keep a system running
for at least four hours.
You'll see others that will keep the system running for at least
24 hours, and that really depends
on the system you're using, the backup battery,
and what kind of equipment you're using with the system
as well because equipment will draw some power.
So those are all things that go into how long.
But in most cases, you'll see a backup battery
being able to keep a system running for at least four hours
or at least 24 hours.
Perhaps even longer in some cases.
If you are in an area where there
might be an extended power outage longer than 24 hours,
you really might want to look into getting a backup generator
or something of that nature, just in case.
But there are different types of batteries
based on whether the system is wireless
all in one panel or a traditional hardwired alarm
panel.
So I have types of both here.
This is a backup battery pack for wireless all in one panel.
Specifically this one's used with a Honeywell lynx touch
system.
You see that it's just a battery pack,
is a pretty compact piece of equipment,
and then it has a plug-in connector
that plugs into the appropriate port
on the panel inside the panel.
You'll usually find something similar for any wireless panel.
You'll have a small battery pack with a wire running from it,
and you'll have a connector at the end that plugs into a port.
And so if you need to power it on the system entirely,
then you can unplug this to cut battery power.
So it's pretty simple.
Then if you have a wired panel, you'll
have something a little bit larger.
This, to me, it resembles more of a small car battery.
It's a pretty boxy, heavy piece of equipment here.
This can fit inside the panels metal enclosure, which
is nice for keeping it out of the way,
but you'll see that you will have to attach
a battery harness to it.
At the top, we have the red terminal for positive power
and the black terminal for negative power.
These types of batteries are interchangeable
between wired alarm systems in most cases.
So I can use this with a Honeywell VISTA, DSC
PowerSeries Neo system, and older networks
panel for instance in most cases.
So they're usually pretty interchangeable but what
you do need is the proper battery harness
that usually comes with the panel for connecting it.
Just as an example I have the battery
harness for DC PowerSeries Neo right here.
You see there is a red wire and a black wire,
and I'll just show you real quick how these connects.
So I have the terminals right there,
and I can just take the connector
and connect right there.
And then I can do the same for the black wire
right here, making sure to follow polarity.
So red going to red and black going to black,
red for positive, black for negative.
And then the other end can go to the battery taking place
at the panel.
So like I said, this is for a DC PowerSeries Neo system.
In the case of Honeywell VISTA, it's
usually fixed to the board.
So the part that goes to the system
is already fixed on there and then
you just connect the backup battery
using the terminals which it's something similar to this.
But I just brought the Neo connector just for a little bit
show intel there.
So you can see that.
So one important thing about a backup battery
is that it will also keep the systems communicator
running it's not just keeping the panel running,
it's keeping its communicator running,
which is used for monitoring service.
And also in the case of a wired system,
the backup power should also be keeping all
the connected sensors running.
So if you have powered sensors like motion detection sensors
or glass break sensors, those will also be kept running.
But what I really want to stress here
is the fact that it keeps the communicator running.
That's also done for a wireless panel.
The panel uses its communicator to send signals
to a monitoring platform which can then
forward the signals to a central station,
and/or the end user directly via text and/or email
depending on the user's monitoring plan.
Now if the communicator goes offline, it loses power,
then even if this system's kept running,
well that's not going to do you much good.
The system's not being monitored.
So in event of an emergency, a local alarm can still sounds
but it's not going to be able to transmit
the signal unless the communicator is kept up
and running.
So with backup battery keeping the system running,
that's fine as long as the communication path is still
available.
And by that I mean, if you're relying on IP only
and there's an electrical outage and you don't have
a backup battery for your internet modem,
then although your panel will remain online
and it's Wi-Fi card or whatever it's using for IP
connectivity and wireless systems often use a Wi-Fi card.
In either case, it's IP communicator
won't keep working.
I mean it'll still keep working but the modem won't be online
and the Internet will be down because the power is out.
So unless you have a backup battery for your modem,
then that really won't do you much good there.
So a lot of users will upgrade to cellular backup.
They'll have cellular communication
inside their panels, so their cellular communication
involves communicating with cell towers,
and you don't need a modem around your home
or your office.
And even if the electricity is out,
your phone, as long as it's still powered on, will works.
It uses cellular technology and your security systems
the same way.
It will still be able to do the cellular communication.
So even if the internet goes out due to the power outage,
the backup batteries keeping your system online,
it's keeping its cellular communicator online.
And sent cellular communication and just
involves communicating the cell tower,
your system will remain monitored.
Now if you are using IP only, then like I said,
if you do have a backup battery for your modem,
something of that nature, then it
will be keeping its IP communicator online,
its Wi-Fi card or its IP communicator
for Internet connectivity, whatever it is,
depending on the panel.
As long as your modem stays online
and you don't lose Internet service, then that's also fine,
but just keep that in mind.
One last thing I want to talk about with backup batteries
is that they have a limited useful life.
Over time a battery will lose its ability to store a charge
and it will eventually need to be replaced.
This usually happens after about three to five years,
sometimes longer.
It really depends on the battery or you're using
and the system you're using.
So if you see a low battery message on your panel,
then what you should do is give it 24 hours
to try and charge itself while the system is
running on AC power.
Make sure that AC power isn't lost during this time
because you don't know.
It could just be because there was
an extended outage and the battery just
needs time to recharge.
So give it that chance and see if you can clear the trouble
condition at that point.
But if you can't after 24 hours of continuous AC power,
you're still getting the low battery message
and you can't clear it and you know
that it's been running on AC power,
and it's been roughly three to five years
since your last battery replacement,
then it will be time to get a new one for your system.
You'll need to open up the panel, remove the old battery,
and apply the new one, and then you'll
be good to go for the next again three to five years,
depending on usage.
So that's a little bit about how batteries for alarm systems
work, backup batteries for alarm systems.
If you have any extra questions about backup batteries or alarm
systems or alarm monitoring services,
send an email to support@alarmgrid.com.
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