Mounting is determined by manufacturer. PIR1 are 7 1/2’- 8’
Ok well I think I need to do some adjusting of things then.
I think the sensors are the honeywell 5890 pi but can’t be completely sure.
You should be completely sure which model motion detector you have. That will help you troubleshoot.
If you do have Honeywell 5890pi’s then it might be worth checking whether you have Alternate Polarity Pulse Count enabled via the jumper. Read the installation instructions for pointers on your particular model.
http://www.info-techs.com/ademco/files/wirelessperiph/5890pi.pdf
Have these motion detectors been working fine for a year and then suddenly started false alarming?
How high up should these things be mounted? They’re currently mounted about 8 and a half feet up.
According to specs, the PI is for pets that weigh 40 lbs or less, and your mounting installation is way too high, and needs to be at 6 1/2’ - 7 1/2’
The sensor will remain inactive and not refreshed for up to 45 minutes I think. That’s by ADC design. Jason & riven, smack me if I’m wrong. I forgot exactly why it does that, but it does.
Ryan, that’s exactly what’s going on. They worked fine since we installed them this past January and now all of a sudden both sensors freaked out momentarily and went right back to inactive. With no changes in the house.
Riven, the issue with that height is I thought they needed to be mounted that height away from any surface that a pet could reach. Like our dog climbs up and sits on the back if the couches. She’s only 12 pounds so I figured with our 9 foot ceilings mounting them near the top was fine because the couches are about 3 feet tall sitting up.
Ryan, I’m completely sure those are the model sensors we have.
That’s by ADC design. Jason & riven, smack me if I’m wrong. I forgot exactly why it does that, but it does.
While great at detecting motion in a motionless room, wireless motions aren’t good at continued motion reports due to their power saving features. Also, the status of a motion detector is near pointless as a frame of reference since unlike a door it cannot be left open. You would otherwise have to check it right as motion occurs. Activated status will remain on Alarm.com so you can see that motion has occurred within the last half hour give or take.
I wonder since the PIRs are mounted too high (and vert angle is probably not properly adjusted), if these motions are actually seeing a great deal of the ceiling in the lense view…
Lights radiate heat, and any automation to turn lights off/on may be triggering the passive infrared sensors. The question begs… are your HVAC registers on ceiling or floor? Just because they didn’t trigger the PIRs in Jan, doesn’t mean they are not triggering them now if the PIRs are seeing the thermal changes from the vents. Did the falsing start soon after you started running heat (or Aux or second stage heat… which is normally hotter than normal air on say a HP)?
Return in the upstairs hallway is on the ceiling. The one in the family room is on the wall about a foot up from the floor. We’ve had the heat on for a few weeks now but they’ve just gone off within the last week.
Where are the vents in relation to the motions as they are positioned currently? About how far away?
They worked fine since we installed them this past January and now all of a sudden both sensors freaked out momentarily and went right back to inactive.
It is strange that 2 of them would do that suddenly after behaving for so long, especially if they worked last winter when the heat was on. That doesn’t rule out the heat but it makes it less likely to be the cause. Did you check whether you have Alternate Polarity Pulse Count enabled via the jumper on the back of the device?
Ryan I didn’t check that yet. We’re traveling for the Thanksgiving holiday but I’ll check it when we get back.
Jason, in the upstairs hallway, the one vent is approximately 10 feet away, the vent is located about a foot and a half from the floor and the sensor is mounted near the ceiling which is 9 feet. The family room is a corner mount that was mounted near the ceiling and the vents are on the floor located about 10 feet and 20 feet away. Under both the windows. I just find it odd that the motion sensors wouldn’t be active and then for whatever reason they become active for a minute or two enough for the alarm to go off and then they’re inactive again. It doesn’t make sense.
I just got on the app to make sure everything was good in the house while we’re away and the upstairs hallway activated again yesterday morning and then went idle 2 minutes later.
Alright folks, I’m posting some images of what the view from the wall of where the sensors acting up are mounted. The first image shows what I see on the alarm.com dashboard when it’s acting up:
Next is the sensor view from the family room:
http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f8/Matt_Salvas/IMG_20151129_100121_zps75wmylov.jpg
http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f8/Matt_Salvas/IMG_20151129_100203_zpsql6uoe39.jpg
Next is the view of the upstairs hallway:
http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f8/Matt_Salvas/Mobile%20Uploads/20151129_100301_zpstiphuvqj.jpg
I don’t think this is due to the heat coming on. It doesn’t make sense why the sensors would activate and thenot go idle again 2 minutes later. Any and all help is appreciated.
The living room motion is installed incorrectly as it is pointed at the windows which can cause false alarms.
You may want to relocate it and corner mount adjacent to windows like so:
As for upstairs the register/return are in the lense view and may potentially trigger false alarms when the HVAC system is in heat mode.
Another potential issue may be the bedrooms if there are windows in them and the doors to the hall is open (mine false for this reason, so I close the bedroom door prior to arming away to prevent sunlight from causing a false activation)
Infrared and thermal issues are probably most likely the culprit for upstairs hall if you are not closing the doors, and is most definitely the culprit in living room as it sees those windows as well as the ones by kitchen.
But I feel that this change doesn’t address why the sensor is coming out of idle mode for 2 minutes each time and then going right back into idle.
The sensor takes approx. 2-3min to reset. As for why it goes idle sometimes within 2 min, and sometimes longer… your guess is as good as mine. I suspect something else is triggering and so it checks the PIR sensor status and reports sooner than it normally would.
Properly install your PIR motion, and keep the bedroom doors closed when you arm away.
I got frustrated and tore the other sensors off the wall. Waiting on replacements to come in. I ordered the 2gig pir1 345. You don’t think it would have anything to do with battery power do you?
Probably not. Just make sure you install the new PIRs properly, or you will have the same issue with false alarms (do not position them so the lense sees sunlight/windows, heating vents, and install at 7.5’- 8’)