I have a new qolsys IQ2 system that I installed in a brand new house. All the doors/windows are hardwired so I have a few hardwire 16 modules to keep as much as possible hardwired. Everything has been working great except for one motion sensor ( Honeywell IS3035 PIR Motion Detector) in our rec room that keeps triggering a false alarm. There are a lot of window in the room, though the only window that is visible from the sensor is about 19’ away. There are no curtains in the windows so there is a bright (warm) spot on the floor as the sun moves across the sky in the morning. Could this be the source of my false alarm? I was told that sensors couldn’t go through glass, but I can’t think of too many other reasons for this repeating false alarm. Perhaps I should have purchsed the more expensive dual tech motion sensors?? Any help would be appreciated!
Dual Tech microwave sensors are usually a good bet if you run into odd false alarms from non standard object movement. If you have morning sunlight flashing across the lens, that might cause false alarms.
Are the alarms always occurring around the same time?
Hello Jason, sorry for the delayed response. Yes, it looks like the alarms are all late morning.
Not easy to move since it is a hardwired motion, but I would suggest either trying to face it a different direction or if not possible, try a Dual Microwave detector. The description does sound like an environmental cause
Ok, so I replaced the motion sensor with a Honeywell Dual Tec 7450 motion sensor. I tested it out this morning and still got a false alarm within 30 min or so. It is an overcast day, so the sunlight/shadows are minimal. Could it be a problem with how I am wiring it? I am using the EOL resistor at the device itself instead of in the hardwire 16 case just to keep it more tidy.
Are you using EOL Learn mode to use existing resistors? Or are you using the default 4.7kohm resistors included with the HW16?
I am using the default resistors that come with the hardwire 16.
Also not sure if this is normal…or perhaps an insight to the problem. My motion detector often show “activated” even when nobody is in the house. See attached photo…
I took this screenshot about 10-15 minutes after I left the house.
That activated status is normal and do not necessarily indicate anything strange here. The Activated status in Alarm.com lasts for about an hour. Actual current status for a motion detector is useless as it only opens momentarily then closes again, unlike a door or window which can be left open and remain in one of two states.
Alarm events from the sensor mean that it is being triggered at that moment.
Do you have any pets, cats in particular?
No pets 
It is possible that the window it is facing is the cause, but I think that is a bit odd for a Dual Tech. Any vents nearby? Anything hanging in the room that might move and disturb PIR background? Low-hanging fans? (I’m reaching a bit here)
How high up on the wall is it mounted?
So the motion is about 7’ off the ground and there is a ceiling fan about 9-10’ off the ground? Here is a pic from the perspective of the motion. The french doors are in direct line of sight. No close by vents, but they are there…
The door is about 19’ away…
Hmm, is the fan on when you notice the false alarms? Is it strong enough to knock papers to the floor off the wall or desk? I’m not confident it would be sensitive enough to capture that, but in the absence of other explanations, that looks like a possibility given the room.
I could have been on but it only runs on low, so it moves just fast enough to circulate air. Doesn’t agitate papers and such. I will test later today.
Ok, so I am finally able to return to troubleshooting the false alarms on the motion sensor and I tapped a piece of paper over the entire front of the device to see if that would stop the false alarms. Although it appeared to stop the sensor from tripping (no more red light) I did get a call from the alarm company after an hour or so of arming the system. After playing with it some more I finally got frustrated and disconnected the red and black wires from the device so it not longer had power. But the next time I armed the system I got a call from the monitoring company just a short while later. Now what!?!!! I have uploaded images of the device and the hardwire 16 to show how it is wired. As you can see, the sensor has had the red/black wires disconnected at the device, and it is wired with other motion sensors in the hardwire 16 (red/black wires connected). Is this a wiring issue??
Alright, that’s a strange result, but good in that I think it points us better toward what is happening.
First thing, I would recommend not looping the alarm circuit through the tamper terminals. Especially having false alarm issues, it would be necessary to get that tamper switch out of the equation.
Second, if you are getting activation of that zone with the sensor powered off that is either a wiring issue, or somehow the zones got flip flopped and that is not the physical sensor connected to that zone.
Is that the “School Motion?” If so, I see an activation of that detector this morning even.
Try this: take that sensor and wiring completely out of the equation and just put the resistor directly into the Hardwire 16F terminals for that zone as a test.
You can program that zone as a door to hasten testing. With the resistor in place does the panel show that zone closed?
Then pull the resistor. Does the panel show the correct zone as open?
If the zone does not close and open as expected, you probably have a zone mix-up.
If it does, you likely have a wiring issue, perhaps a loose or damaged wire, or the tamper terminals on the Dual Tech were a potential cause.
Ok, so I disconnected the schoolroom motion wires (zone 13) at the hardwire 16 terminals, inserted a resistor and reset the zone 13 as a “window”. The zone would not close with the resistor, so I put a toner on the motion wire (at the hardwire 16) and I am getting a tone at the schoolroom motion sensor, so it appears that the wire is correct?
The zone would not close with the resistor
Interesting. Yes, it sounds like the motion wires are correct but the resistor isn’t. Are you sure that was a resistor that came with the HW16? That sounds like the resistance value is not what the HW16 is looking for.
Do you have any other resistors left over from installation you can try?
Did you use EOL learn mode when setting it up the first time?