I set up most of my systems today but couldn’t get bell wiring to work. I have a bunch of sirens that are connected in parallel. When I connected the white wire to aux2+, and black wire to aux2-, I can ring all the sirens together. However, I cannot trigger the siren by connecting them to the bell +/- terminals.
Any idea what’s going on or how to debug this?
I have a bunch of sirens that are connected in parallel.
How many is a bunch, and what model number are those sirens? Depending on the model and amount, you may likely be exceeding the current draw capability of 700ma
I saw 5 wires, but I know there are at least 6 sirens, so it’s possible some of them are connected before they hit my mechanical room. Given they ring fine when I just connect the wires directly to aux2, wouldn’t that mean they are below the 700ma limit?
Also - is there a better way to test the siren other than to trip the alarm? Thanks.
My old system does have a separate power unit supplying all the aux power, presumably due to the limit. If I want to reuse that, is there a specific relay you would recommend? Or can I use one of the pgm outputs?
In general, yes if there is a separate power supply for the sirens, that should be used with a relay. The Hardwire PowerG manual on page 16 discusses using the PGM terminals to trigger devices. The PGM can be used to trigger an appropriate relay, which then switches the power coming from your power supply.
To best assist with options, we would need the model number of the sirens so we know the power requirements.
I went through everything.
There are 4 x System Sensor MHW and 2 Potter PBA1206. Given the PBA1206 is a 120v device, there’s probably a relay somewhere triggering it. That just leaves the 4 x MHW.
According to https://prod-edam.honeywell.com/content/dam/honeywell-edam/hbt/en-us/documents/literature-and-specs/datasheets/0414-000.pdf, the MHW draws only 11.5mA at 12v. That’s much less than the 700mA available?
If you think I should connect the bell terminals to trigger some relay instead, is there a recommendation on a relay module to use? Thanks.
You shouldn’t have an issue requiring a relay then for those, but you would want to confirm exactly how the PBA1206 is involved and what relay is used. Do those actually sound if you directly apply aux power to the siren wires at the translator?
Yes they all sound when I just connect them to the aux terminals together. That’s why I’m perplexed why the bell terminals wouldn’t work.
Does the bell terminals have less amperage than the aux tetminals?
Is there a specific relay that you would recommend for this use case if I want to just use the external power supply for all of them?
Does the bell terminals have less amperage than the aux tetminals?
The manual specifies the same 700 ma for both.
Is there a specific relay that you would recommend for this use case if I want to just use the external power supply for all of them?
That is a commonly used option which can be triggered by a low current 12VDC input.
Thanks. I ordered an Altronix RBSNTTL. Will report back what happens after I test it.
