Rant: Saw a huge jump in false alarms at a condo building in Austin after they switched to a new wireless glass break sensor.

I serviced the same building for three years. Their false alarm rate was maybe one a quarter. Last month, they had eight. The property manager called me in a panic. I checked the logs and saw they swapped out their old hardwired sensors for a popular wireless brand about four months ago. The pattern is clear: the new sensors are picking up low frequency rumbles from the HVAC system on the roof, especially when the big units kick on. The old system just didn't have that sensitivity. Has anyone else run into wireless glass breaks being too sensitive to building vibrations? What's your go-to fix besides just moving the sensor?

2 comments

2 Comments

rayc382d ago

That bit about the HVAC rumbles is so familiar. We had a client where the new wireless sensors kept getting set off by the elevator machinery down the hall. The fix ended up being a simple rubber isolation mount for the sensor bracket, which cut the vibration transfer.

hayes.tara2d ago

My buddy had the same thing happen with his garage door opener shaking a motion sensor loose every single morning.