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Troubleshooting Tips

Failure to Communicate:

If your system indicates that it has a trouble condition for a “Failure to communicate” or “Phone line fault” you should test your system with central station before you schedule a service call to determine whether the problem still exists or whether it was just a momentary glitch. When testing your system, follow these steps:
 
  1. Place your system on test with central station.
  2. Arm your system for “Away” (as though you were leaving).
  3. Open and close the door that you would usually leave from.
  4. Allow the beeping (delay time) to stop and then open a back or side door (Perimeter) to set the alarm off.
  5. Allow the siren to sound for approximately 1 minute before disarming your system.
  6. Disarm system. You may need to disarm your system twice in order to clear up the alarm memory.
  7. Call central station to confirm whether they received signals or not. If signals were received then no further action is required; however, if signals were not received then you will need to call and schedule a service call (915-821-2935) to check your alarm system.

Power Failure:

  If your system indicates that it has no power, but you have had no power outages, please follow these steps:
 
  1. Locate the transformer that powers your system. It may be tan or white, in color, and should be plugged into the nearest electrical outlet to your alarm panel.
  2. Once you have located the transformer, check and verify that it is plugged in and, if so, check the wiring to make sure that the wires are intact. This is low voltage so there is no danger to you.
  3. If the transformer is plugged in and the wires are intact, then you should unplug the transformer and check the outlet by plugging in a lamp or other device to make sure that the outlet has power.
  4. If you have determined that the outlet does have power, then you will need to call and schedule a service call (915-821-2935) to have your system checked as the transformer may be blown. If the outlet does NOT have power, then you may want to check the circuit breakers in your electrical panel in the event that one of them may have tripped. If you are not able to correct the problem, unplug the transformer and plug an extension cord into another “working” outlet temporarily and plug in the transformer.

Low System Battery:

If your system indicates that it has a “Low Battery” and you have confirmed that it is from the main panel and not a wireless transmitter that has the low battery, you can replace it simply by removing the system battery (disconnect red lead and black lead, not in any specific order) and take the battery to your local   AVS Special Systems Office (calling first to make sure that they have it in stock) or go to the nearest Radio Shack for a replacement battery. Note: It can sometimes take 4-12 hours for a “new” battery to come up to a full charge as they are not always at a full charge when you purchase them.

Phone line or Telephone Provider Changes:

If you have made any changes to your phone line, phone service or telephone provider you should test your system with central station to make sure that the changes have not affected your alarm system. Follow these steps for the following Providers/Services:
 
  • Comcast: Test your alarm system with central station. If signals are not received you will need to schedule a service call (888-576-7310) as the phone line may need to be re-wired.
  • Verizon FIOS: Test your alarm system with central station. If no signals are received you will need to schedule a service call (888-576-7310) as the phone line may need to be re-wired or you may need to install an alternative means of communication such as a GSM.
  • Time Warner: Test your alarm system with central station. If no signals are received you will need to schedule a service call (915-821-2935) as the alarm system may need to be reprogrammed or you may need to install an alternative means of communication such as a GSM.

Alarm User Information

How to remove a user code:

Type in master/user #/#0 (example: 1234/803/# 0)
 
Note: If you hear a short chime, then you’ve set it. If you hear a long chime, it means the new code already exists or it is the same as the master. If no chime is given, the master code you’ve entered is not correct. Try again, if problem persists, contact AVS Special Systems, Inc. at 915-821-2935.

How to change master code:

Type in the old master/802/new master twice (example: 1234/802/4321/4321)
Note: Only the master can assign securiy codes to users.

How to set up a new user code:

Type in master/user #/user code (example: 1234/803/1111)
Note: The keypad beeps once to confirm that new user was added.

Stay, Away & Chime Mode:

Stay – Type user code/3 (example: 1111/3)
Three beeps confirms – used to arm system when you want to stay inside or have pets
Away – Type user code/2 (example: 1111/2)
Two beeps confirms – used when no one is inside
Chime – Type user code/9 (example: 1111/9)
Note: enter again to turn chime mode off

Disarming the system:

Type user code/1 (example: 1111/1)
Note: system is disarmed and alarm sounding is silenced. To clear the memory of alarm display (id present)
enter your user code/1 again.

How to check open zones:

Press the * key – Displays all faulted zones

Bypassing Zones:

Type your user code/6/2 digit zone numbers to be bypassed (example: 1111/6/2 digit zone being bypassed)

Trouble Conditions:

Trouble Message                  Meaning

 
Comm Failure (or FC)           Failure has occurred in the telephone communication portion of your system.
 
System LO BAT                     Low system battery condition exists.
 
LO BAT + zone descr.           Low battery condition in the wireless transmitter.
 
Alarm 1xx (or 91)                  A communication problem between the control and a connected device,
Fault 1xx, Check 1xx             where xx indicates the device address.
 
AC Loss (or NO AC)               System is operating on battery power only due to an AC power failure.
 
Open Circuit (or OC)             The keypad is not receiving signals from the control.
 
Long Ring Trbl (or bF)           Back up communication device (if used) has failed.