low battery honeywell vista 20p won't stop


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Old 07-04-15, 12:16 PM
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low battery honeywell vista 20p won't stop

I replaced an old gemini system with a honeywell vista 20p- I added a cellular monitoring device) and it has 3 keypads (6162rf x1 and 6152 x2). During the installation it had an old battery and showed 'system low bat' so I went and bought another battery off ebay (12v, 4ah)- didn't fix it so I bought another one from home depot and same problem. Its been running for a week + so everything should be charged. I've powered it down several times with no luck. I tested the batteries and they show ~12volt output. I also tested the power output of the alarm from the panel battery leads and it shows ~12-13 volts also. Whats going on? I'm lost? I though about 1) doing a factory reset of the panel or 2) Removing everything but basics (battery, 1 keypad, 1 siren) and seeing if I can get the battery to work then.
 
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Old 07-04-15, 03:22 PM
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If there is a fuse in the upper left corner of the circuit board, that is the fuse to the battery. Check it. Newer boards have an automatically resetting "PTC" device.

If the fuse is ok, how much amperage are all of your devices connected to 12 volt auxiliary power using? Like 400mA? 500mA?, 700mA?

If you do not know, you might want to add the amperage up and read the instructions about using too much power from those terminals.

FYI - My Vista 20p fully charged battery reads 13.53 volts DC.
 
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Old 07-04-15, 08:24 PM
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Just to be clear: A fresh battery that has had 24hrs+ to charge completely, should read around 13.5 VDC right after being disconnected from the panel.

The battery leads, with battery disconnected, should read between 13.5 and 14VDC. You should also be reading that from terminals 4 and 5, Aux Power Output, unless you have a really heavy current load your panel is trying to supply. All your Aux Pwr needs should tally no more than 600 mA.

See what the battery leads (disconnected from battery) read with everything disconnected from 4 & 5. If it still reads less than 13 VDC, then it sounds like your panel's voltage regulator is failing.
 
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Old 07-05-15, 08:47 AM
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Thanks for the information. I ended up doing a factory reset and disconnecting everything but the main power, battery, and a keypad. I tried 2 different keypads and 2 different new batteries and still got the low battery- all voltages reading correct. Feel pretty confident it's the panel. I'll keep you updated.
 
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Old 07-05-15, 09:08 AM
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It takes time for a battery to charge!

Try leaving everything disconnected and wait 24 hours.
 
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Old 07-05-15, 10:00 AM
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Thanks- yeah both new batteries have charged for 1-3 days at least each. I've left it powered down for 1-2 hours also- I'll try a 24 hour power down and see- thanks for your help!
 
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Old 07-05-15, 10:50 AM
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["...both new batteries have charged for 1-3 days at least each..."]

What I am thinking is that there was TOO MUCH OF A LOAD on the aux power connections and that did not leave any "electricity" left to charge the battery. Or that the fuse to the battery was blown and therefor there was no connection to the battery...

With that said, leave the extra keypads disconnected, but the panel POWERED UP for 24 hours and see if that then charges the batteries.
 
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Old 07-05-15, 04:56 PM
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So here are the items connected which will draw power
Firewolf Napco (3 detectors)- unsure about current draw
6162 RF 210 mA max (armed, let lid, lcd lit, sound on), 120 mA standby
6152 (2 pads)- 70 armed led lit, 40mA standby
ipdatatel cdma- typical 130 ma, max 180 ma
pir- 4ma max standby, 10ma max

Using a honeywell power calculator, I'm getting 260 standby, and 530 max alarm amps. My panel should be able to power that correct? The sirens (1 inside and 1 outside) aren't included in this calc, since they run off the battery right? Would you get an aux. power supply? Or maybe I should replace the 6162 rf with a 6162 (don't really need rf function).

Thoughts? Still waiting on battery to see if it'll charge (all devices except one keypad disconnected).
 
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Old 11-12-16, 03:45 PM
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I see you connected Napco 2 wire smoke detectors to your Vista Panel. Did they work properly?
 
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Old 11-12-16, 09:13 PM
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It did work. And the solution to my problem was a new panel.
 
 

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