I just purchased a new qolsys panel from Surety with the mighty mouse sensors. When you buy the sensors with the panel, they offer to program them for you.
I am assuming that programming them and pairing them is the same thing. I followed the instructions in the Surety email that I received and I am still getting absolutely no response when I touch the sensor together or take the cover off.
I can see where they tested them in the alarm history.
I feel like there is something pretty silly that I am leaving out but after tinkering with it for an hour, I cannot get the status to change on any of the sensors. It shows Disarmed and Not Ready with two sensors open, but even if I try to open more sensors, they still show the same two. I finally got one to show TAMPER after taking the cover off about 3 times and continuously tapping the magnet to the sensor (5 times in less than 5 seconds to simulate tamper) and then all of a sudden is chimed “Tamper” for that sensor.
Help me What am I doing wrong
So far I have:
Plugged the battery in
Plugged the unit in
Ran cell test
Connected to Wifi and updated (btw, the GUI looks nothing like the video)
The instructions that surety sends me tells me to verify that all windows and door sensors are closed - well, all of the sensors are sitting right in front of me in the packages they came in. All of them are showing closed except two of them. I take those out of the packages and still showing open. Any of the sensors showing close, I can take them out of the package and can never get them to show open.
Anyway, that is where I a left off
I plan on running the power wired tomorrow. I was worried that it would be the hardest part but now I am confident in that because I have already ran conduit to my attic and have a clear shot to where it needs to go.
Right now, the sensors is the part giving me trouble and I thought it would be the easiest
You should take them all out of their packages and lay them out on a table with the magnet and the sensor next to each other so they are in the closed state. It’s unclear what state they would be in when in the package. Be careful not to damage the little copper antenna wire that comes off the sensor when handling them. Also, it’s probably a good idea to lay each sensor next to it’s labeled package to help keep track of which is which. Are you using them like it shows in these videos?
We haven noticed the Qolsys panel has a little delay before it chimes when a sensor opens.
If you’re doing it as shown in the videos and nothing is registering then I’m not sure what could be wrong. They all passed the test before being shipped out as you can see in the event history. It seems unlikely but it’s possible the sensor receiver was damaged in shipping, although we’ve never seen that happen before, there’s a first time for everything.
The tutorial video was made with an older version of the Qolsys panel software. We update the software to the latest before shipping so on your panel you’re seeing the newer GUI.
The instructions state that as long as the magnet it within a HALF INCH from the sensor, it will be set to close. The packaging has smaller than a .5 inch gap so I would assume they would all show close in the package. However, to be safe, I followed your instructions and you can see the result of it below.
All of the sensors were programmed in already so I shouldn’t have to do the first video I assumed. I went ahead and tried it anyway and got no response.
Here is a video I made - low quality so I apologize but you can see that I have all the sensors organized and in contact with their corresponding magnets (technically it doesn’t matter which magnet it is with does it? I still have them with the one it came with) and then I open and close two different sensors to show that the panel still doesn’t chime or budge from the disarmed state.
Additionally, while I was placing the sensors on the table, 3 random chimes went off that did not seem to correspond with me placing them down. I took a shower, made breakfast, and while eating breakfast in the next room I could hear the chime going off on about 5 or 6 different occasions while the sensors just sat on the table. So 30 minutes had passed since anyone touched them and then I would hear sporadic chimes.
Really not sure what the next step would be I am going out of town next week and was really looking forward to getting this installed for my family’s safety before I left. I am hoping that you realize I am doing something wrong in this video or we can figure it out because I am thinking it is the panel if not.
The overall package was packed pretty well, the corner of the box was a little dinged up but nothing I would have expected to damage the product. The panel itself had the power cord plugged in already and the cable to that was kind of loosely stuffed in the box but other than that - packaging seemed fine.
Yes, they were all programmed in so you should not need to do any programming yourself. No, it does not matter which magnet you use with which sensor. I don’t see anything you are doing wrong.
You said you went ahead and tried programming a sensor. Did you delete it first and then re-add it? Or did you just add it as a new sensor? I just spoke with someone who suggested deleting a sensor and re-adding it but it sounds like you may have already done that. If not, you can try that.
I issued a hard reset command about 45 minutes ago hoping that would help. I assume you’re still having the problem though?
The next step is to get Qolsys involved but they don’t open until 9am Pacific time on Monday. They will be able to determine whether it’s fixable or whether we need to RMA the panel. Unfortunately, there’s not much more I can do until then.
I almost ordered the sensors without being programmed so I could do it all myself but it looks like I might get to anyway.
After the hard reset and deleting a sensor, it seems to have resolved it for the first sensor I tried. I am going to do the wiring and get this bad boy mounted before programming the rest because something went wrong from the time it was programmed at Surety and arriving here. Maybe the battery being unplugged does something? Im not really sure but I would encourage you guys to experiment a similar scenario to see what caused this or report it to QOLSYS.
I very much appreciate you taking your time to give responses, I didn’t think I would get much help on the weekend to be honest and have so far been impressed with the service received
Another thing to note is that currently, all the sensors I haven’t deleted are showing “No signal” when doing sensor tests where earlier, they were showing the status of the sensor (which was equally giving no response.
One last thing I would like to know, the panel keeps making a quick beep sound sporadically. I described it as a chime earlier but now I am finding out the chime is actually stating, “Garage door Open” rather than just a sound. Any idea what that could be?
We’ll discuss this with Qolsys whether or not you get it all up and running this weekend. The “garage door open” is the voice prompt that goes along with the chime when a sensor opens. It can be disabled but it’s enabled by default.
The sound I was referring to, it is happening sporadically with no “Sensor Open” notification. I actually haven’t heard it since I deleted all sensors and reprogrammed them all.
The only problem I am having now is sensors reaching the far side of the house from the keypad. When I hold and trip the sensors, even farther away from the keypad than the actual point I would like to place, they seem to activate fine. As soon as I mount them, it wont reach the keypad.
I thought, maybe it is the type of window, but I don’t see why it would cause any problems. I think I might just need a repeater. The only reason I was confused is that when I originally mounted it, I opened and closed it probably 10 times each and it responded fine each time. 20 min later when I go to Arm it, need to be bypassed to arm because showing open. I thought it was reflective of the original problem I had with the panel responding to none of the sensors after you guys programmed them but after I dismount the sensor, it responds fine
I chatted in for support before I purchased and the gentleman said he would be having someone add the GE repeater on the site. I haven’t seen it yet so have done some research on my own. Will you guys be adding the Resolution Products RE120 GE Repeater? I believe that is the one I need.
I am tackling the thermostats today and getting very excited about it all
I only have a few more sensors to add - I spent most the day fishing wire and reprogramming those sensors
The issue you are describing where the sensors will not report properly while attached to a surface but function when removed is a very common one if the material you are attaching the sensor to is metal, regardless of distance. The external antennae have their signal significantly dampened if this is the case. Are any of the surfaces metal? A lot of metal close-by? Is the sensor mounted in such a way that the antenna is touching or near a metal track?
If the distance is sizable and there is no metal, it may indeed just be a matter of needing a repeater. We will get the repeater up and ready for purchase ASAP.
Can you verify that all sensors are continuing to function after the reprogramming?
It is a wooden window, I imagine the frame has some metal. It is the exact same window throughout several other rooms in my house, however, this is the farthest from the panel.
All of the sensors seem to be working fine. I have tested all of them at least once a day since Saturday after installing them.
The only ones I cannot be 100% about are the windows in the far part of the house (they worked fine when I tested them before mounting.
I believe it might be a mix between the mounted surface and the distance. The sensors, when not mounted, can be tripped fine with the keypad detecting it (even about 5 feet further than the corresponding spot)
However, I need to mount sensors here so I dont really have a choice
How soon do you expect the repeater to be placed on the site for purchase? I still have some glass breaks, tilt sensors, and the LiftMaster Universal kit to buy so I will pick it up when I get those to save on shipping. The only thing I need to wait for now is the secondary panel which QOLSYS says is in beta testing.
Additionally, the iQpanel can support 54 zones right? Just making sure. Any idea if an update will increase that number or if they have plans?
Thanks for all your help Ryan and Jason - I have been having a blast setting this up and my wife loves the sense of security.
Please keep us updated as to whether that takes care of the issue with the distant sensors. Keep in mind with placement that only one repeater should be used on a system.
Ryan - you mentioned a “delay” in chime on the Qolsys? What kind of a delay are we talking about? Especially when compared to 2GIG.
Jason - You mention placing the sensor on anything metal is bad? How can that be acceptable?? Every modern window is metal. I haven’t seen wooden windows for sale at Lowes or Home Depot for a decade. Also I’m fairly certain every sliding glass window is metal as well.
WDL386 - did the phantom chime “garage door” notification stop? Does anyone know why it was doing that?
These issues are scaring me away from the Qolsys pretty quickly.
Regarding the delay, I had a Lynx Touch 5000 and it is comparable to that, I haven’t noticed a delay really.
Regarding metal placement, I have 3 sensors on steel doors and one of them is a decent distance from the panel, it works fine. That is why I am expecting the repeater to work. I feel like the metal might reduce the radio distance but I would imagine it would.
Regarding the phantom chime. The phantom chime never had words associated with it, it was just a quick tone that occurred. Since the panel was new, I thought it was a phantom chime to a sensor but now I am pretty confident it was because the battery wasn’t plugged in because it isn’t doing it anymore.
Overall, I would recommend the QOLSYS. Compared to the Lynx, it blows it out of the water.
Thing I would change:
Make the keypad a little bigger, the screen is huge and they give this keypad that is smaller than the diaper on my Galaxy s5
Give it the capability to arm the system without typing in a code. The lynx touch had the ability to arm and quick arm. The only difference is the quick arm doesn’t require your code.
When entering the code, the woman’s voice skips a little, QOLSYS should fix that
I would have paid more for a glass screen to be on it rather than just the LCD as well
I feel like I am pretty picky but that is all I can think of. I expect all of these things will be fixed, with exception of the glass screen lol, because QOLSYS seems to be responsive to their followers on FB
The issue with metal surfaces is a common one for wireless sensors, but is entirely negligible for most of them because the antenna is internal, housed in the plastic casing.
The Mighty Mouse sensors described earlier are unique in that the antenna is external and rests flat against the mounted surface. If that surface is metal, this presents problems.
Regarding the Quick Arming:
Select your settings button and enter your installer code. Choose Security and Arming, then scroll to the Secure Arming item. Disable this feature to allow arming without a code.
Not a problem. No matter how experienced you are, with every new panel there will be a learning curve related to the organizational choices of the designer. Luckily with Qolsys they’ve put everything in logical spots, but there’s a substantial number of options.
Repeater is working exactly how I would expect it to work - everything is coming together seamlessly
With the repeater on, I was able to Auto Learn the sensors by opening and closing each of the windows 5 times in rapid succession. Without the repeater, no way it would have picked up on sensors
The only problem with the repeater is that I ordered the “Batteries Only” version instead of the “Power Wired Supply”. I would expect that sensor to be sufficient on batteries only. The instructions state that the batteries are only to serve as a backup for approx. 72 hours. I really don’t want to replace the batteries every three days so I will have to call on Monday and request the power supply to be sent with it.
Just a suggestion would be to update the page with a more specific description. It almost doesn’t make sense to sell the “Batteries Only” version but maybe I just don’t understand it.
If I am simply not understanding this product then please clarify it for me - other than that, I will be calling and getting the power supply on Monday
The RE108 wired to wireless translator can run for years on just battery as you would expect. The key is that it only consumes power when a sensor opens - which causes it to transmit and consume power.
The RE120 wireless repeater, on the other hand, receives as well as transmits. It consumes power all the time because listening for sensor signals requires power. The RE120 can be purchased without a power supply because many DIYers already have 12V power supplies and would rather use one they have than buy one from us.
I can see how it’s a confusing issue though, sorry about that. I’ll have a note added to the product page to warn people that they will need a 12V power supply to use the RE120.
Will you guys be able to send it to me separately? I was thinking of ordering a few more things so we could just throw it in there for shipping purposes. I obviously don’t mind paying for it, I think the cost difference was about $6.
If not, could you send me a link to where I could purchase one for it. I see a lot of them but all the tips will not work as I just need the open wires.
What am I doing wrong 
