Making an old ADP alarm system stop beeping incessantly?

January 9, 2012 6:06 AM

Can you help me figure out how to make my new condo's alarm system stop beeping loudly every couple of minutes?

I bought a condo a couple weeks ago, and in the middle of the night last night, this incredibly-loud series of beeps started going off every couple of minutes. I assumed it was a smoke detector with a low battery, but eventually traced it to the alarm panel. I don't pay for monitoring, and have no idea how to arm this system, so I can only assume it's alerting me to a low backup battery, or reminding me that I should pay someone for monitoring. Since I don't use the thing, I just want to make it stop.

I unplugged it from the wall last night, but it continues to beep, even 9 hours later. I currently have a paper towel jammed over the speaker, and a stack of pillows in front of that, but it's still audible throughout the first floor, and I'm going to go insane if I can't make it stop tonight.

Here is a (blurry) picture of the alarm panel, if it helps identify it. It's a series of six or seven fast beeps, occurring every couple of minutes.

Can I open it up and take out the battery? (I didn't see any screws to remove to open it.) How can I remove the whole thing from the wall? It didn't seem to want to budge last night when I tried pushing up on the bottom, assuming it was just hanging on screws. Although it would be immensely satisfying, I'd prefer to avoid using a sledgehammer to get the thing out.

posted by fogster to home & garden (8 answers total)

Can you see a model number? Did you try these instructions?
posted by devnull at 6:16 AM on January 9

From the looks of the bottom edge, I'd say that the front panel is hinged. Are there any snaps or clips along the top that might release the front panel to swing down? My guess is that the unit is screwed onto a mount through the interior.

Also...The wires entering from the right side...Do those terminate in an exterior jack, or do they continue into the unit?
posted by Thorzdad at 6:17 AM on January 9

I didn't see a model number, but that link looks promising, devnull.

The front panel is hinged and does open up (which is how I wedged a paper towel over the speaker), but I didn't see a way to get behind the keypad. I'll have to re-explore after work, since I probably wasn't at my most-observant in the middle of the night.
posted by fogster at 6:20 AM on January 9

You've got a re-badged GE Simon 3 Security System. The instruction manual is here.

The pages that will be of most interest are 8, 17 and 22-24.

Here's a guide on swapping the battery on a Simon system.

This guide looks the most promising - it specifically deals with entering the panel to disconnect the backup battery. I quote:

Use a screw driver to depress the tab on the top of the unit and allow it to swing down. Disconnect the backup battery connector--red and black wires from the battery compartment to the main unit.
posted by NordyneDefenceDynamics at 6:23 AM on January 9

And in picture form, this is the installer's guide for the Simon 3. Page 10 shows you how to open the panel. Page 15 shows a graphic of the panel, battery terminals and where the battery is installed.

This also shows you how to remove the entire panel from the wall without damage (Pages 10-11).

If you still can't silence it, I'd go with the sledgehammer.
posted by NordyneDefenceDynamics at 6:32 AM on January 9

For future reference for similar situations:

If you can get it off the wall, I've found that putting them in the freezer blocks the sound quite nicely. This is also something that you can easily do at 3am which is the time when they inevitably start malfunctioning.

People will laugh at you for putting it in the freezer. It works.

If you can't get it off the wall, a styrofoam cooler duct taped over it works fairly well. We always used styrofoam shipping boxes.
posted by sciencegeek at 6:33 AM on January 9 [1 favorite]

Thanks for the answers; this is perfect. I'm going to get this thing shut up when I get home from work tonight!

And sciencegeek, I'm loving the freezer idea. It's well-insulated so it makes perfect sense, but I'd have never thought to try that on my own.
posted by fogster at 8:24 AM on January 9

Update: I was able to get it open and remove the battery, bringing wonderful silence.

However, if your alarm system is beeping to tell you the battery is bad, you should be careful that it doesn't leak battery acid all over the floor when you pull it out. Eep!
posted by fogster at 3:35 PM on January 9