Adding a new KeyPad to a Bosch Solution 144 system

[Gavo]

Hi all,

Just about 10 years ago I installed a Bosch Solution 144 at my place. At the time, I didnt install a KeyPad in the garage, but did prewire for it (I actually dont remember why I didnt, but now that I want a KeyPad there, I wish I had done it 10 years ago, but anyway...).

So, turns out the Solution 144 is EOL (no massive surprise there I guess) but I was able to find a second hand KeyPad. Thought it would be a straight forward install - haha - is there even such a thing? Anyway, powered down the panel, wired in the KP, powered back up. Watching the KP, it was detected fine but then about 2 seconds after it was registered, the alarm triggered - I was able to immediately cancel the alarm from the new KP and noticed it was the hardwired smoke detectors that had alarmed (both of them) - and they were still in alarm state even tho I had canceled the wailing.

So, quite a bit of head scratching (and checking config) later, I couldn't really figure out why all of a sudden the panel thought there was smoke at both detectors. The new KP seemed to be working fine (as was the original one).

Long story short, with the 2nd KP disconnected, everything is fine. With the 2nd KP connected, everything also seems fine, other than my two hardwired detectors are reporting alarm.

Weird (or I'm just missing something).

Anyway, I then did notice that the new KP is a newer looking model - has is stamped 2016, whereas my current one is 2013. The new one also has an extra LED (so 3 in total) on the KP under the screen, whereas the current one has two. Maybe this isnt a KP for a Solution 144 (other than the LEDs, they do look the same)? Or maybe its a later version that isnt compatible with the firmware on my panel (v2.07 btw)?

Well, just thought I'd post here to see if anyone had any thoughts about the KP issue, and alternatively, perhaps any thoughts on a drop in replacement for the Solution 144 panel. I have a pretty simple setup - 1 area, 10 zones - 2 are hardwired smoke detectors, 7 are PIRs, one is a reed switch. I have one (but would like two) KPs, and I'm running a GSM module for txt arming and alerting.

Cheers,

[minitechie_94]

It's possible that you have a Solution 16+ keypad - I don't know if (but wouldn't think) they're compatible with the 144. I could be wrong - some places list the CP710 as compatible with the 144 and Solution 6000 panels but can't verify this.

Are the smoke detectors themselves showing an alarm state (normally a red light on the detector itself) or just the panel? From this manual (page 23): you have to manually reset smoke detectors by keying in [MENU]-[3]-[0]-[5], then selecting the area that is in alarm, then [OK]. If the system realarms immediately after the reset, the detectors themselves (or the fire zone circuit) are going into alarm condition (according to the manual, the circuit is closed/shorted).

Could be a weird voltage/current thing with the keypad interfering with the rest of the zone circuits or just incompatible protocols, if the keypad is actually incompatible. If the keypad looks like it's responding though it should be fine - perhaps some devices are drawing too much current for the PSU (especially if the system was powered up with the AC but no battery).

See if you can clear the alarm state and stabilise the system without any active alarms and see how it responds - make sure the battery is in good nick and you have it hooked up.

I believe the 144's closest replacement would be a Solution 6000, but again I'm not sure which accessories are specifically interchangeable between the two.

[alarmman]

The keypad you need must be identical to the keypad you currently have. Also, you need to set the keypad's address to 2 via the DIP switches on the back of the keypad, as your existing keypad will have an address of 1.

[Gavo]

Thanks Team, some interesting points there!

So the new keypad is a CP700 (I pulled the back off it and found a sticker), but my googling can only find a CP700B which says it is compatible with the 144 and 6000. So I then pulled off the original keypad, and it is a CP700B. So I'm guessing you guys are right and this CP700 is for a different panel (but like I say, everything seems to work on it with my 144, its just both the smoke detectors go into alarm state when its connected).

@minitechie_94 - Interesting that you mention the battery state, as my panel is reporting (and has been for a little while) that the battery is low. I have been meaning to replace it, but just hadn't gotten around to it, so after your comments, I will do that first before completely giving up on this new keypad (needs to be done anyway).

Just to answer your other questions, the smoke detectors themselves didn't appear triggered, they had their normal green blinking lights going every few seconds or so, even when the panel was reporting they were in the alarm state. I did try to the smoke sensor reset you mentioned, but it didn't make a difference.

Anyway, I don't think I will spend too much more time on this, but my next steps will be to
- Replace the battery and try again
- Look for a CP700B keypad and try again
- If no luck, look to replace the panel (but probably wont be in a hurry to do that as its working fine - I just want another keypad lol!)

Thanks again everyone!

[minitechie_94]

So when you say you did the reset and it didn't make a difference, does that mean the panel re-alarmed?

If that is the case, just make sure there is no short across the fire zone - the 144 in default config reads a short across a fire zone as an alarm and an open as a trouble/fault. Does anything change if you completely disconnect the fire zone wiring?

Also, definitely try alarmman's DIP switch advice as that should eliminate any conflicts on the bus hopefully

[CT4]

Looking at the product matrixes for the Sol144 and Sol6K, they both use the same codepad. The different generations of codepad are identified by the backlight colour. CP7xx series have blue. CP1xx have green. With a couple of very minor exceptions. Sounds like you have the right codepad but had a random glitch occur when you added the new codepad - and possibly didn't clear it properly. If there is a glitch, it could be related to the newer firmware on the codepad not being happy with the firmware on the 144. What firmware is the 144 running? Probably not worth bothering with if the following is relevant.

I was able to immediately cancel the alarm from the new KP and noticed it was the hardwired smoke detectors that had alarmed (both of them) - and they were still in alarm state even tho I had canceled the wailing.

Even if you restore the device, you still need to arm/disarm to restore the alarm state on the codepad. Did you try that? After you restore the smoke detectors, it's worth looking at the zone status in the system to see if it is "normal".