50 Copyright © 2016 Nortek Security & Control
IMPORTANT NOTICE
ALARM SYSTEM LIMITATIONS
Thissecuritysystemcannotofferguaranteedprotectionagainstburglary,fire,orother
emergencies.Anyalarmsystem,whethercommercialorresidential,issubjecttocompromise
orfailuretowarnforavarietyofreasons.Forexample:
• Intrudersma
ygainaccessthroughunprotectedopeningsorhavethetechnical
sophisticationtobypassanalarmsensorordisconnectanalarmwarningdevice.
•Intrusiondetec
tor s(sensors)donotworkwithoutpower.Batteryoperateddevicesdonot
workwithoutbatteries,withdeadbatteries,orifthebatteriesarenotputinproperly.
DevicespoweredsolelybyACdonotworkiftheirACpowersupplyiscutoffforany
reason,howeverbriefly.
• Signalsse
ntbywirelesssensorsmaybeblockedorreflectedbymetalbeforetheyreach
thealarmControlPanel,evenifthesignalpathhasbeenrecentlycheckedduringaweekly
test.Blockagecanoccurifametalobjecthasbeenmovedintothesensor’ssignalpath.
•Ause
rmaynotbeabletoreacha panicoremergencybuttonquicklyenough.
• Telephoneli
nesneededtotransmitalarmsignalsfromapremisestoaCentralStationmay
beoutofserviceortemporarilyoutofservice.Telep honelinesarealsosubjectto
compromisebysophisticatedintruders.
•Evenifthesy
stemrespondstotheemergencyasintended,however,occupantsmayhave
insufficienttimetoprotectthemselvesfromtheemergencysituation.Inthecaseofa
monitoredalarmsystem,authoritiesmaynotrespondappropriately.
•Alarmwa
rningdevicessuchassirens,bellsorhornsmaynotalertpeopleorwakeup
sleepersiftheyarelocatedontheothersideofclosedorpartlyopendoors.Ifwarning
devicessoundonadifferentleveloftheresidencefromthebedrooms,thentheyareless
likelytowa
kenoralertpeopleinsidethebedrooms.Evenpersonswhoareawakemaynot
hearthewarningifthealarmismuffledfromastereo,radio,airconditioner,orother
appliance,orbypassingtraffic.Finally,alarmwarningdevices,howeverloud,maynot
warnhearing‐impairedpeopleorawakendeepsleepers.
•Whilesm
okedetect orshaveplayedakeyroleinreducingresidentialfiredeaths,theymay
notactivateorprovideearlywarningforavarietyofreasonsinasmanyas35%ofallfires,
accordingtodatapublishedbytheFederalEmergencyManagementAgency.Someofthe
reasonssmokedetectorsusedinco
njunctionwiththissystemmaynotworkarewhere
smokecannotreachthedetectors,suchasinchimneys,inwalls,orroofs,orontheother
sideofcloseddoors.Smokedetectorsmayhavebeenimproperlyinstalledandpositioned.
Smokedetectorsma ynotsensefiresthatstartwheresmokecannotre
achthedetectors,
suchasinchimneys,inwalls,orroofs,orontheothersideofcloseddoors.Smoke
detectorsalsomaynotsenseafireonanotherlevelofaresidenceorbuilding.Asecond
floordetector,forexample,maynotsenseafirstfloororbasementfire.Mor
eover,smoke
detectorsha vesensinglimitations.Nosmokedetectorcansenseeverykindoffireevery
time.Ingeneral,detectorsmaynotalwayswarnaboutfirescausedbycarelessnessand
saf etyhazardslikesmokinginbed,violentexplosions,escapinggas,improperstorageof
flammablematerials,overloadedelectricalcircuits,childrenplayingwithmat
ches,or
arson.Dependinguponthenatureofthefireand/orthelocationsofthesmokedetectors,
thedetector,evenifitoperat esasanticipated,maynotprovidesufficientwarningto
allowoccupantstoescapeintimetopreventinjuryordeath.
•Thise
quipment,likeotherelectricaldevices,issubjecttocomponentfailure.Eventhough
thisequipmentisdesignedtolastaslongastenyears,theelectroniccomponentscould
failatanytime.