This guide is for anyone who's already booked an AMCO installation and wants to know what happens between now and the engineer knocking on the door. If you haven't chosen a system yet, our guide to selecting an alarm system is a better starting point - what follows assumes the decision's made and is purely about preparing for the visit itself.
1) Paperwork, before the visit
For monitored systems, there are three things worth getting done before the engineer arrives so the day itself isn't held up:
- The customer agreement, signed via DocuSign.
- Your monitoring and keyholder details, submitted through a secure online form.
- A standing order set up for the ongoing monitoring fee.
If you're having a non-monitored, CCTV-only system fitted, the only paperwork needed is the contract itself. AMCO's accounts team will send the standing order details separately once your install is booked in - we'd never ask you to send bank details by email or over the phone. If anything about billing is unclear, get in touch via our contact page and someone will sort it before the visit.
2) Equipment & programming decisions
A little thought beforehand makes the visit itself much quicker. Worth having an answer to before the engineer arrives:
- Is your telephone line or router working, and does it have a spare port free?
- Roughly where do you want the main pieces of equipment placed?
- What programming setup do you want? If you're having a Texecom Premier panel, see our Texecom Premier programming options; for a Veritas panel, see the Texecom Veritas programming options.
If your system uses GSM back-up, you'll need to source your own 2G SIM card - O2, GiffGaff, Vodafone, EE and Virgin are the networks most commonly used. A pay-as-you-go SIM with auto top-up enabled is the recommended option, so the back-up doesn't quietly run out of credit without you noticing.
For CCTV systems, have your router's admin login and broadband details to hand - the engineer will need them to get your recorder online.
3) The telephone line requirement
Every AMCO monitored alarm needs a working analogue or digital telephone line for LiveTalk monitoring to function - it's how the monitoring centre's speaker and microphone unit communicates with the property. If there's no working line on the day, it can mean an extra call-out charge to come back once one's in place, so it's well worth confirming your line is live before the visit.
4) Equipment positioning
Where everything goes gets agreed with the engineer on the day, but it helps to have a rough idea in mind beforehand:
- For alarms - the control panel, keypad, sensors, the LiveTalk speaker/microphone unit, the outside bell box, and the wiring routes between them.
- For CCTV - camera positions, junction boxes, the recorder (DVR), power supplies, and cable routes.
You'll sign off on the final, agreed positions with the engineer during the visit itself.
5) Wiring, in plain terms
Surface-mounted cabling is standard on an AMCO installation. Routing cables under floorboards or through wall channels for a neater finish is available, but as a paid extra.
Running cable can mean some drilling and moving furniture out of the way. It's worth clearing access to the likely cable routes before the engineer arrives - if a lot of extra time ends up being spent moving things on the day, that can be chargeable.
Wireless systems aren't fully wireless. Sensors and the keypad communicate wirelessly (unless you specifically ask for them to be wired), but the LiveTalk unit and the control panel still need a physical wire each - one for the telephone line, one for mains power. Bell boxes can be wire-free dummy units, or wired "live" ones for an extra charge.
Wired systems run an individual cable from every sensor, keypad and speaker back to the control panel, which also needs access to mains power.
CCTV cabling uses either a single CAT5 cable per camera, or a coax (video) cable plus a separate power cable. Each camera needs a nearby junction box, and the recorder needs a spare ethernet port on your router.
6) Ongoing bits worth knowing
A few things that carry on after the engineer's left, so nothing on your first bill or first self-test comes as a surprise:
- LiveTalk calls out automatically when your alarm activates, via a standard-rate 0871 number - not a premium rate one. You're not charged for the call itself being made; that's covered as part of your monitoring.
- Your system self-tests automatically - monthly for domestic systems, weekly for commercial ones.
- If your system has GSM back-up, keeping credit topped up on that SIM is down to you.
- Wireless sensor batteries are usually replaced by the customer when they run low - replacements are available through AMCO's SmartSecurity.Store. If you'd rather have an engineer handle it for you, our alarm maintenance service covers that.