Why does nobody talk about how easy it is to screw up a zone label?

Ive been installing alarms for about 4 years now and last month I had a moment where I realized I've been labeling zones wrong the whole time. I always labeled zones based on what the customer told me they wanted, like 'living room' or 'master bedroom back window'. But I never double checked if the zone was actually covering that area after the install. Got a call from a customer in Austin who said their alarm kept saying 'front door open' when it was actually the side garage door. Drove out there, tested everything, and sure enough I had swapped the labels on two zones during the programming. The customer had a good laugh about it once we figured it out, but I felt like an idiot. Has anyone else dealt with labeling mix ups that made you look bad?

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2 Comments

sandrap406mo ago

Hiring a new guy and watching him label every single zone "window" without any specifics made me realize how easy this is to screw up. Now I use a label maker and print out the exact spot before even plugging in the panel. Saves you from driving back to Austin at 7pm on a Friday.

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shane_williams6mo ago

Honestly, I kinda think you're overthinking it. Labels are just for convenience, not some critical system failure, and as long as the alarm actually works, who cares if it says 'front door' when it's really the garage? Customers barely read those labels anyway, they just want the thing to beep when something opens.

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