How to program a wireless zone on a VISTA-20P

Updated Source: K5305-1PRV9 Rev BSource: K5305-1PRV9 Rev BAsked 13 times
Quick answer

Program a VISTA-20P wireless zone from an alpha keypad in *56 Zone Programming mode: pick a zone from 09-48 , set the zone type, partition and report code, choose input type 3 (supervised RF), then enroll the transmitter's serial and loop number by faulting it or typing the 7-digit serial from its label.

Steps

From: VISTA-20P/15P programming guide, pp. 5, 23-25

  1. From an alpha keypad connected to the panel, enter programming mode: type the installer code 4112 (factory default), then 8 0 0
  2. Press *56 to open Zone Programming menu mode, the mode that sets zone attributes and enrolls 5800 RF transmitter serial numbers
  3. At SET TO CONFIRM? enter 1 (Yes) so the panel asks you to confirm each transmitter after you enter its serial and loop number, then press [*]
  4. At Enter Zn Num. type a wireless zone number from 09-48 (zone 10 in the manual's example) and press [*]
    The summary screen opens.
  5. Enter the zone type, for example 03 for Perimeter, and press [*]
    Entering 00 prompts to delete the zone.
  6. Enter the partition: 1 or 2, or 3 for the common partition, and press [*]
  7. Enter the report code as two 2-digit entries
    For report code 10, enter 01 then 00; enter 00 to disable reporting. Press [*].
  8. At INPUT TYPE enter 3 for a supervised RF transmitter (4 = UR unsupervised RF, 5 = button-type RF), then press [*]
  9. At INPUT S/N: L enroll the transmitter: send two open/close sequences from it, or type the 7-digit serial number from its label, press [*] and enter the loop number
  10. Press [*] so the panel checks for a duplicate serial and loop number, then press [*] again to reach the confirmation screen
  11. At XMIT TO CONFIRM activate the loop input or button for this zone
    A match beeps the keypad 3 times and shows the summary with an s after the loop number.
  12. At PROGRAM ALPHA? enter 0 to skip descriptors (or 1 to add them through *82)
    At ENTER ZN NUM. enter the next zone, or 00 to quit.
  13. Leave programming with *99, which allows re-entry with installer code + 8 0 0
    Avoid *98 unless you want to lock out that re-entry.
  14. Check signal strength from each transmitter location with Go/No Go Test: installer code + [#] + 4, fault each transmitter and listen for 3 beeps
    Exit with the user code + 1 (OFF).
    Source: VISTA-20P/15P Quick install guide · p. 1

Worked example

Enrolling one supervised door contact on zone 10, using the values from the programming guide's example screens (p. 23-25):

  • 4112 8 0 0, then *56, then 1 [*] at SET TO CONFIRM?
  • Zone 10 [*] · zone type 03 Perimeter · partition 1 · report code 01 00 · input type 3 RF
  • Serial A022-4064, loop 1: fault the contact twice, press [*] [*], fault it again at XMIT TO CONFIRM
  • Summary screen reads 10 03 10 RF: 1s (zone 10, type 03, report code 10, RF input, loop 1, serial enrolled)
  • 0 at PROGRAM ALPHA?, 00 to quit, *99 to exit

Specs & limits

From: VISTA-20P/15P Quick install guide, pp. 1-2

Wireless zone numbersVISTA-20P: 09-48 (40 transmitter zones). VISTA-15P: 09-34 (26 transmitter zones).
Source: VISTA-20P/15P programming guide · p. 23
RF button zonesVISTA-20P: 49-64. VISTA-15P: 49-56.
Source: VISTA-20P/15P programming guide · p. 23
Receiver capacity5881L / 5882L: up to 8 RF zones. 5881M / 5882M / 6150RF: up to 16 RF zones. 5881H / 5882H / 5883 / 6160RF: up to the system maximum.
Receiver addressSet the RF receiver to address 00 with its DIP switches.
Input type codes3 = RF (supervised), 4 = UR (unsupervised RF), 5 = BR (button-type RF).
Source: VISTA-20P/15P programming guide · p. 24
Default installer code4112; programming mode is installer code + 8 0 0.
Source: VISTA-20P/15P programming guide · p. 5
Wireless keypadsSet field *24 RF House ID Code when using wireless keypads.
RF supervision (V20PCN, ULC)Three hours for fire zones (zone types 9 and 16), 12 hours for all other zone types.
Battery12V, 4AH sealed battery shown on the quick install wiring diagram.
FirmwareThe programming guide applies to microprocessor version 9.12 or higher.
Source: VISTA-20P/15P programming guide · p. 5

What you need

Common mistakes

From: VISTA-20P/15P programming guide, pp. 5, 24-25, 27

  • Serial or loop mismatch at XMIT TO CONFIRM: the keypad shows Entd and Rcvd values. Activate the transmitter again; if it still doesn't match, press [#] twice and re-enter or re-transmit the serial number.
  • Duplicate serial/loop: after you press [*] the panel checks for a duplicate serial and loop number combination, so each input of a multi-input transmitter needs its own zone and loop.
  • Changing a wireless zone to a wired AW zone: delete the transmitter's serial number first by entering 0 in the loop number field.
  • Locked out after *98: power the panel down and up, then press [*] and [#] together within 50 seconds of power-up.
  • Weak or missed signals: don't mount the receiver or transmitters on or near metal objects, which reduces range.
    Source: VISTA-20P/15P Quick install guide · p. 1
  • Wireless keys enrolled but not arming: a wireless key is not active for arming or disarming until it is assigned to a user number.

Applies to

VISTA-20P · microprocessor 9.12 or higherVISTA-20PSIAVISTA-15P · zones 09-34

Also asked as: “how to program wireless zone into vista 20p”; “How do I add a wireless zone to a VISTA-20P?”

Sources

  1. VISTA-20P/15P Programming Guide, p. 5 (K5305-1PRV9 Rev B)
  2. VISTA-20P/15P Programming Guide, p. 23 (K5305-1PRV9 Rev B)
  3. VISTA-20P/15P Programming Guide, p. 24 (K5305-1PRV9 Rev B)
  4. VISTA-20P/15P Programming Guide, p. 25 (K5305-1PRV9 Rev B)
  5. VISTA-20P/15P Quick Installation Guide, p. 1 (K5305-1QGV3 Rev A)
  6. VISTA-20P/15P Quick Installation Guide, p. 2 (K5305-1QGV3 Rev A)
  7. VISTA-20P/15P Programming Guide, p. 27 (K5305-1PRV9 Rev B)
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