How Long Does a House Alarm Battery Last?

In an ideal world, you will never need your house alarm, however, if it ever comes to being called into action, you could do without it having a flat battery. Here’s some info to help put your mind at ease.

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How long do house alarm batteries last?

Standard house alarm batteries tend to last anywhere between 3-5 years and sometimes even longer. Battery manufacturers Yuasa who create the very popular NP range of VRLA batteries for alarms and other applications state that theirs last between 3 and 5 years while their RE series is said to last between 6 and 9 years.

How to tell when a house alarm battery needs changing

Obviously, some signs will vary from brand to brand, but here are a few signs that your house alarm battery needs looking at.

Beeping sounds

Similar to smoke alarms, a lot of house alarms will sound occasional tones when the battery is low in order to annoy you just enough to check to see what the issue is and solve your headache.

App notifications

Some of the more modern house alarms can come with a monitoring app, within these apps you will receive notifications telling you when something needs checking, such as a low battery.

Flashing lights

Similar to the beeping sound, some alarm systems may display a flashing light when the battery is low, so it’s worth just keeping an eye out if you’re not sure whether the battery is good or not.

Battery age

Another indicator could simply be the age of the battery. You could be reading this and realise you’ve had your alarm for 10 years and never checked it, so now would probably be a good time to do that.

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How to change a house alarm battery

As previously mentioned, not all house alarms are the same but here are some general instructions to help when changing an alarm battery.

*Before attempting to change your house alarm battery, please note that it is worth referring to the manufacturers guide if one is available, and if you are unsure about anything, please contact a trained engineer to change the battery instead*

• Ensure power from the mains is switched off.
• Detach the front panel usually held in place by screws. Brace yourself as this may sound the alarm.
• Remove the old battery and replace it with the new one, ensuring that you do not short the terminals or touch the transformer.
• Screw the front panel back in and follow the reset procedure for your alarm system.

For more info on identifying and replacing your house alarm battery, take a look at this very helpful guide from The Alarm Monitoring Company here.

Got more questions? Our team of battery experts are on hand to offer expert advice and help with your queries, you can contact us here. 

And if you're in need of a new alarm battery, look no further than County Battery's extensive range of suitable VRLA batteries, you can find the full range here.