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Ran my first solo panel swap in Tucson and the keypad said trouble before I even closed the can
Last Tuesday I was finishing up a panel replacement in a house near Speedway and Kolb, and right after I powered the new board back up the keypad threw a zone 4 trouble that wasn't there on the old system. I traced every wire on that zone twice, then found the real problem: a 2.2k resistor tucked behind the drywall that the last guy never mentioned, and my panel wanted a different value. Swapped it out, zone cleared, and the homeowner handed me a cold Gatorade while I packed up. Now I keep a bag of mixed resistors in the van, so what values do you all carry for the oddball panels you run into?
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wilson.sam3d ago
A 2.2k resistor hiding behind drywall is exactly the kind of surprise that makes you feel real smart right up until you feel real dumb. I once spent 45 minutes at a place off Grant chasing a zone fault that turned out to be a resistor I'd knocked loose with my own elbow while pulling wire, so we're all out here winning. My van bag is mostly 2.2k and 4.7k, plus a few 1k and 3.3k for the older stuff, and I've learned to just test what's already in the wall before I trust it. The drywall surprise is the worst kind, since nobody labels anything and the next guy gets to play detective too. Cold Gatorade from the homeowner is the real bonus, that's how you know the job went good.
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