How to choose the right alarm type
When you create an alarm, Type is the choice that decides what the alarm actually monitors. Most of the types exist to save you setup work: they already know which timeseries to watch and what a sensible limit looks like.
The types fall into three families: threshold alarms, comparison alarms and external alarms.
Threshold alarms
Monitor one measurement against a limit you set.
Type | Triggers when |
|---|---|
Timeseries exceeds threshold | the value is above or below the threshold you set |
Max/min room temperature exceeds threshold | the room temperature in a sub-building is above or below the threshold |
CO2 level exceeds threshold | CO2 in a sub-building is above the threshold |
VOC level exceeds threshold | VOC in a sub-building is above the threshold |
Effect guard | the max effect is higher than the limit for a tenant |
Smart-alert for humidity on floors | humidity is detected in a sub-building |
Missing data | no data has arrived within the span you set under Time without data |
Timeseries exceeds threshold is the general variant: you pick the timeseries yourself and set the limit. The next four are purpose-built — room temperature, CO2, VOC and effect — so you don't have to hunt down the right timeseries. Smart-alert for humidity on floors is used for leak detection.
Missing data is the one that notices the measurement has stopped. It's worth setting up on meters you depend on: a meter that stops reporting produces no alarms at all from the other types, since no values arrive that could break a limit.
Comparison alarms
Monitor the relationship between two values instead of a fixed limit.
Type | Triggers when |
|---|---|
Compare timeseries | the base value is above or below the comparison series by at least the difference you set |
Predicted energy consumption | actual energy consumption is above or below predicted consumption by at least the difference you set |
Here you set the Direction — whether the alarm reacts to the base being larger than comparison, smaller than comparison, or larger or smaller than comparison — plus a Difference the deviation has to reach.
Compare timeseries is useful when the right level isn't a fixed number: flow temperature against setpoint, supply against extract air, one zone against another. Predicted energy consumption compares against Properate's own forecast for the building, and so catches consumption that is unusual given the weather — something a fixed threshold can't do.
External alarms
Alarms arriving from the building automation or another external system, rather than from a limit Properate evaluates.
Type | Triggers when |
|---|---|
External alarm | the value is above or below the limit |
Locked external alarm | the base value is above or below the limit — the settings are locked |
Binary external alarm | the base value changes to the active value (an on/off signal) |
Multistate external alarm | the base value changes to one particular state among several |
Numeric limit external alarm | the base value is greater than the high limit or less than the low limit |
Binary is for signals with only two states — a running indication, or a summary alarm from a panel. Multistate is for signals with several states where only one of them means a fault. Numeric limit carries both a high and a low limit in the same alarm, plus a Deadband that stops the alarm flipping on and off while the value teeters around the limit.
Note: The locked types can't be edited: This alarm type comes from an external system. Alarm settings can't be changed. You still set the schedule in Properate, and it is independent of any settings on the device itself.
How to choose a type
The questions, in order:
- Open the building you want to work on. See How to switch building and search for a building.
- Does the alarm come from the building automation? Use an external type.
- Is it room temperature, CO2, VOC, effect or humidity? Use the specialized type rather than the general one — it finds the timeseries for you.
- Does the right level depend on something else? Use Compare timeseries, or Predicted energy consumption for energy.
- Otherwise: Timeseries exceeds threshold.
And regardless: consider Missing data on the meters you depend on.
Frequently asked questions
Can I change the type of an alarm I've already made?
The fields belonging to each type differ, so switching means setting the alarm up again in practice. For locked external types the type can't be changed at all.
Why don't I see all the types?
Some types require the sub-building to have the relevant measurement registered. Without a room temperature series, Max/min room temperature exceeds threshold isn't available for that sub-building.
What is the base value?
The series the alarm monitors. In comparison alarms the base value is the one measured against the comparison series — the direction is always read from the base value.
What's the difference between delayed response and deadband?
Delayed response is time: the condition has to last that long before the alarm fires. Deadband is value: how far back from the limit the value has to move before the alarm counts as resolved. Both damp down flickering alarms, but in two different ways.
Tip!
Start with Missing data on your main meters before setting up anything else. It's the one alarm type that detects that the monitoring itself has stopped working — and a silent meter looks exactly like a building with no problems.