Hi folks! I just joined up to find out info on an old Fire Alarm system in my house. I will post pictures tonight when I get home. In the meantime, here is the info I have. It appears to be marked as a “HOM-A-LARM” system sold by Lord-Taber Company out of Canandaigua, NY. It includes a red control box in the basement that had it’s own separate 120 volt feed from a different pole than the rest of the house (including it’s own fuse box), what appears to be a 1940’s telephone wire coming from it out to the side of the house, a bell inside a tan box on the 2nd floor, a bell outside on the front porch, and each room has it’s own detector which consists of piece of solder such that when it gets too hot the solder will melt breaking the connection.
The instructions were typed on a old piece of paper folded up and stuffed behind the control box in the basement:
[code]OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS FOR HOM-A-LARM FIRE DETECTION SYSTEMS
Your HOM-A-LARM system has been designed specifically for install-ation in private dwellings. It is comprised of four major parts, the
CONTROL UNIT (red cabinet), the ALARM UNIT, the SPECIAL POWER UNIT (7.5 volt battery), and the OUTSIDE, OR EXTRA ALARM.
The CONTROL UNIT contains the transformer, relays, fuse, and wir-
ing terminals which form the supervisory part of the system. A shut-
off switch (TOGGLE SWITCH) is provided in this unit.
The ALARM UNIT contains a bell, a pilot-light, and a system test
PUSHBUTTON SWITCH.
The SPECIAL POWER UNIT automatically furnishes emergency power to
operate the system in event of failure of the normal house current
supply. It will continue to operate the system continuously for a
period of two or three days, or intermittently for a similar total
time.
The OUTSIDE, OR EXTRA ALARM, furnishes an additional alarm signal
for either indoors or outdoors.
TO TEST your HOM-A-LARM system under normal conditions (house
current on), simply press the system test pushbutton switch on the
alarm unit. This will accomplish the same results as an operated de-
tector, that is, both alarms will ring. To check the condition of
your SPECIAL POWER UNIT, first shut off the house current supply by
unscrewing the fuse in the control unit. This will cause the system
to operate on emergency power. THEN press the system test pushbutton
switch in the alarm unit. If both alarms ring, your special power
unit is in satisfactory condition. If neither alarm rings, your spe-
cial power unit should be replaced.
THE SPECIAL POWER UNIT SHOULD BE REPLACED AT LEAST ONCE EVERY 15
MONTHS EVEN THOUGH IT MAY NEVER HAVE BEEN USED. IT SHOULD BE TESTED
AS DESCRIBED ABOVE AT LEAST ONCE A MONTH.
This is a “closed circuit” system so that the alarms will automa-
tically ring in the event any of the wiring is broken.
A slight humming noise in the CONTROL UNIT is NOT unusual and is
NOT an indication of any trouble. This is quite normal in a system of
this type using house current as a supply.
The RED LIGHT on the alarm unit will come on whenever the shut-off
switch in the control unit is operated. This is your indication that
YOUR SYSTEM IS INCAPABLE OF GIVING AN ALARM. It should never be oper-
ated except to silence the alarms in the event of a fire alarm, or to
silence the alarms until a break in the wiring is fixed.[/code]
A battery is mentioned, but mine no longer has it. Everything is mint though I have no idea if it works (I haven’t connected power to it).
Anyways, just wondering if anyone has heard of this unit before and knows anything about it.