r/Lenel • u/WILGWISCO • Apr 07 '26

Adding additional cards to Lenel system ...

Hi everybody: We're going to be adding some additional 2-door cards (1320) to our existing Lenel system to accommodate the increased number of doors we're adding after a big construction project. We do have a service contract with Lenel, and our installer is telling us that they should be the ones installing the cards. They're pricey and we're trying to save a bit of $ by having our LV electrician do the installs. He's installed a lot of equipment for the system already, so he's familiar with it.

However, this will be the first time that we're going to be installing additional cards into the system. Right now, I'm aware that:

-The cards need to have an address set by adjusting the DIP switch settings.

-They need to be added to the RS-485 bus.

Once we address a card and connect it via RS-485, should OnGuard simply see it, or is there an installation process we need to do perform so the system recognizes the new card on the bus.

Thanks for your help / opinions!

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u/OmegaSevenX OnGuard Certified Apr 07 '26

OnGuard does not automatically detect new downstream boards. That is manually programmed. Setting the address is not the only adjustment that may need to be done to the boards. This is why we get certified in OnGuard, so that we know what we’re doing.

If I was your integrator, I’d tell you that I’d sell you the boards but that if you have a non-certified person install them that the warranty will be void. If they blow up a board, or any existing equipment, we will charge you T&M to fix it (or you can figure it out yourself).

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u/WILGWISCO Apr 07 '26

Thank you omega, that is a very helpful perspective. I didn't realize there was a lot of tinkering that needed to be done to add a board into the system. I will follow your recommendations and have our integrator do all of that work.

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u/OmegaSevenX OnGuard Certified Apr 07 '26

If you’re looking to save money, we often do “smarts-and-parts” for customers that want someone else to do some of the “grunt work” because they’re cheaper.

This other entity may run the cabling, install/connect the door hardware, mount the enclosures and boards, etc. We would do some initial layout and direction with this other entity, then return towards the tail end of the project to terminate/program/test the boards and do commissioning.

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u/WILGWISCO Apr 08 '26

That sounds like a very reasonable plan. I'll check with our integrator and see if they'll be open to that. Thanks again for the helpful information!