Archive for the ‘Choosing A Security System’ Category
Home Security Systems are no longer a “cool” luxury. They have become a virtual necessity.
Times have changed. When I was growing up, it was not unusual to leave the door of your house unlocked, day and night. It was not unusual to leave the keys to your car in the ignition, day or night.
But burglaries and break-ins have become common. And they’re scary. You probably already know this. And you’ve considered a home security system, but you may not know where to begin.
Here are five ideas.
1. Determine your budget. There are companies who will provide you with basic equipment at no cost upfront, and all you have is your monthly monitoring, and perhaps a small installation fee.
If you can afford to buy the expensive equipment up front, and if you know you will be in your same home for enough years, you may be able to save on monthly monitoring.
If you don’t plan to be in the same home for many years, you normally will be better off going the “free equipment” route, paying a little more on monthly monitoring, and transferring your account when you move in a few years.
2. Important: It is much better to have a basic home security system than to wait until you can afford the Fort Knox Deluxe Package!
3. Whether to get Hard-Wired or Wireless is a discussion for another article, but believe me, the debate will never be fully settled any more than Yankees vs. Red Sox.
You will have to pick, but it is better to get a system in place immediately than to debate this one ad nauseum. The burglars WILL tend to stay away if you have a system, and they WILL tend to get caught by either kind of system, if they are foolish enough to break in your home.
Bottom line…get a security system, already!
4. The basics of a home security system should include:
- A Touchpad, which you use to arm and/or disarm your system, and usually includes “panic” buttons on it for police, fire, and medical.
- A Motion Sensor, which beams across your home to catch a burglar, no matter how they came in, while you are away.
- Door sensors, which set the alarm off when a door is opened or broken into, the most common way for a burglar to enter.
- A Siren, loud enough so that you won’t sleep through it
- A Phone Connection device, which can be set up with a regular land-line phone, a cable phone system, or even if you only have a cell phone.
- A Control Panel, which is sort of the “computer” of your system. It’s usually built into the keypad assembly or in a box that is placed in a closet.
5. There are a few common “extras” you may want to consider.
- A common accessory these days is a Remote Key Fob, similar to the one you may have with your car. You can not only use it to disarm your burglar alarm as you’re driving up to your home, but take it to your room at night as a “panic” button unit.
- A Monitored Smoke Alarm can be a lifesaver. Not only do they “dispatch” even when you’re not home, but they will dispatch as they are waking you up, if you should be sleeping when a fire starts.
- Window sensors, glass breakage detectors, cameras, etc. are not as statistically necessary as the “basic” equipment mentioned above, but if they are in your budget, as the saying goes, “every little bit helps”.
5a. Bonus Point: L-I-G-H-T! Lights at night that light the front and back of your home, either steady light or “motion-detector” lights, are one of the best things to keep crooks away, especially if it also shows your Home Security System SIGN!