If you’ve ever been stung by the loss of property in your home due to a burglary. You may already be the reluctant purchaser of a home alarm system. On the other hand, if you have never been burglarized, then it may be time to consider upping your defenses while you still have a perfect record. The intent of this article is to take away some of the mystique of purchasing a home alarm system and to educate yourself to reduce the chance of becoming a victim.
With summer approaching, it may be the perfect time to beef up security in your home. If you don’t have Renter’s Insurance, but you do have a lot of big ticket items in your home, you should consider getting some. Like all insurance, it’s better to have and not need, than need and not have.
Can I afford a home security system?
Can you afford not to…? Actually, there are those of you that are content with living with minimal personal belongings, and I applaud that, but if you are reading this on a computer (oooh, fancy) then you probably have some personal stuff you would like to retain ownership of. In the case of the latter, there is good news and bad news. The good news is, you most likely can afford at least a simple home security system, the bad news is, if you don’t have one, then you are a soft target.
Why me!?
Most criminals will assess the homes in their target neighborhood, and find the paths of least resistance. This means homes with back doors or side doors or any door or window not easily visible from the street view are potential targets. The next step is to examine the homes for guard animals (dogs, tigers, bears), if you have a guard animal that can roam the property freely, you have a good, fairly low maintenance defense already. The next step the crooks take is to check for home alarm systems. Obviously, they don’t want to draw too much attention, so even simply posting signs, notifying them of your alarm system, are great deterrents.
But alarm systems alone won’t stop all criminals. If they enter your home, they may figure they have at least a couple of minutes and try to make off with any presently visible goods. In this event a surveillance system is your last line of defense.
What do I need?
Well, there are a few components, let’s take a look at them. You will need a Main Unit. This is the interface with which you arm or disarm the alarm. Honeywell has a nice little unit that is pretty feature rich, including a touch screen LCD. You can see it here.
A Main Unit is nothing without sensors. Sensors come in two main styles. Magnetic sensors are installed at “entry points”, either windows or doors, and are set off when the door or window is opened
It’s not practical to have a sensor for every door and window. This is why we have Motion Sensors. These handy devices scan the room expecting to see a static “image”, when the bad guy enters the space, the Motion Sensor picks up the change and triggers the alarm.
These devices are now able to communicate wirelessly, keeping the installation cost down.
Fine, but how much does it cost?
Your alarm installer will likely have a basic package, something like, 3 door/window sensors, 1 motion sensor, and the main control unit, for $299, installed. Your installer will charge a fee for each additional sensor beyond the basic package. ~85 dollars for door/window sensors, and ~150 for each additional motion sensor.
Monitoring is important if you want a quick police followup. Your installer will charge a monthly fee for receiving calls from your main unit in the event of an actual alarm. If an alarm is tripped, they will call all the numbers on your call list before finally calling the police. For this service, expect to pay 30 to 50 dollars each month to have the police department on speed dial.
Finally, and speaking of the police department, depending on your city ordinances, your local police department will want a yearly permit fee for the meritorious privilege of checking on your home in the case of a break-in. Look to pay in the ballpark of 50-100 dollars each year.
Final steps
I recommend going with a licensed local installer. Someone local keeps the economy growing where you live, and a local installer will know the ordinances and will always be close by, should you need fast support.
Is it cheap? No, and only you can determine if it’s worth the cost. But if you do decide to add an alarm system to your home, don’t delay. Your installer should be in and out in a couple of hours, and you can go back to enjoying your time away from home, with the peace of mind that a home security system provides.
Here are some fun facts about burglaries
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