Anyone with home security/alarm systems?

[Strawberry Lemonade]

If you do, I'm wondering if you have any recommendations. Also, if you had it installed without ever having one before, how involved of a process is it (i.e. how long does it take, does it involve major wiring, etc.)?

As you can see, I'm new to this kind of thing. I was hoping to learn from some of you experts out there. Thanks!

 

[Karista]

We had ours put in when we built our house, so as far as the major wiring goes, I don't know because it was all done with the rest of the house.

We hit two snags and if we ever build again I will make sure these things are spelled out up front:

We have motion detectors and although we told the salesperson while he was writing up the order that we have a small dog, it was overlooked when the detectors were installed. Apparently they can tilt the sensors at a slightly higher level but this wasn't done like it should have been.

Secondly, the salesperson wrote the entire order up and gave us a price. When we decided to go with it, we let him know that we didn't want it monitored, just the equipment installed. Well, then it was a totally different (much higher) price if we weren't going to sign a 2 year contract. We were in a time crunch with our builder ready to drywall, so we said, whatever, go ahead and we'll have it monitored for 2 years. When the 2 years was up, and we went to cancel it, the salesperson had wrote our contract up for THREE years. Our fault for signing and not looking, but I know what he told us.

So....my only advice is, know what you want up front, let the company know clearly BEFORE they give you a quote, and if you have time (which we didn't) get quotes from a few different companies.

 

[Hercules10]

I used to work for a security company (finance/accounting dept.). It all depends on what kind of protection you want. Full perimeter? Motion-sensors? Glass break? CC-Cameras?

Hard-wire systems are usually the most reliable in a full perimeter meaning your doors and windows will have sensors installed. Unfortunately if your home wasn't pre-wired then you'll have to deal with exposed wires. Wireless systems are more conveniant, but less reliable as the sending and receiving equipment are quirky and batteries die.

Biggest thing is the monthly monitoring fee. It ranges anywhere from 14.95 all the way up to $39.95 (depending on the type you chose). Ask to make sure the monitoring is local and verify it.

I learned that home security salesmen are like used car salesmen ('nuff said). Contact several reputable companies and get several estimates.

Lastly the most effective deterant was not the system itself, but the window stickers and signs in the front yard which you can get at some Radio Shack stores.

Hope this helped. Good Luck!

 

[diznygirl]

Ours was wired when the house was built. And then we got the contract after.

We also got their smoke detectors - fire is my biggest fear. So if the smoke detector goes off, they automatically alert the fire dept.

 

[The Duchess]

We have ADT. The house WAS originally wired for an alarm system when they built it, but we added alarms on our upstairs balcony door and basement door. This consisted of two separate plastic pieces mounted on the doors, when the connection is broken and the system is armed, it goes off. It seemed pretty easy to install. We don't have motion because we have a dog and two cats.
Some drawbacks :
I was vacuuming once and didn't realize the alarm was armed. THe vacuum actually set off the "glass break" alarm (this is separate from the window alarms" and the police came.
Also , on two separate occasions, DS (I think he was two the frist time and three the second) got hold of my keychain alarm and pressed PANIC. The police came both times.

 

[DVC-Don]

We had an ADT system installed 11 months ago. So far, no false alarms. When we moved here 13 years ago there were lots of neighbors around during the day. Now there is hardly anyone home during the day here.

 

[ducklite]

Ours came with the house, it's all prewired with motion detectors, glass break detectors, perimeter wiring, alarms that ring to the police, fire, you name it.

If you want to read a funny story about our first experience with it, read here it's about in the middle of the page.

We have an annual contract for monitoring, it runs us about $20 a month. Our aware and on irregular schedule neighbors are probably the best alarm we have though

Anne

 

[twinmomplus2new]

We too have ADT. allthough I never ever use it when I am not home. The only thing that is ireplacable to me are my kids baby pictures and to date I haven't heard of a thief yet who enjoys stealing those. I have the door and window sensors as well as a motion detector. The motion detector is on permanent bi/pass as the cat kept setting it off.
My alarm is only used when we are sleeping. I have a pool and small children so it is meant as a warning if anyone opens a door. The Pool is my biggest fear, honestly I don't think I would ever sleep if I didn't have the security of the warning on the doors.

 

[Missy1961]

We also have ADT. I'm here alone alot, and I sleep better with it on. We have 2 level--stay and away. Stay is for when we're home. When I'm alone I have it on all the time. This way, if I'm upstairs or down in the basement and someone tries to break in, I'll know. And when both of us are home, it's on when we're asleep. The away level sets the motion detector on. We don't have pets so that's not an issue. We pay for monitoring. We've also got a fire/smoke detector that's connect to the local fire dept. It is SO worth it to have the system. Like I said before, I sleep better when I'm alone and it's on.

 

[Margie J]

I have an ADT system like Missy1961's. It has away/stay options, 4 entrances with sensors, 2 motion detectors (upstairs and basement) plus a fire monitoring system. Since it was installed I have had peace of mind. My home is often left alone and my schedule is crazy. With the alarm I worry a lot less about break ins and fire damage.

The installer did a quick, clean job. There are no visible wires and the main control box is hidden. The keypad was placed in a location accessible to two entrance doors.

I've had no false alarms but setting it freaks me out a bit. You have a very limited time to set the alarm and leave the house. Same for entering and shutting the alarm control off. I almost panicked once on entering when my keychain control didn't shut the alarm off. Other than that, I'm happy.

 

[Laurabearz]

We have ADT and three times our fire alarm was set off from stream from the shower... it was located in the hall outside the bathroom, so watch where you put the fire alarms!

 

[Strawberry Lemonade]

Thanks for all the input. Looks like ADT is the most popular - we'll definitely have to check them out. I think we're mainly interested in securing the doors & windows. We probably won't get the motion sensors since we have a cat.

Ducklite, your story had me laughing. We went through a similar situation at a relative's house - the power went out briefly and when it came back on, the alarm wouldn't stop beeping. We were all zombies the next morning.