Home security system

[momz]

we are building a new home. Last night makes the second time in two weeks that our furnace was stolen. The builder is the one that is suffering the financial blow for this, as it is not our house yet, it is the builders property.

I'm told that the first time, there were six houses in various stages of construction that were hit by the thieves.

This area is being developed very quickly. Lots of crews coming and going. The builder thinks it's someone from one of the crews that's doing it.

We will be moving in April. There will still be construction going on around us, And we are concerned about security once we live there.

The only security we currently have is locks on the doors and a dog. My kids are teenagers and they will be home alone at times. Also, they will be going to and from school on the bus, so they will be walking to and from the bus stop.

Anyway, with the constructin crews working back there, it will be easy for them to learn our patterns. They will know when we aren't home, and they will know when the kids are alone. This whole thing makes me nervous.

There is not generally a lot of crime on the area. I thinking that these homes are easy targets during construction.

We are considering a home security system. I know there are some that are monitored and others that are just noise makers.

Tell me the pros and cons of the monitored vs the noise alarm system.

 

[DisneyHardin]

We have a monitored security system. The biggest reason I would not want one that was just a noise maker is that if no one is monitoring it and it gets set off (either by a burglar or by accident) the neighbors are not going to be happy listening to that until you get home.

Our system is a local company and isn't too expensive. When the signal was sent through the regular phone lines, we paid $20/month, now that we have upgraded and the signal is sent via cell phone tower it is $30/month.

We have had one break in while we were at work. I do think the loud noise is what scared the burglar off because he never entered the house, just broke in the garage door. But, that noise didn't then buzz all day long until I got home. The alarm company called me and I told them to go ahead and send the police and would have my in-laws meet the police there and they were able to silence the alarm remotely.

The best investment of our alarm is a water detection piece in the basement. Twice the alarm has gone off when water was in the basement and we were able to get the problem stopped before the entire basement was flooded.

 

[tvguy]

First, your builder is not including an alarm with the house?
Second. Depends on where you live and your Police agency as far as monitoring. Alarms on unoccupied homes here are a zero priority. Police will not respond. If it is an occupied, and the call comes from inside the home from the occupant, they will respond.

You should be able to get an alarm installed for free, if you sign up for monitoring for 3 years, usually about $40 a month.

 

[loves to dive]

We have always had a security system here at work and had one once at home. The problem with the one we had at home was there were different settings, you could set it that someone was in the house so if the interior doors were opened it didn't matter and you could set it to be away, in which case the motion sensors would come on. My mom was constantly forgetting she had set it at night and would open a window or the kitchen door to let the dog out. If the police are called, at least here, after a certain number of false alarms, you get charged a fee. We don't have one at our current house but my honey works from home and is there most of the time, when he isn't we have neighbors who are always home and they enjoy watching everyone's house. Here at work, we have motion sensors on the windows and doors so if a rock were to go through the window it might set off the alarm if it were to fly under the sensor. If a person gets in the building, they will set the motion sensors off, unless they are like me and are short. We had an employee who happened to still be in her office when someone left and thought they were the last person there so they set the alarm. She was short and walked around the building for a couple of hours, not knowing the alarm was set until she opened the door to leave. Employee's have set them off every now and again just because they have forgotten the code. The alarm company is supposed to call the office first and you give them the super secret code. If no one answers or you don't know the code, they are supposed to send the police and call the first person on a list at home. Our police force is not known for their super fast response time and at our house, we live out in the country so we would most likely be dead before they got there. We had a fire in our next door neighbors yard over the weekend, I'm talking blazing fire, strong winds were blowing and it was sending sparks across the street and setting the other neighbors yard on fire. I called 911 about 3 min. after the fires broke out when another neighbor went flying across our yard to get to it and knocked on our door on the way by, we had most of it out by the time the fire trucks got there, there was just one big bunch of dead tress still burning that we were working on. The sheriff and an ambulance got there about 5 min. after I called, the sheriff walked up to me and actually asked what the problem was. I just pointed, smoke was billowing, people were running around with hoses and flames were everywhere. The first fire truck arrived about 15 min. after I called.

 

[PoohNBoom]

My two cents...

I'm thinking that the thieves know that no one is in the house because it is not complete, so it is an easy target. Once you move in, I think the thieves taking the furnace will no longer be targeting the house. That's not to say, someone else won't be targeting it.

My thinking on monitored vs. noise maker and I've heard this from many others is that the stickers and signs from an alarm company are worth more than the alarm itself. Any professional thief that wants to bypass an alarm can do so. The alarm is there so that the burglar sees it on your house and moves on to an easier target.

 

[Bilberry]

Our garage unit, and others in the complex, had furnaces stolen. This happened a few years ago. What we did was add security monitoring cameras to cover that area.

That is what we did with our homes too. We have monitoring alarms along with cameras in the house and outside. It was easy to install. We did the work our selves. I forget the costs, but they are reasonable.

 

[justussix]

It's the security system sales rep that is stealing the furnaces. That person returns them to the builder, and the builder installs the furnace in the next house while collecting commission on the upcharge for having the system add on as part of the build.

Brilliant plan.

 

[Prose]

First, your builder is not including an alarm with the house?

Most builders DO NOT include an alarm system with a new home. It is up to the home buyer to decide what they want. It can sometimes be an upgrade to include a hard-wired system during construction, though.

A lot of the new alarm systems are wireless - you buy the system, they send you the sensors to install yourself, then you pay monthly for monitoring. We have Frontpoint. The sensors have adhesive somewhat like a Command strip - you put on part on the window or door and one part on the frame. There is a control panel that communicates to the company. You can also control the system via a smartphone app. You can set it to ding and/or send a text every time a door or window opens. When the alarm is on and a door or window opens, the alarm sounds (very loudly), and if not disarmed within a few seconds, the company alerts authorities. The company should work with you to obtain any local licenses or permits required by your law enforcement authorities. We have a teen, also, and it is great peace of mind when she is home alone. And, as we told her, it keeps the bad people out and the good people in .

 

[North of Mouse]

We have been told by police depts. - not security companies that the best deterrents are lights. We have motion activated flood lights on corners of house and large RV garage.

 

[Pooh2]

We got Simpli Safe. You have the option of having it monitored ($14.99.month) or just having it work as a noise maker.

There is no contract so you can stop the monitoring service at anytime. My husband said it was easy to install, no wiring required.

There are different components to the system, you pick and choose items for your needs and budget. We started with sensors on all windows on the bottom floor, later added glass breakage sensors in certain room and motion detector sensors.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

I really hate thieves.

 

[MickeyMinnieMom]

We use...

• motion-activated lights
• monitored security system
• two crazy, loud little dogs

The latter is most effective... sometimes I want to stay away.

 

[tvguy]

Most builders DO NOT include an alarm system with a new home. It is up to the home buyer to decide what they want. It can sometimes be an upgrade to include a hard-wired system during construction, though.

A lot of the new alarm systems are wireless - you buy the system, they send you the sensors to install yourself, then you pay monthly for monitoring. We have Frontpoint. The sensors have adhesive somewhat like a Command strip - you put on part on the window or door and one part on the frame. There is a control panel that communicates to the company. You can also control the system via a smartphone app. You can set it to ding and/or send a text every time a door or window opens. When the alarm is on and a door or window opens, the alarm sounds (very loudly), and if not disarmed within a few seconds, the company alerts authorities. The company should work with you to obtain any local licenses or permits required by your law enforcement authorities. We have a teen, also, and it is great peace of mind when she is home alone. And, as we told her, it keeps the bad people out and the good people in .

Yes, I am on my third wireless alarm system. I paid for the first to be installed, I installed the second myself, and my current system, installation and the equipment were "free" is you signed a 3 year monitoring contract.
I certainly can't say all, but a lot of builders include alarms. Some communities require fire sprinklers in new home construction, and they require it be hooked up to a local alarm for the fire sprinklers, I would think adding a burglar alarm component would add little cost to that requirement.

 

[xlxo]

@momz: Sounds like you have power in this new home.... is there internet? If so, I would be setting up a few Nest cams.

Fencing, alarms and lights are great deterrents. But not for a determined trouble maker. Videos will keep people honest and help police in their investigations....

I like Nest for their low light and cloud recording abilities.

 

[adisneyaunt]

Unfortunately there are Losers, who for various reasons, steal both items as well as ones piece of mind.
Some new builds DO include Alarm systems... (easiest to wire in during the build, I suppose. )

One would think that people would notice a break in , but my sil had a brazen group... parked their "business emblazoned work van" on the driveway... left front door of house open and walked out with huge tv, irreplaceable jewelry from her recently passed husband and took her (fragile at the time) piece of mind.
Thankfully they did not hurt the (small) dog and he didn't wander out that open door!

ALARMS... worth the investment!