Home Alarms

Home Alarms
Deter Burglars from Breaking in to Your Home

Home alarms are just one link in the home security system chain and are generally a good investment, especially if you have valuable items in your home, which most of us do today, in one form or another. Burglar alarms should also be installed if you live in an isolated area or an area with a history of break-ins. Home alarms are designed to provide a warning at the earliest possible moment of entry, or attempted entry by a criminal into the protected premises, or in some cases the protected boundaries. Although alarms do not, by themselves prevent entry, they do act as very good deterrents, with many systems now available that are within the price range of most homeowners.

The majority of houses that are broken into do not have burglar alarms fitted; the police will back up these findings. Government statistics also show that around 60% of burglaries carried out on homes fitted with burglar alarms are unsuccessful.

Home alarms also offer tremendous peace of mind, both when you or your family are in the building and also when you are away from it, especially for long periods of time such as holidays. False alarms caused by faulty equipment are now almost a thing of the past due to the rapid advances in electronic technology.

The old idea that having a burglar alarm fitted showed the criminal that you had something worth stealing no longer holds true, as today nearly everyone has something worth stealing.

Home alarm systems come in two standard forms - wired and wireless, with some systems using a combination of both. Wireless alarms are becoming more and more popular throughout the world, due to their ease of installation and flexibility.

In considering any home alarm system, you must first define precisely what is required of it. The design of your home security system will be a balance between your needs and your budget and one that should not pose so many restrictions on your day to day lives that it becomes inconvenient to use and is no longer operated.

DON'T wait until after the event, buying prevention is often less expensive and costly than buying a cure, heirlooms, treasures and many other items with treasured sentimental value, along with people are irreplaceable.

Alarm systems (in the UK), should comply with BS4737 when professionally fitted or BS6707 for DIY installed systems.

Buying Home Alarms

Buying security equipment is like buying most other products today, a little knowledge and understanding of the products involved and their applications can often save you a lot of time and money and in some cases considerable heartache.

The main aim of some salesmen is to sell you one of their systems, irrespective of whether it is the right system to fulfil your needs. In fact they may also have a hidden agenda to sell you a more expensive system than you need, due to the amount of extra commission he/she will earn on that system. You can however protect yourself from these types of companies and salesmen by understanding a little about alarm systems and their workings and by asking the right questions.

BEWARE

Some companies (even large ones) are calling on peoples homes personally or sometimes by telephone, to sell extremely overpriced security systems, using somewhat high-pressure sales techniques. In some cases after preparing a quotation they have even escorted their victims (customers) to the bank or building society and pressurised them to draw out the money to pay them for the system in advance. Some of these companies have been adversely featured on television recently.

BEWARE

Sensors

Most sensors are available in wired or wireless formats

Sensors or detectors come in a variety of shapes and sizes and are designed to react to body heat, air movement, sound, pressure, opening/shutting, vibration/shock, movement, fire, heat, water levels, temperature etc., to detect the presence of an intruder, or warn of a particular danger or event. These sensors signal to the control panel, which then reacts in a particular way depending on how it has been programmed and set.

Today's detectors are generally smaller, neater, more reliable, more effective and less expensive than ever before, keeping false alarms to an absolute minimum. In fact most false alarms are now more likely to be the result of someone using the wrong detectors, siting them in the wrong place/environment or simply operator error.

Most security detectors used in domestic premises fall within two categories: perimeter and space. Perimeter devices protect doors, windows, walls and external plot boundaries, detecting intruders before they actually enter the property boundaries, building or rooms. Detectors used for this type of detection are magnetic switches (most common), audio devices and infra red beams. Space protection devices monitor open areas like rooms and hallways and in some cases sheds, garages and outbuildings where dual detectors would normally be installed. The most common detectors used for these applications are the Passive Infra Red (PIR) detector, followed by the microwave, ultrasonic and volumetric detectors, or in some more difficult applications, a combination of two of the above in one detector (dual detectors).

DIY Installation

Most homeowners are capable of installing a wireless alarm system themselves. The equipment can even be of the same quality and from the same manufacturer as installed by the professional alarm companies. Homeowners can save themselves a considerable amount of money on installation fees. Don't worry too much about siting the detectors, as they are easily moved if the wrong position is initially chosen.

Decide which areas of your property are most vulnerable to break-ins by carrying out a security survey (try and think like a burglar) and whether you are going to install perimeter protection (windows and doors) or volumetric protection (space protectors) or a combination of both, taking into account your family lifestyle. At least with a wireless alarm system you can easily change both the type and position of the various detectors simply, without major upheavals or rewiring.

NOTE: DIY installations may not and probably won't entitle you to the same discount or any discount on your insurance policy.

False Alarms

False alarms used to be a major problem to, the owners of alarm systems, the neighbours, the alarm companies and the police. Today however with the introduction of modern electronics and improved detection systems, this problem has largely been overcome. Although false alarms can still be caused by malfunctioning equipment, or the poor siting of detectors, most are caused by simple operator problems. It is important therefore to learn how to operate your system properly and to teach the rest of the family to do the same. Remember if you accidentally set off a number of false alarms, people will stop paying any active attention to it and you may even be fined for causing nuisance noise, apart from making yourself very unpopular with the neighbours. After a certain number of false alarms the police will not attend, even to a NACOSS installed system.

It is a good idea to test the system (briefly) on a regular basis to make sure that everything is functioning properly. Always advise your neighbours beforehand to avoid unnecessary confusion and the possibility of the emergency services being called.

Hundreds more tips and information items including: what to look for when buying an alarm system are available in our new (211 - A4 page) security book 'How to Protect Your Family and Belongings NOW'

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