Electronic Alarms and Home Security Devices - Seeking Home Security Device .... Where to Begin

We have a new home and I would like to purchase some form of security. Nothing elaborate (however, I am open if there is affordability for more); I'm thinking along the lines of an alarm system should an intruder enter any windows/doors/other possible places. In addition, warning sign and/or stickers posting that we are equipped--to deter any potential 'bad guys/gals' with the knowledge that we are not an easy target should they contemplate.

I have looked all over in here, however, it's all over my head! Can someone tell me what would equip me and explain it as much as possible in "layman's terms" for me? I have been to several sites and realize I could contact an expert locally, however, I am not knowledgeable enough to protect myself against their "sales pitches" and could possibly be taken advantage of, given that. Any advice is appreciated.

Basic parts of an alarm system:

1) Box- (control box) this is the brains of the system. It’s usually mounted in a closet somewhere in the house…master bedroom and hall closets are popular choices. Inside the box will be connections for the all the wires that allow the parts to “talk” to each other and a backup battery that will power the system if the power fails.

2) Keypad(s): Allows you to control the system. A minimum of 1 is used, can be more if needed (all systems have limits on the max # of keypads allowed). Usually located near the front door (entry door). Additional keypads can also be placed in master bedroom and near the garage door or anywhere else you’d like. Also possible on some systems are wireless keypads, but most are hard-wired to the box using 4 or 6 wire cable. (Think telephone or thermostat wire).

3) Switches: several different types, their job is to tell the alarm system when the door or window is opened. You need a switch for each door and window you want to protect. (Don’t forget to count double windows as 2) There are 2 parts of a switch. The first part is the switch itself. It’s mounted to the frame of the door or window. The wires connect to this part. The second part of a switch is the magnet. It’s mounted to the window or door itself. When the door/window is closed, the parts of the switch line up and are close together. When the door/switch is opened, the parts move away and the switch opens, the box detects this and sounds the siren. They come in 2 basic varieties; hardwired and wireless. Hard-wired switches use a wire/cable to connect to the box. Wireless sends a radio signal to the box. Depending on how the door or window is made, there are different mounting methods for the switches. Double stick tape, screws, epoxy and drilling holes are common methods to mount switches.

4) Siren- the part that you hear and scare away the person. You can use more than one, commonly two are used, one sounds inside and the other outside (or in an attic next to the vent). Hard-wired to the box.

5) Telephone jack: special type of jack mounted near the box or inside it. This allows the box to call for help using your phone lines. The technical name of the jack is an RJ-31X. You can see how to wire one here: http://www.safewatchservice.com/phonewiring.php?osCsid=a31e568c8f3629c555623018bea24b15

I think that about covers a basic alarm system; here I’ve listed common and highly recommended add-ons:

Smoke Detector- signals the box in the event of a fire. It’s also possible to get one that can also detect carbon monoxide. These are usually hard-wired to the box. This doesn’t replace your existing smoke detectors, but adds another layer of protection.

Motion detector- may also be called a “PIR”. Picks-up movement inside a given area and signals the box. May be hard-wired or wireless. The newer ones are designed to ignore most pets (cats and dogs)….but there are limits! Must be carefully placed and facing certain directions. Can be used in case the glass gets broken and the person climbs through a window or sliding glass door.

Other components:

Glass break sensors- specially tuned to “hear” the sounds of breaking glass and signal the box.
Key Fobs- similar to a “car alarm” allows you to arm/disarm and panic the system from your key ring. Not every system will support these.
Panic button- can be placed wherever you’d like and sets off the alarm if you need help. Not every system will support these.

Final notes:

Monitoring- this is where the box calls a dedicated phone number and signals the problem, then the monitoring company actually tries to call you and confirm the alarm’s situation, also notifies the police/ fire dept as needed. Most alarm systems _cannot_ call your cell phone and tell you what’s going on at home. You can program them to call your cell phone #, but you won’t know exactly why it called you. There are many companies that make alarm systems and there is a wide range of prices out there. It is very possible and common to run the system without monitoring, depending on your needs.

Zone- how the box organizes your house. This is also what you’ll see on the keypad….Zone1, 2, etc. Different boxes support different amounts and combinations of wired and wireless zones. It's very common to mix and match wired and wireless devices. Some boxes may not have any wireless zones at all (or need a separate device to let them do this). Some sensors need their own dedicated zones all to themselves, such as smoke detectors, motion sensors and keypads...although you may be able to put more than one on a zone, you can't mix up devices between zones (What I'm trying to say is that all keypads go on one zone with any other keypads, same for motion detectors, etc) Others can have multiple items on a zone, such as switches. Execption-you'll want your entry doors on a zone all to themselves as well becuase of the box's design.

Example my house: Keypad needs 1 zone (will connect a second keypad here soon), smoke detector needs 1 zone, motion detector needs 1 zone, front door and garage door share 1 zone (entry doors), each bedroom is a separate zone (multiple window switches) 3 zones, the last zone is all the other windows and doors in the house, such as living room, dining room, sliding glass door, etc. Grand total of 8 zones. Mine are all hard-wired, no wireless. So if the alarm says “Zone 2” I know problem is in the master bedroom. Zone 4 is motion detector, etc.

If you talk to a company, usually you pay a small fee upfront for the system and it’s installation, but you commit yourself to a 36 month (or longer) contract paying a monthly fee to monitor the system. It may be less expensive to purchase and install your own system without monitoring service. You can also check around, many companies will monitor a system you own for much less than bigger companies. (Also one or two companies will remotely disable the system if you don’t continue the monitoring service).

There are some alarm system packages (includes most of the parts above) and monitoring services available here, so look around! http://www.safewatchservice.com/default.php/
Also, you can add-on to most systems in the future, so you could get a good basic package and add anything else later on. Extra hard-wired or wireless zones, key fobs, additional keypads, etc.

The two hardest parts of installing an alarm system is: 1) running the wire to all the switches, keypads, smoke detectors, motion detectors, etc. (using some wireless items will help here) and 2) actually programming the system. Programming is very dependant on who made the system and ranges from easy to nightmarish. Programming includes setting the time, user’s codes, telling the system what is connected to which zone, etc. Another explanation, it’s almost like programming a special computer. It speaks its own language and translating it can be easy or hard, depending on who made the computer.

Alarm systems, like anything else, sometimes break. You’ll need to factor who will be fixing it, if you have a contract then the company will need to fix it. You may or may not be charged for the repair. If you bought and own the system, then you have to fix it.


**I'm not an alarm system professional, so some of my information may be contradicted or inaccuarate. I've done my best to check everything here though.** If you have more questions, please post back! I know this is long, but I hope this helped somewhat!