Home Security Alarm Systems / Video Surveillance - Protect your assets

Why post this in the Finance forum? I was recently robbed and if I’d had an alarm system, I’m sure it would have stopped the criminals and saved me a large financial headache dealing with police and the insurance company. As we go further into recession/depression, robberies are bound increase. Also, the previous threads about home security have been archived.

We’ve already got an alarm monitoring thread, but there are many different types of systems out there, and choosing the right one can be somewhat confusing. I thought we’d benefit from a discussion about what the best types of home security and surveillance systems are out there on the market today.

Here's the system I'm going with. If you have any questions, feel free to ask.

• Ademco Vista 21ip Control Panel with integrated IP and GSM module (internet and cell monitoring).
  
• 6160rf keypad with built in wireless transceiver.
  
• 6271C color touchpad for a secondary keypad.
  
• Aurora motion detector with Pet Immune up to 40lbs.
  
• 5816 window/door transmitters for each entry point.
  
• 12V 7Ah battery backup in case the power goes down.
  
• 2 "Wave 2" sirens - one indoor, one outdoor.
  
• Decals on the windows, a sign in the yard.

I found most of the system on eBay from various buyers. If you want to buy it all from one place, doityourselfsecuritysystems.com seems to have better prices than SafeMart.com and HomeSecurityStore.com. Sometimes they have good package deals if you don't want to hand-pick each individual piece.

I also plan on picking up a simple 2-camera security system from Costco. One for the front, one for the back.

The problem with security systems is that the novelty wears off after a certain period of time. You get complacent about setting the alarm every time you leave or go to bed at night. Personally, just buy the ADT/Brinks signs to put them out front and buy a gun.

Get a sign that says "BIOHAZARD - WARNING AIDS INSIDE"

nobody listens to those alarms. i've set mine off and it went off for 10+ minutes. we were rewiring the system panel to dial out and needed to test it. if it can not make its call to the monitoring station you are screwed. cut the phone/cable and what?

get cellular based dialer. most criminals don't have cell jammers but know how to snip some wires.

btw make sure you have smash sensors on the windows as alot of folks just smash a big window and grab. same with the doors that are glass construction.

i put light sensitive spot lamps (CFL soon LED) outside to light up the house like a xmas tree. also some rat-shack motion triggers chimes. the chimes are friggen annoying but you can imagine the idea of breaking into fort-knox is probably not so appealing when you have idiot neighbors who have no protection at all.

you can run webcam software on obvious points of entry to ftp/smtp on motion to an off-site location (dreamhost?) and i'd bet by the time they grabbed the camera or pc (or hide it on a server) you'd at least have some pictures.

what i find amazing is the # of people creepin' in cars during the day when you are gone. or at night. and strange animals you never usually see (families of racoons and other oddities).

does not take alot of time to protect yourself.

be sure to include a good smoke/fire/Carbon monoxide detector in your disaster recovery plan.

I loved the idea in that one Dennis Leary movie.

He cracks the safe, then gets sprayed with cat piss, followed shortly by the dogs being released.

I agree with above, alarms are worthless. Best to invest enough money into the resources needed to either ID the criminal, or stop him cold. With proof positive video footage, it's much easier to get a detective to do his job. Even better when your solid steel doors actually keep the burglar out and he still gets ID'd and arrested. Sliding Glass doors have got to be a thieves wet dream (One Tap and you have a wide open door.

I got a wireless security camera a few years ago when I thought a crazy ex was going to help herself when I was at work... It autorecords with motion, uploads to a server and sends me an email. Worked well for me, because I'm on the comp all day at work.

Couple years later I got tired of seeing dogs, cats, birds, bears set it off so I don't get auto-notified. Probably a little bit of a visual deterrent, however.

Now, I use it to watch my puppy when I'm at work.

Anyone have any opinions on how worthwhile it would be to use Kensington cable-locks on stuff? On one hand, they usually use fairly thin cables that wouldn't stand up to a bolt-cutter. On the other hand, they might be a deterrent to a smash and grab kind of theft.

I ask because it seems like everything you buy nowadays comes with that little slot. It used to only be on notebooks, but my LCD TV has one, my Mac mini has one, etc.

It depends on neighborhoods but often you don't have to have extreme alarms, dogs, guns, etc. You just have to look a less worthy and/or a more difficult target than the neighbors. There's been only one robbery on our street a couple of years back and it was one of the wealthiest and one of the least well protected ones. I'm not sure guns would even prevent much in most cases since burglars usually don't go when they suspect the owners may be home. The possibility of each homeowner having one is enough to make them go for an easier target (empty home).

Put ADT/Brinks yard signs, motion activated lights outside, inside lights on timer for when you're away, buy good homeowner insurance, do a regular video inventory of your assets, and it'll go a long way. We've got alarm monitoring too because a good alarm system (wireless+backup+siren out of reach in vents) was already in place in house we bought and the NextAlarm annual premium is almost covered by the discount on our homeowner insurance policy (net cost $20/yr).

If you don't have a huge budget you can buy dummy security cameras that are made by real camera manufacturers:
Home depot camera

Add a few ADT signs and stickers and you'll have a cheap deterrent system that is better than no security

For comparison purposes, here's a link to a similar genuine camera system from the same manufacturer as the dummy camera:
Home depot genuine camera

security cameras are just another thing for them to break/steal.

If it wasn't illegal I would say booby trap your house.

ilikebtmoney said: 6) As a last resort, to protect my family, various guns hidden in between walls (under the drywall) that I can punch through and grab. This was not my original idea though. I saw this in a post elsewhere (maybe someone here? I don't remember). GREAT peace of mind though.
Heh, I think a sign detailing your plan will turn away any potential robber. Just imagine what they would think you are willing to do them after you punch through walls and get your guns.

Metric said: Im using a HAI system; good post above.
How much does it costs??

I pay $22/mo monitoring to ADT. All it takes is a phone call telling them to be more competitive as NextAlarm.com is charging less than half as much. They get a little upset and say OK, we'll do fire and burglary through the cellular backup for this price.

biomedeng said: rigor said: get cellular based dialer. most criminals don't have cell jammers but know how to snip some wires.
I saw something on one of the old threads here that suggested you put fake wires coming out of your telephone box into the ground and hide the real ones (maybe behind the wall or run to the other side of the house). The thief will clip the fake ones without realizing they are fake.

I think improving your door security is a must. Many homes were built with short nails in the door frames alowing them to be easily kicked in. Adding longer nails/screws (think 2") to screw the frame into the studs greatly improves door strength. Similarly use longer deadbolts, and replace the metal part the deadboalt goes into with a more secure slot also with long screws. If your door has a window then replace the deadbolt with a lock that requires a key even inside. Also choose a quality deadbolt for your door (search "bump key" on youtube to learn about how crappy deadbolts are easy to open). Also you should put a deadbolt on the door from the garage to the house (I have observed that many people only have a locking nob, and a garage door really isn't that secure).

Many people mentioned people will not rob you if they think you are home. Unfortunately I am aware of several people who have been robbed while they were sleeping. One person didn't even hear the person, the other had a confrontation with an armed robber. At least having stronger doors and an alarm gives you a heads up to someone trying to come in.

Good ideas, but most houses have plenty of windows on the first floor which are much easier to break and climb in. So I wouldn't go to such efforts to secure JUST a door, leaving everything else as the weak link. Things need upgraded (and protected) equally.

Some things I have...

Place the telephone wire inside conduit then run a dummy telephone wire outside wired as a separate zone on the alarm. If someone tries to cut what they think is the phone it triggers the alarm instead.

Have window screens alarmed as opposed to the windows themselves. It cost about $60 a screen but I can sleep with the windows open and the alarm still on. The alarm gets triggered before the window is touched.

I also have a perimeter sensor system that triggers all the lights outside (the sensors are mounted separate from the lights and are tighter in spread, basically something has to enter the flower beds to set it off.) This has probably paid for itself by keeping the deer from decimating the shrubs like most of my neighbors.

I also live far enough in the country to legally shoot in my backyard. A few hay bales with targets (and tight groupings) is a nice deterrent.

I also put a cheap motion sensor with keypad in the garage. It is not connected with the rest of the system and can't dial, but if someone get in the garage it makes a racket. Of course the wife or kids set this off every week or so but no harm.

I am loving the gun in the drywall idea.

I think the mere fact that you just punched your way through drywall should scare some bunglers off.

biomedeng said:
If your door has a window then replace the deadbolt with a lock that requires a key even inside.
A good security idea, a bad safety idea. It could be against local building codes to lock exits (in a fire, where the heck is the key?)
What other similar options are there? Biometric locks? Keypads on both sides of a lock?
If you're still concerned about the door window, line the glass w/ security film so it won't shatter into pieces. Or upgrade your door (with extra long screws!) with a quality door, security glass with the fine wire mesh inside (I usually see this kind in schools).

biomedeng said:
Also choose a quality deadbolt for your door (search "bump key" on youtube to learn about how crappy deadbolts are easy to open).
Seconded. Stay the heck away from Kwikset, and generally any store brand lock. Alt.locksmithing would generally laugh you out of the group if you asked for any help with such lock... "get a real lock"

ScrawneyWallet said: lampy2k4 said: ilikebtmoney said: 6) As a last resort, to protect my family, various guns hidden in between walls (under the drywall) that I can punch through and grab. This was not my original idea though. I saw this in a post elsewhere (maybe someone here? I don't remember). GREAT peace of mind though.
Heh, I think a sign detailing your plan will turn away any potential robber. Just imagine what they would think you are willing to do them after you punch through walls and get your guns.

Punching through walls to grab a little handgun is for sissies. I do a round-house kick through my drywall to grab one of the 47 sawed-off shotguns hiding in various wall cavities throughout my house.

Picturing that made it al the better!

I self-monitor. Having worked in a UL listed(a joke) monitoring station for several years, I don't have much faith in them (the stories I could tell...), and even less in alarm techs that do the installs and service.

This is what I have;

Honeywell (formerly Ademco) Vista 20p with the 5881 ENH wireless expansion module.
4286 phone module. This allows me to landline in and perform any keypad functions and check status over the phone. It also adds voice responses to the panel. I highly recommend this for Honeywell panels.
6139 keypad used for programming mounted inside of the panel. This can come in handy.
6150 keypad wall mounted.
5804 wireless keyfobs. Much easier to arm/disarm using these.
multiple wireless switches and a few ir motions (360 degree and dual zone) and several hardwire loops.
Larger 7.0ah battery
4229 expansion mod with relays.
Additional battery backup using 2 7ah batts and an Altronix power supply/charger fed by a DSC transformer. Can go 3 days with no electricity.
rj31x jack to seize the phone line when the panel sends signals. Signals are sent to my cellphone.
a few little tricks to reduce the chances of the system being defeated or taken offline. Various speakers and sirens.

Honeywell 1361x10 transformer - this ties the alarm system into my X10 home automation/additional security system. This allows me to call in over the phone and turn off/on various lights and appliances and reboot my dsl modem, router, XP server and linux box. I can also do these things over the internet.

multiple outdoor X10 IR sensors, a few with partial blocked lens and directed to various modules. For example, if someone walks up near my door and I'm in the bathroom, a light turns on. If I'm in my bedroom, a music box plays.

8 channel video dvr card in my server. I remote view the cams from anywhere I have internet. I also have these set to detect motion and the server will send an alert along with a short video clip of the activity to my cellphone. Most of them are wireless cams of various bandwidths. Although your results may vary, I've had decent luck with the cheap China produced stuff. Some of these I can turn off/on remotely with the x10.

I've spent less than $1000 for all of this. A setup like this from an alarmco/dealer would probably be 5 times that amount.

I'm working on GSM and IP backup for the panel but without having to pay a monitoring fee. The panel manufacturers don't make this easy.

cllamont said: Thats good - but my best home defense is my fully loaded nickel plated 357 magnum with the hollow tip bullets aimed right between the eyes of ANYONE breaking into my home.

cllamont said: A mena ass dog or some bars on the windows or even some of those fake cameras with the LED lights on them would be better deterrents in my opinion.

I also have a handgun, and have been thinking about a shotgun. However, the chances of me getting robbed while at home are almost zero. The purpose of a home security system is to protect your home while you're away.

A large dog can be a good deterrant, but logically speaking, it's going to cost you a lot more to own a pet than installing a security system, and dogs have their flaws as well. For one, they're mortal and can be quieted in a variety of ways (hot dog, bullet, etc).

An alarm system that is loud enough for neighbors to hear, that can call you or the police, and that will scare the potential theif... is priceless, especially if you're on good terms with your neighbors. I'm sure all of this has already been covered somewhere in this thread.