How to pick the best security system for your home

Keeping your home safe may not seem like a full-time job, but without a reliable alarm system, your property, your family, and your own personal safety are all at risk. Unfortunately, alarm system scams are one of the major contributors to homes that are left vulnerable, and too many homeowners buy into a solution they believe is keeping them safe, only to fall victim of burglary, home invasion, or other violent crime.

The biggest source of alarm system scams come in the form of unsuspecting students working at summer jobs that have them going door-to-door selling home security systems. The premise of these alarm system scams are simple: the representative pays a visit to the homeowner, attempting to lure him away from his current alarm system provider. In order to ensure the homeowner’s interest is piqued, these alarm companies typically offer extremely low monthly monitoring fees, and may even be willing to install new monitoring equipment for free. The reason the alarm system scams work is that they don’t sound too good to be true, they simply seem like a better deal than the one the homeowner is currently getting.

Why Alarm System Scams Work

Another reason these alarm scams are so consistently successful is that the representatives selling the package often believe in what they’re selling. Most of the door-to-door representatives are college students looking for summer income, or recent high school graduates getting their feet wet in the workforce. They don’t have any idea they’re enabling alarm system scams, but actually believe they’re marketing a quality product that helps protect homeowners.

Unfortunately, once the homeowner agrees to the switch, the new equipment is often faulty, improperly installed, or, in the worst of the home alarm scams, simply doesn’t work. Some companies will raise their low monthly monitoring fees immediately after a customer signs the paperwork, hoping the customer won’t notice the much-higher monthly charge for awhile. The alarm system scam is so successful because, unfortunately, it works, and many homeowners are at risk without even realizing it.

Easy Ways To Protect Yourself:

• Avoid becoming the victim of alarm system scams by keeping your eyes and ears open. If something sounds too good to be true, or even like an amazingly great deal, make sure you check out both the company and the representative before making a commitment.
• Don’t sign anything on impulse. These companies train their representatives to get a quick, impulsive commitment. Most know that if the homeowner has time to really think about the proposal, or to investigate the company, he’ll no longer be interested. Be especially wary about representatives who tell you an offer is good for that day only, or the price will go up tomorrow, in an effort to get you to sign.
• Understand what’s out there. Even if you’re not unwittingly signing up for alarm system scams, you may be choosing a package that offers you far less protection than you need. Take the time to go through all the options that are out there, and remember that, while a big-name company may charge more, it is also likely to respond more quickly in case of emergency.

As with most tricks and cons, alarm system scams rely on the customer making quick decisions based on impulse and emotion, rather than fact. If an offer appeals to you, simply taking that night to think about it and do some research on the Internet may be all you need to help you make an informed, clear-headed decision.

If you’re looking for a quick and easy way to take advantage of a business insurance discount that few ever consider, it’s time to take a look at upgrading the security of your property. Choosing to install an alarm system to protect you in case of fire, burglary, and even carbon monoxide poisoning isn’t just a decision that may one day save your life or protect the well-being of your loved ones, it can also net you a profitable business insurance discount.

In today’s difficult economy, most businesses aren’t exactly overflowing with disposable income, and installing a new alarm system may not seem like the most important thing in which to invest your company’s hard-earned capital. While making the choice to increase security in and around your property is an investment, and it won’t automatically pay for itself, you’ll see a great return in a fairly small window of time. One of the more unexpected benefits of upgrading your alarm system is that it will earn you a business insurance discount up to 15%.

Why Get a Business Insurance Discount?

Saving a relatively small amount via business insurance discounts may not seem like a huge deal when you consider the expense of upgrading or installing an alarm system, but consider the cost of replacing equipment, valuables, and even office space, should your company be the victim of a fire or other natural disaster, or if theft leaves you with a huge financial loss. While the purpose of an insurance policy is to help you recover in the event of these disasters, it’s far preferable to simply avoid them. That’s why a little extra caution is duly rewarded, and you’ll receive a business insurance discount when you take the added steps to protect yourself.

Benefits of Business Insurance Discounts

• Investing in a solid alarm system is a cost-saving business tool, one that’s going to only help you in the long run. Aside from the business insurance discount, one that often pays for the annual cost of the monitoring, you’re protecting your business from potentially devastating losses. Insurance and other forms of protection might help compensate you for some of your financial losses, but nothing can replace the time and emotional investment you stand to lose if harm comes to your company’s storefront or headquarters.
• Statistics show that one out of five homes will be burglarized, and a home without an alarm system is 4 times as likely to be victimized. Knowing that, why would you choose not to install an alarm system? The same logic holds true when choosing to protect your business as when defending your home. The benefits are numerous, and added bonuses such as the business insurance discount make it an even more obvious choice.

Once you and your employees see firsthand the advantages of a safer, more well-monitored work environment, you’ll be eager to sing the praises of a more reliable alarm system to other business owners. By encouraging more people to take advantage of benefits such as the business insurance discount, you’re also making a more convincing argument for living by one of life’s golden rules: safety first.

We all know that fires can occur at any time and for many different reasons. Thankfully, there are various fire alarms available that can offer protection in the event a fire does break out in your home, whether you are there or not.

Types of Devices Available For Fire Protection

Though most homes do not need full-fledged fire alarms installed in them, it’s nice to have at least a few smoke detectors tied in with your monitored burglar alarm system. Ionization, photoelectric, and dual-tech smoke detectors are currently the most popular smoke detectors used for residential fire alarms.

Heat detectors work much differently than smoke detectors do. Rather than detecting smoke, a heat detector will monitor dramatic changes in temperature. Most heat sensors are programmed to go into an alarm condition once the temperature reaches 135 degrees. Heat detectors are perfect for those concerned with the possibility of false alarms, but they can be more expensive than smoke detectors.

Where Smoke and Heat Detectors Should Be Placed

Proper placement of smoke and heat detectors is very important. Smoke detectors should never be installed in kitchens or in garages. In kitchens, certain smells from cooking could easily cause false alarms. In garages, fumes from a car or other distinct odors could cause the smoke detectors to false as well. Heat detectors should be installed in both the garage and in the kitchen if fire protection is desired in those areas.

As far as placement throughout the home, it is suggested that a smoke detector be installed on each floor of the residence and outside of each bedroom in the home. If you or your children sleep with the bedroom doors closed, install the smoke detectors inside of the bedrooms instead. You will not be able to hear the fire alarms if the smoke detectors are installed in the hallway and the bedroom doors are closed.

Use a Keypad Fire Button for Extra Protection

Most alarm keypads provide a fire button that can be enabled to offer additional fire protection. When pressed, the 24/7 monitoring center will be notified of a possible fire at the residence and help will be on the way. A fire button will only work when physically pressed; therefore, it should only be used as a back-up to other fire alarm systems installed in the home.

When shopping for fire protection for your home, it’s best to get help from the professionals. Fire alarms are significant life safety devices that need to be chosen with care and installed correctly in order to provide the protection they were designed to offer.

When it comes to garage door security, too many homeowners fall painfully short, forgetting that the garage is one of the major access points to the rest of the home. Failing to properly secure the entrance to your garage is as risky as going to sleep with the back door unlocked, or not bothering to use the complicated alarm system sitting in the living room. While few people would be willing to take chances with their family’s safety by living in a home door and window locks, it’s unfortunately commonplace for suburban homeowners to overlook the importance of making certain they have a more reliable system of garage door security than simply rolling down the door.

Once a burglar has gained access to your garage, it doesn’t set off a red flag or attract the same sort of attention as, say, someone climbing in your dining room window. People are used to seeing a garage door standing open while people come and go, or load things into vehicles. Unless the activity is taking place at 3 AM, there’s not much to call suspicion to the scene, and most passers-by won’t give it a second thought, much less call the police. For this reason, once a thief gains access to the home through a lack of proper garage door security, he is virtually home free. Your best line of defense is to make sure a potential intruder never gets that opportunity.

Garage Security Tips

There are two important components to making sure your home is not easily accessible through an unprotected car port: the door itself, and the automatic opener used to control access to your garage, and by extension, your home. Proper garage door security involves making sure that neither component is vulnerable, discouraging a would-be intruder, and sending him in search of an easier target.

For a criminal, timing is of the utmost importance. If he takes too long to gain access to your home, or becomes too conspicuous, he risks getting caught. The risks associated with burglary are high, so criminals look for the easiest opportunity with the lowest risk factor. Here are a few things you can to enhance garage door security, and keep yourself from becoming a victim:

• Simply remembering to lock the garage door properly and keeping the automatic opener in a place that’s inaccessible to thieves is often enough to deter a criminal. Too many people remember to roll down the door without turning the lock, or keep the automatic opener in plain sight in their car. This is an especially foolish mistake, particularly if your vehicle is parked in front of the garage, rather than safely locked inside.
• Choose a keychain remote opener. There’s no safer place for your automatic opener than actually keeping it with you, and protecting it as you would a house key.
• Cover your garage door windows, or spray them to make certain nobody can see inside. Thieves don’t like uncertainty, so creating doubt is a great way to enhance garage door security.
• Install a deadbolt between your home and the garage. Restricting access from one to the other will minimize damage if an intruder does access the property.

Garage door security isn’t a complex matter; in fact, it’s largely a matter of common sense. While it may be tempting to view your home as your personal oasis, a place where you don’t always need to be alert to danger, a lax approach to protecting your castle can quickly spell disaster. Increasing your home’s level of garage door security is a simple improvement that goes a long way toward keeping your home, your possessions, and your family safe from the outside world.

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Garage Door Security

Though burglary protection is important, safeguarding your family and your livelihood from a fire is even more important. Professionally installed smoke detectors can help protect families and businesses in the event a fire should occur. Like many products, there are various smoke alarms on the market to choose from these days.

Types of Smoke Detectors

The two main types of smoke alarms currently being installed in homes and in businesses are ionization and photoelectric smoke detectors. In addition, there are also dual-tech smoke alarms that combine both types of technology.

-Photoelectric smoke detectors work to detect smoke particles in the air of a business or residence. Because this type of smoke detector is not as prone to false alarms as others currently available, they tend to be the more expensive option.

-Ionization smoke detectors do not detect smoke particles in the air. Instead, they rely solely on a small piece of radioactive material to ionize the nitrogen and oxygen in the air. An ionization smoke detector will be the less expensive option available, but this type of detector is also the most prone to false alarms. Certain scents from cleaning products or even cooking could cause ionization smoke detectors to false.

Smoke sensors that offer dual-technology are the most expensive, but they are also very reliable. If you are unable to invest in dual-tech smoke alarms, it is recommended that you install both photoelectric and ionization smoke detectors in your home and business.

The Importance of Monitored Smoke Alarms

You can purchase almost any type of smoke detector you need online and in most retail stores. They are inexpensive and are also quite easy to install on your own. The problem with these smoke alarms is that many of them are not compatible with the majority of home security systems that are installed today. What that means is that these smoke detectors will need to work independently and will not be part of your security system.

If you currently have your alarm system monitored, you know that the monitoring center will call you when they receive an alarm signal to verify if it is a false alarm or not. If you do not answer, the proper authorities will be notified.

On the other hand, if your smoke detectors are not monitored and nobody is around to hear them trip because of a fire, your home or business could go up in flames before anyone even notices what is taking place. For that reason, smoke detectors should always be monitored 24 hours per day, 7 days per week by a proficient alarm monitoring center.

There are plenty of products on the market that offer intrusion detection. The problem is, how do you know what product would be best for your specific needs? The only way to find out is to determine what you want to protect and how you want it protected.

Are You Looking to Secure Your Home or Business from an Intrusion?

Providing intrusion detection for a business is much different than providing it for a home. Businesses need a different type of security, especially high-risk businesses such as banks, pawn shops, 24-hour convenience stores, and jewelry stores.

A good commercial intrusion detection system will at least have adequate protection on each individual opening of the building, such as the exterior doors and windows. Strategically placed motion sensors will detect any intruder once inside the premises. Hold-up buttons, both hardwired and wireless, are also a must-have on any commercial intrusion detection system.

For residential installations, it is vital to have, at the very least, protection on all perimeter doors and windows. Adding motion sensors in areas of a home where perimeter devices are not installed is also recommended. If the perimeter is adequately covered, motion sensors can be added to provide additional intrusion detection.

Hardwired or Wireless Alarm System?

The debate over which is the best, a hardwired or wireless intrusion detection system, is ongoing. Though hardwired security systems have been out for quite some time, wireless systems that detect intruders are quite popular among consumers. In essence, what it all really boils down to is personal preference.

If you choose to have a hardwired intrusion detection system installed, wires will need to be ran throughout your home or business from each individual device back to your main control box. If you do not have an attic or any type of crawl space for these wires to be ran through, wire runs could prove difficult, even for an experienced alarm technician.

When a wireless intrusion detection system is installed, there are no wires to run. In fact, one of the main reasons why wireless systems that detect intruders are so popular is because the installation is so easy.

Should You Have Your System Monitored?

There is really only one right answer to this question—yes, you should have your system monitored. Why invest in an intrusion detection system if you are not going to have it monitored? An unmonitored system that detects intruders is useless if there is nobody around to hear your system and take action when it activates.

All businesses and homes will have their own specific security needs. With a little help from a qualified alarm company, you can find an intrusion detection system that will surely meet those needs.