Are alarm systems worth it

[Sharpdogs]

Tonight an alarm system salesman came to my door trying to sell my on some new type of alarm system with a bunch of bells it whistles. In your experience are they an effective deterent. I have two big dogs, anything of value is locked up, motion lights, dead bolts, retired next door neighbor with gun :) etc. The set up cost of the system does not bother me but the $40-50/month can take a bite out of the monthly budget.

[Preacherman]

An alarm system is handy under two circumstances:

1. If it alerts you to the presence of intruders in time for you to do something about it before they are on top of you, or alerts you to a fire in time for you to control it while it's still small, or get out safely;

2. If it alerts you at a distance (i.e. dials your cellphone, etc.) if someone tries to break in in your absence.

Those systems that claim to send round a security guard, or call the police, are usually not worth much - by the time the response gets there, the thieves have come and gone. In the same way, those that alert the fire department if a fire alarm goes off . . . well, by the time the FD gets there, the house is usually a goner anyway.

[eghad]

Just get a sign and some stickers.....

[CraigJS]

And if you get one, don't post the little signs saying what company or type alarm the house has guarding it. Get a more generic warning sign, thats all the info a BG needs!!

[Henry Bowman]

My father (RIP) was in the security system business (small and independant) for 25+ years. They are in fact a good deterrent. You get what you pay for. The big companies make their money on the monthly monitoring fees. Shop and compare. The system should be designed around you and how you live (kids, pet, mother-in-law, etc.) not the other way around. If you don't/won't/can't use it, it's not worth anything more than the stickers on the doors. It's like the super-duper tricked out CCW piece that you leave in your safe because it's too ____ to carry.

[musher]

I wouldn't let some guy who showed up at my door install an alarm system.

I'd grab the phone book and go visit some companies.

[sgphoto]

Someone showing up at your door to sell alarms--great way to see what you've got.

Now they know you don't have an alarm and any items of value are noted, whether you have dogs, pictures of wife and kids, etc.

Probably not the case, but be extra vigilant!

[BullfrogKen]

It depends on where you live.


In inner city Baltimore, burglars would focus in on an alarmed house, and intentionally set the alarms off over the course of a month of two while the homeowners were away, such as at work.

Alarm systems calls home, no one answers, the call goes to the local police to check it out. After a few calls, homeowners get billed for "false alarms". I think the last time the law permitted the police to bill the homeowner was in the neighborhood of $50 first infraction, $100 second and thereafter.

Almost every municipality has adopted some sort of similar statute.


Eventually, the homeowner turns off the alarm, or routes the call to come through a work/cell number rather than home for the "password" to signal the alarm company to NOT call the police again.

These things can be circumvented, and are everyday in this way. In the end, the homeowner:

1 paid a lot of money for what amounts to an unmonitored system
2 paid multiple fines for false alarms
3 doesn't get the deduction for a monitored alarm system because it was not monitored when the burglary occurred
4 and still lost possessions

Just remember where you live and that this happens in areas criminals like to burglarize.

[Freddymac]

Who needs an alarm when you have dogs. But seriously,if your dogs are anything like mine, the let me know if someone is remotely close to my house. With most alarms, the BGs have to be in your house to set it off. Alarms are good in the fact that everyone else (neighbors, police, the dead, if you get the mega loud alarm) knows that someone else is in your house.

[Heraclid]

I am not a professional thief, but even I can spot the fake generic stickers and signs in a heartbeat.

[hso]

The FD responds to my place in under 3 minutes.
The SD in under 10.
The neighbors in under 1.:evil:

Make sure it's a local company that the PD or SD recommends that monitors 24/7. Make sure they call you when it goes off. Make sure it's so bloody loud it can be heard a 1,000 feet away. Use glass break as well as door/window triggers (motion detectors if no pets to trigger).

Oh, unless your dog can call the cops when you're out, get a monitored alarm.

[444]

"...by the time the FD gets there, the house is usually a goner anyway."
:what:

That ain't gonna happen here. I seriously doubt that happens in any decent sized city.
However, let me tell you this from a fireman's experience. Over the last 15 years I have responded on more "alarms without reset" or "water flow alarms" than you can imagine. Hundreds and hundreds. Several a day, every day. I would bet that our department responds on dozens of these per day department wide, maybe that is a low estimate. If I was listening to our dispatch radio for an hour I would be surprised if I didn't hear at least one every hour.
Right off the top of my head I can remember three being actual working fires. A few more were fires that were out when we got there. The rest were false alarms. We don't bill for these responses, but we should.
I guess I have another little piece of input, quite freqently we respond to an alarm and find out upon our arrival that it was a burgler alarm. This isn't good for either one of us.
Something that POs me about these alarm companies is that they advertise an immediate response to their alarm. Yeah, they call 911. They advertise this like they are providing a service when in fact the taxpayer is providing the service while the company charges you for it.

[taliv]

i could take or leave the monitoring service, but i'm a big fan of the alarm system itself. mostly this is because there's a ding and a voice in my bedroom that tells me when any door/window is opened and which door it was.

this has a lot of value for several reasons
1. i know when kids and friends enter and leave the house. nobody gets in/out without me knowing which door they went through.
2. occasionally, a strong wind will blow the door open after my daughter has failed to close it properly. the alarm lets me respond before the dog escapes :)
3. instead of hearing a mysterious 'noise' in the middle of the night and having to investigate, you should pretty much know where the problem is.


i'm no expert, but i'd guess most false alarms that result in dispatches are generated by motion detectors and whatnot, as opposed to doors/windows actually being opened. since i mostly use the alarm for when i'm home (as opposed to when i'm away) i have never actually had a false alarm called in. i guess it just depends on how you use it.

[Kingcreek]

A good alarm system is a wonderful thing.
I live in a secluded rural area and sometimes we're gone for hours or even days at a time.
my business was burglarized and the police response at 2 am was 2 minutes. burglar was caught coming out the door.
I wouldn't have anything to do with a doorknocking alarm salesman, but I would take down his vehicle license #.
I pay $250 per year for full monitoring and I've had 3 false alarms in 10 years. some minor upgrades and mods during that time.

[JMusic]

Preacherman gave sound advise. I'm not a fan of alarm systems but then I use dogs. During my career I never saw a sucessful breakin where dogs were present no matter the size. Now alarm systems were a different story. If I was to install one It would be by a local dealer with good references, it would utilize cellular notification, it would have the master control or secondary control in master bedroom showing where break had occured.
Jim

[ALHunter]

when I read your post the first thing that crossed my mind was what SGPHOTO replied.

For peace of mind, if the guy left any card or brochure, call the company and verify not only that he works there, but what he looks like. Could easily be a guy who picks up a salesman's card/brochure and pretends to be him to scope out your house.

[TallPine]

We have a big dog, and so far no mule deer or wild turkeys have yet broken into our home ;)

[Keith Wheeler]

I'm not a fan of "let's extract consumer surplus by scaring them and getting them to pay a monthly fee" type alarms that call to report a break in. What I've got on my out buildings are simple, battery backed up alarm systems with glass break and motion sensors, with loud sirens. The goal isn't to let you (or the cops) know, because for the most part, once you know it's too late. The goal is to let the bad guys know you know.

My alarms trigger an external siren, piezo screechers inside the building (those things are painfully loud) a blue strobe light on exterior wall facing the house, in addition to keying the mic on a radio (as loud as the sirens are, it's not easy hearing them from inside the house).

If you're concerned about paying someone to come in to your house and get a chance to scope it out while knowing the alarm system type, location, etc, these things aren't that complicated to install.

And if, like me, you live in a rural area on some acreage, and you want to know what's going on before a break in, check out a nifty little product called "the reporter".

[RuralTurtle]

As my screen name might suggest, I live way off the beaten path. Since I live so far out and do a lot of work from home, I never really saw a need for an alarm system.

My brother, however, is a cityslicker. He had a unit installed. One day the toddler mananged to trip it. Within a matter of minutes a LEO was on the doorstep. I'm sure you mileage will vary, but it did change my mind a little on the technology. I can't recall the model and/or the service.

Anyway, just FWIW.

[Alex45ACP]

My dog does everything an alarm does, and if someone breaks in, she'll **** them up too :cool:

[rbernie]

i could take or leave the monitoring service, but i'm a big fan of the alarm system itself. mostly this is because there's a ding and a voice in my bedroom that tells me when any door/window is opened and which door it was.Bingo... We almost never turn the alarm on, but having it installed and configured to activate a loud chime whenever a door or window is opened is a valuable thing...

[Kingcreek]

We also have 2 large dogs. one inside, one out. We arm the alarm system every night when we go to bed and every time we leave the house. got the system monitor next to the bed.
peace of mind.
my wife worries about somebody breaking in while she is home.
I worry about somebody breaking in while I am gone.
this way we are both happy.

[ccw007]

I have one that is monitored and love it. My company is local to this area. Mine is really cool and was sold when he showed it to us. You can set it to say what zone has been opened. So when someone opens the side door it will say Side door opened and when it is closed it says Side door closed. When the alarm goes off the security company comes over an intercom with two way communication and the call is recorded. This could be helpful or harmful in self-defense you just need to watch what you say. They can also see what zones go active when the alarm is triggered. To me is it worth 35.00 a month for it after having someone try to breaking a couple years ago when we were not home. It also gives the wife security when she is home alone.

[2lucky]

Preacherman is right on the money. For most people a monitored alarm system is a waste of money. All you need is an alarm that makes a racket inside and out.

If you were a retail business with jewelry or guns, etc., that's a different matter and a different thread.

[taliv]

why would it be different for a retail business?

[Sharpdogs]

Thanks for all the replies. I spoke with a woman at work who's husband owns/runs an alarm and security business. She said that $40/month was steep and I should shop around. My neighborhood is pretty crowded and I have two sets of retired neighbors who watch my house when I am out. I checked out the company's website and I was not impressed, so I will shop around before I get anything. To quote my wife, "why do I need to spend $40/month when I spend at least that much on dog food and vet bills." I think the $400-500/year in monthly costs would be better spent on new gun safe. Plus I have the pleasure of filling up the safe with new toys.

[jwharris]

I'm intrigued by "The Reporter" K. Wheeler suggested. I may put that out on my driveway.

I also like the idea of the ones which tell you what has been opened (door, zone 1 window, whatever). Are those connected to a monitored system or stand along systems? What brands do that?

I've also been looking at the GE Smart Homes remotes for lighting systems. I like the idea of being able to turn the lights on/off on someone I know is in the living room (hopefully scaring or "blinding" them before I get to the room). Has anyone used this system? Is it worth the money?

[gryphon]

We recently got a monitored system. It is the kind with 2 way communication in the event that an alarm is tripped. Had the alarm tripped once by someone? Police arrived in under 2 minutes...found an outside door cracked open and the dogs going nuts.

I left the door unlocked and it appears that someone tried to just walk in. The dogs and the alarm prevented that. If not, my mistake could have cost us the whole house.

I like it because I go to work before the wife and we have had problems with her ex-husband. When I leave I set the alarm. Gives her and me piece of mind that if something happens, she does not have to call anyone, just not responding at all will have the police make a visit. Not to mention the dogs will be let loose and she is getting just as good with the .45 as me.

I agree that $40 might be a little much for monitoring, I only pay $29 a month.

[Soybomb]

To me they seem like a good idea if they're installed well. I'm a heavy sleeper. I'll probably hear if someone kicks my door in, if someone lifts a window I have open for air in the nice weather though theres not a chance. Showering pretty much ruins that too. I like the idea of an alarm as a sentry that would wake me. It also seems like you'd be less likely to stumble in on a burglary in progress however slim those odds are too. If it would get the FD out there before my house burned to the ground and I wasn't home that would be nice too. To me its more what it could do for me when I'm home than it is what it does when I'm not home.

[Jeff White]

Many places have outlawed direct dialers. Many jurisdictions allow you one or two false alarms a year on a monitored service and after that it starts costing you everytime they respond.

Over the years I have been sent to the wrong address several times by the company that has the little ones and zeros that spread out to protect the house in their TV commercials.

Most police departments will not make an emergency response to a burglar alarm because of the liability involved if there is a traffic accident on the way to a false alarm. A panic alarm is a different story, but a plain burglar alarm doesn't get an emergency run.

A nice loud alarm to scare the burglars and alert the neighbors is a good idea, but I agree with the others who say that most people don't need a monitored alarm.

Jeff