Over our 35 years in business, we’ve installed more than a thousand security systems for our customers. Over that course of time, we’ve worked hard to stay up to date with the latest and greatest security offerings that we can integrate with your alarm. In fact, we often surprise customers by providing security solutions above and beyond what they counted on when they called us! Our aim always lies in creating the most effective and comprehensive security plan possible. This includes securing against the most common security concerns, as well as thinking outside of the box to create the most complete security possible. In this post, we show you how we go about securing against the unexpected when installing an alarm.
First, we’ll review the concerns that most customers ask us to secure against. Having this background will set us up to focus on the unorthodox security measures to come. From there, we’ll review a few specific things we secure against above and beyond the “normal” threats. Specifically, we’ll start by turning our attention to security devices that provide unique burglary detection. From there, we’ll review some environmental security that we can add to your burglar alarm. Securing your property against weather-related threats adds tremendous value to your alarm installation. Last but not least, we’ll also explain how we keep you updated on any unexpected alarm activity that takes place, especially while you are away. Now, let’s dive in with an explanation of what security systems generally secure against!
Monitored smoke detectors, such as this one by System Sensor, create an important fire department dispatch to any fire-related emergency at your home or business.
What Dangers do Alarms Typically Secure Against?
Most people who look for this security have a couple threats in mind they wish to thwart. For starters, people wish to make their home a less likely target for a burglary. After all, people call their security systems “burglar alarms” for good reasons. In fact, this security measure provides a couple layers of anti-burglar security. For starters, an attempted breach at your property creates a blaring siren response. This alerts anyone onsite to the danger at hand. Furthermore, it also likely scares the intruder away from the property. Finally, a monitored alarm also creates a central station response to an emergency. In turn, this can also create a police dispatch if necessary.
As an additional security measure, we also offer monitored life safety features as well. We can install smoke, heat, and carbon monoxide detection at your property that creates a fire department response to any one of these life-threatening emergencies. Obviously, these sensors add a tremendous amount of security for any application. Now that we have the “basics” of alarm-based security down, let’s see how we also help in securing against the unexpected!
Adding Unorthodox Burglary Security
Generally speaking, all security systems have a couple design elements in common. For example, we place security contacts on every one of a property’s exterior doors when installing an alarm. Since most thieves utilize doors to break in, we consider this a “no-brainer.” We can also place sensors on any vulnerable windows that thieves may pry open to gain entry. Furthermore, many customers also use motion detectors to provide interior security to large portions of their home or business. Many alarm systems out there rely solely on door and window contacts, along with motion detectors, to secure a property. However, while often largely effective, this approach does have its shortcomings.
For example, window contacts only catch thieves who break in by opening a window. They unfortunately fail to catch those who break windows and climb through without opening them. While motion detectors can help in these scenarios if you are gone, you cannot arm these detectors while you are on site without creating false alarms walking around your home or business. For these reasons, we often install glass break sensors near casement windows, sliders, or large windows in general. These sensors can greatly improve the effectiveness of your alarm.
Basement barrier bars, such as this one by Interlogix, activate your security system if someone climbs through a basement window.
In addition to getting creative with sensor types, we also recommend securing against creative entry methods. This includes installing contacts, such as the pictured barrier bars, on basement windows. Burglars often try to breach your home in unexpected ways. Installing these types of devices goes a long way towards securing against the unexpected. Finally, we also recommend installing some second-story security sensors. Thieves know that even alarm customers often forego taking this step. This prompts them to take their own steps to try and negate your security. Leaving no stone unturned during alarm design can greatly increase your security and peace of mind. Now, let’s look at how your alarm can create enviornmental security in addition to the security we’ve discussed thus far.
Adding Environmental Security to Your Property
When it comes to threats that your home or business faces, Mother Nature presents quite a few ways to do damage. This rings especially true during this time of year, when we experience the rainy and stormy weather associated with the spring and summer. Luckily, we have you covered! We surprise many people by offering sensors that create alerts for environmental disasters that have the potential to cause major damage. These sensors can help you detect and address these issues before they create a mess that takes a significant amount of time and money to repair.
For example, our “hi-lo” temperature detectors can create a central station response if your property experiences dangerously hot or cold conditions. This can help alert you to frozen pipes or HVAC equipment failures. Additionally, we offer flood sensors that can detect the presence of water wherever we install them. These contacts provide a huge amount of environmental security in one compact piece of equipment. The effectiveness of these sensors makes a great resource in securing against the unexpected. Next up, let’s check out a monitoring option that provides instant alerts for unexpected alarm activity.
Receiving Alerts for Unexpected Alarm Activity
As we’ve mentioned, having your alarm monitored can create a police or fire department response to emergencies on your property. Traditionally, this involves using a property’s existing phone line to create this communication. Unfortunately, this does not provide the most consistent and reliable form of monitoring. After all, phone lines can go down due to bad weather. Furthermore, burglars often cut their victims’ phone lines before attempting a burglary in order to disrupt alarm monitoring. For this reason, we recommend installing our Alarm.com-powered cellular dialer for alarm monitoring. This dialer creates a consistent, cell network-based path between your alarm and our central station, keeping your alarm monitored without depending on your phone lines at all.
Creating Alarm.com alerts that notify you if nobody armed the alarm system allows you to do so from your phone, preventing you from having to wonder if your alarm system was armed by the last person out the door.
Moreover, our Alarm.com dialer also adds the benefits of interactive alarm monitoring. We use the term “interactive” to describe a direct connection between your security system and your smartphone. Alarm.com users can arm and disarm their security systems remotely. Furthermore, they can receive text or push alerts based on alarm events and status updates. These events include major happenings, such as alarm activations. They can also include system arming and disarming events to help you track access to your property.
Additionally, you can also set up alerts regarding other unexpected alarm-related events. For example, if your system loses power, you can receive a message from Alarm.com. This lets you know that power has gone off at your home. Likewise, you’ll also receive an alert when A/C power gets restored. You can also receive notice if the system backup battery or any wireless sensor battery gets low. Finally, you can even receive alerts if expected events do not happen. For example, if you expect someone to open your business by 8am, you can create a notification to let you know if this fails to occur! This level of control and customization make Alarm.com interactive monitoring our most popular and effective monitoring option.
Putting it All Together and Securing Against the Unexpected
We hope that this post helps you see how we can help you with securing against the unexpected. Moreover, we invite you to contact us with any security-related inquiries you may have. We will happily put you on the path to experience the security you need at any application. Furthermore, we also encourage you to take advantage of our free site survey program. We offer complimentary security audits and equipment quotes to both new and existing customers alike. Whether you want to upgrade an existing alarm or start from scratch, we’re here to help! Together, we can help you create security to keep your property — and anyone on it — as safe and secure as possible.