Why A Motion Detector Should Only Be Used As Backup

Motion detectors are a great addition to a burglar alarm system but they should only be used as backup.  Think about this for a moment.  A burglar alarm is supposed to detect when someone has broken through the perimeter and a motion detector is almost always located on the inside of the home.  If the motion detector is what set off the system, then that means the burglar or the intruder is already inside your house.  Not the picture of an ideal situation if you ask me.

 

Let me back up a bit and explain a little about what a motion detector is and the different types of motion detectors that are available.  A motion detector is pretty much what it’s name implies.  It detects motion when there is something that tells the detector there is movement within its field of view, it send a signal to the alarm system control panel.

 

When the burglar alarm control panel gets the signal it will do one of three things:

 

  • Set off the alarm, if the alarm system is set in the “away” mode (meaning no one should be home and have the motion detector on) and someone or something sets off the motion detector the alarm system will sound immediately.
  • Ignore it, if the alarm system is set in the “home” mode (meaning there is someone home and have the motion detector turned off) and someone or something sets off the motion detector the alarm system will ignore the signal.
  • Delay a reaction, if the motion detector is located in the vicinity of the entry/exit door or the keypad, the motion detector should be in what is called a “follower” zone.  Which means if the door is opened before the motion detector is activated, the alarm system will allow you enough time to turn off the system before going off.

There are 4 types of motion detectors used with burglar alarm systems.

 

  • Passive infrared (PIR) – this is the most common and usually the least expensive.  This motion detector looks for a change in temperature (like body heat).  This motion detector can be set off when something like the sun shining in a window heats up the space.

  • Microwave motion detector – this motion detector sends out microwave pulses and measures the reflection off of a moving object.  Think of it like something that is throwing out bouncy balls and each ball takes a certain amount of time to return.  When the ball comes back sooner than expected, it triggers an alarm. Milar balloons (you know the ones that say “Happy Birthday”) are found to be the cause of false alarms with this motion detector.

  • Dual-technology motion detector – this motion detector uses a combination of passive infrared and microwave technologies.  The benefit of using this type of motion detector with your alarm system is that false alarms are less likely to happen.

  • Pet PIR/Motion detector – the final motion detector that I want to tell you about is the one that is designed to ignore pets that weigh up to 80 pounds.  These motions are great for people with pets but they can trigger false alarms if your pet is a known jumper.  Cats or dogs jumping up or down from a couch, bed, counter, whatever, can sometimes set off an alarm.

What all this means is that you realistically can only use your motion detector when you are NOT at home.  Unless of course, when you are at home at night and you don’t every get up to go to the kitchen for a drink of water or a snack, the kids don’t use the bathroom,  and they stay in their room until morning, then maybe you can use the motion detector when you are at home.

 

So with this in mind, you can see that having a motion detector on your burglar alarm system is great to use when you aren’t at home and an intruder does find a way to get inside your home without setting off any of the perimeter devices.  You’ll be glad that you added the motion detector to your home security system then, but really it’s only a good thing as a backup detection device.  Please don’t rely only on a motion detector to protect multiple openings. Use door and window contacts to protect all of your openings.  You’ll be better protected.

 

 


10 Signs That Your Identity Has Been Stolen

Is Your Credit Safe From Identity Thieves

Is Your Credit Safe From Identity Thieves

How do you know if your personal information is being used by someone else?  One of the biggest problems with being a victim of identity theft is that you usually don’t find out about it until long after the crime has taken place.  It could be months or even years until you get a call from the law or you have been denied credit or a loan. 

Here are some of the more typical ways that you can discover that you have become a victime of identity theft.

  1. You receive a bill from a credit card, utility, or telephone company in your name but you never requested any of the services.
  2. You stop getting mail, credit card statements, bills and such that you normally would expect to get.
  3. You get a call or a notice in the mail that you have been approved or denied a credit card that you never even applied for.
  4. You stop getting your bank statements or the statements from your credit cards.
  5. You notice unauthorized purchases on your credit card statements.
  6. You start getting calls from a collection agency about an account that you never opened.
  7. Your credit score goes from great to really really bad and you don’t know why.
  8. You find that there are checks missing from your checkbook.
  9. Your bank account is empty and you don’t know why.
  10. You receive notice from the post office of a change of address for yourself that you didn’t make.

Under the law, the financial institutions must take the hit of any monetary loss.  But the identity theft victim is still left with damaged credit and will have to spend months or even years repairing their creditworthiness.  Until the id theft victim has made such repairs to their credit, they may find it very difficult to get a loan, a job, find a place to live, or even just write a check.

In contrast the identity theif has it pretty easy.  Identity theft is a fairly easy crime to commit but a hard crime to prosecute and the added bonus is that it pays well.  So, as you can see there isn’t much to keep an identity theif from doing his crime.  As I mentioned before, identity theft can go unnoticed for a long time.

In October of 1998, Congress passed the Identity Theft and Assumption Deterrence Act making identity theft a Federal crime with penelties up to 15 years of imprisonment and a maximum fine of $250,000.  It established that the person whose identity was stolen is a truevictim.  Wheras, prior to the Act being passed, only the credit grantors who suffered monetary losses were considered to be the victims. 

I hope that you have found this information helpful.  If you realize that you may be a victim of identity theft, take immediate action.  Contact the company where the suspicious activity is, keep a close eye on your credit card and bank statements, make sure to contact the FTC and the police to file a report.  Until next time, stay safe and secure.


Home Security System Benefits

What are the benefits to having a security system installed in your home?  By knowing some of the benefits, you will be better able to decide if installing a burglar alarm system is the right thing for you do to.

Security System Benefits:

  • Having a burglar alarm is the number one deterrent for crimes against property.
  • Many insurance companies provide premium discounts up to 20% for homeowners with security systems.
  • Resale value – having a burglar alarm already in place can increase the resale value of your home.
  • Peace of mind.  When you consider the financial loss, days lost from work, and the dramatic decrease in your quality of life when your privacy has been invaded, having a security system can provide a lot of peace of mind.

As you can see, there are numerous benefits to having a security system installed in your home.  Once you have decided to have a security system, your next step will be to decide who installs it.  Should you go with a pro and if the answer is yes, what alarm company do you use?  If you decide to do-it-yourself, how do you go about doing that?  These are all very good questions but first you must decide if having a burglar alarm system installed in your home is the right decision for YOU.

Is Having A Burglar Alarm The Right Choice?

Ask yourself – if you would use the alarm system once it were installed.  If you aren’t likely to ever turn it on, then you might as well save yourself some time and money and not even consider installing a security system. 

Do you live alone, do you have a family, or do you have outside help that comes in on a regular basis?  If you live alone, you have more control over when the alarm system is on and when it is off and as long as you know how to use the system, you are all set.  If you have a family, you have to take the others into consideration.  Can everyone be taught to use the alarm system?  Will they totally freak out if the system goes off and not be able to take  control of the situation.  The same goes for any outside help that you may have come in.  Can you trust them to turn off the alarm system upon entry and can you trust them to arm the system again when they leave? 

Take a look at your situation.  Don’t just install a burglar alarm system because you think you will feel safer.  Yes, having a security system can do that for you but if you can’t or won’t use it after it has been installed, then you may want to consider other ways to protect your property that don’t involve such technology.