Monday, October 12, 2009

Protecting Your House With Wireless Alarm Systems

By Matthew Kerridge

In an uncertain world we need all the precaution and protection we can get. And no way of doing this is cheaper than a simple home alarm system. Dogs are great, but they can't do everything that a fully automated electronic monitoring system can accomplish. These relatively sophisticated systems are getting cheaper everyday and there's really no reason not to invest a little bit of time, money and research into them.

Both wireless alarm systems as well as their wired counterparts are effective deterrents to crime and break-ins as well as fire and other damage. Whether one chooses a wired system or a wireless type setup, both will cover you equally. Wireless systems have a few advantages; namely, they are somewhat cheaper, run on batteries so a loss of power to the whole house or one part won't knock them out, and they are tougher to spot, making disabling them much tougher.

Your run of the mill wireless home security system will consist basically of a central control unit, and the associated peripheral motion detectors, sensors, cameras, locks, smoke and carbon monoxide detectors that will link up to it. Depending on how elaborate you want to make your system and how much you are willing to spend, you can connect as many devices as you want. This is yet another great benefit of wireless systems as they are highly flexible, customizable and versatile if you need to change it.

In addition to the other advantages named thus far to using wireless alarm systems, they are incredibly easy to install and configure. Once you have your main control panel unit up and going, you simply set up your wireless, remote sensors and other detectors around the house in the usual places: on doors, by windows, next to skylights, and so on. Then you confirm that all parts are communicating wireless both with each other and the security firm's monitoring system, and you are finished.

The maintenance and upkeep of the wireless alarm system is one of the main selling points of such a configuration over a hardwired system. Other than replacing drained batteries and ensuring that there is no radio interference between the main unit, peripheral components, and home base, there isn't much else to look after. With a wired system, shorts in the wires or connection problems can impinge the effectiveness of the security measures and require pesky and costly fixes.

In terms of overall cost, most likely the biggest expense that you will face is the monthly fee from your security service provider for monitoring your system and alerting the authorities or private security in the event of an incident. This can be anywhere from a twenty dollars per month to a hundred, depending on who you use. Replacing batteries will likewise run you a few bucks here and there, which is relatively cheap for the overall peace of mind the system brings.

Wireless systems are the best of both worlds as they are very secure and effective, as well as being highly mobile and transferable to any place you want protected, since the monitoring is based on wireless networks with very solid reliability, and they rarely break down. It's important to have round the clock coverage in case of fire or any other calamity to make sure that your possessions, your loved ones, and your home are safe at all times.

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