DIY Home Security Systems - Recommendations

Doc,

They sell doors like that here, you'll see them at the home and garden shows usually. But, as tough as the door is, it's no tougher than the wall its mounted into. I've broken into houses by kicking the doors out of their frames, the frames out of the walls, or by just going through the walls.

And don't forget the windows. Wonderful entry points, all of them. There's really very little noise from shattering glass. And window cases come out of a wall even easier than door frames.

foxtrapper wrote: . I've broken into houses by kicking the doors out of their frames, the frames out of the walls, or by just going through the walls.

There's got to be some good stories to go with this.

In the end, if they want in badly enough, they'll get in.

OK, you guys are playing in my back yard now. Alarm systems- After 40 years in this business, I am a very firm believer in BIG noise. Even though I made a good bit of money selling central monitored systems, I would never trust the police to respond effectively. They get so many false alarms (+95%) that response is not a priority. Sirens are available that put out 130dB, at under 100.00. I used to put TWO of them inside the front door of a business. NEVER had a successful breakin there. Protect all the accessible openings with a decent wireless alarm system. No, not Radio Shack crap, you are talking about your home here. Pro quality stuff is a bit difficult for a home owner to find, but it's on the web. Look for Ademco or DSC, both are excellent professional companies. Wireless unless you are a lot better than you think you are. The only time I really want central monitoring is on a fire system. Cameras- unless you get pro quality cameras, and connect them to a pro quality recorder, you are going to get video that looks like COPS on TV. I hate that crap. A good quality alarm system will cost you a few $$, but much less than the total cost from Broadview or ADT. WHATEVER YOU DO, do not call ADT until you check BBB in your area. 20 years ago they were great, and tough to compete with. Times have changed. PM me if anybody needs more info. I got lots, and like to share.

pigeon wrote:

foxtrapper wrote: . I've broken into houses by kicking the doors out of their frames, the frames out of the walls, or by just going through the walls.

There's got to be some good stories to go with this.

Not really. I was once an obnoxious punk kid.

A few years ago, I was house hunting and saw houses built by a nationally known builder which were, from outside to inside: vinyl siding/foam insulation board/pink fluffy insulation/drywall. You could shove your fist right through it. There was a 4x8 sheet of OSB in each corner for stiffness.

I did a few hard wired systems, I like them because there's no batteries to change in the remote switches. Regardless, get something which makes a LOT of noise, add a couple of strobe lights (put them at the roof peak, under the eaves) and add a battery backup.

...don't do anything with security... just have lots of neighbors around me with big dogs and live in a redneck area...

anyway... if you do have a monitored system don't use a VOIP service... I don't care how good it has been for you... I work for an ISP... and every time someone calls us asking about using it with ADT or whoever I kinda snicker... no ISP is 100%, power goes down so does the modem... and your phone... for real world phone use I can deal with that... but when you're dealing with something like an alarm system don't do it... :)

I've bought Ademco (now Honeywell) stuff for two different houses over the last 8-10 years. I have both wired and wireless parts to my system. The wireless is more expensive and requires battery replacement (every 2-3 years, it seems) but there are some places you just can't run wires.

The system is very reliable and pretty easy to use. I put it all in myself. Running wires can be a pain, but the wired switches and sensors are so much cheaper it can be worth it.

I have a Vista 20P, 2 keypads, 4 motion detectors, ~6 glass break sensors, and a bunch of accessories. One cool add-on is X-10 controls for lights. You can have it time the lights to turn on and off as if you're home, or you can have it turn on lights (or blink them) when the alarm triggers. My system is just a noisemaker to protect the family. It is not monitored.

I bought all my stuff from A&E home security. I haven't bought anything in a few years, but they appear to still be in business.

http://www.aesecurity.com/

-Brian

Like people have said - if they want in, they are getting in so... what you need is a trap door, a chute and a cage in the basement. ... and lots of insulation so the neighbors can't hear them scream.

I had a friend that had ADT's service about 10 years ago. It was so bad, it was just really, truely, unbelievable. He tried for six months to cancel the service. They wouldn't do it. He stopped paying them. They still wouldn't cancel the service. Not a contract thing either, they just wouldn't cancel him. You have to remember the bean counting angle to understand why, but basically, as near as I can tell, they were a complete scam organization consisting of a billing department, a sales department and nothing else.

Our moose club was hit , they just cut the alarm at the street . Knocked out alarms for Harley davidson dealer and Pooch Parlor . They stoled the safe and cash left the checks though ? Get yourself a couple of dogs and phoney cams and have your local sign make some alarm system signs .MOST LIKELY it was local kids/meth heads goto pawn shops and see if any of your stuff is there and keep eye on Clists for your stuff. We just got 2 pit bull walker hound puppys

Anyone tried out the new Schlage LiNK stuff? Wifi based, ties into cameras/keypads/thermostat/outlets and runs it into software/pc program with remote access.... phone access etc...

http://link.schlage.com/Pages/home.aspx

Doc- When I got into the business, ADT was run by technicians. They had the best equipment that was not available to other companies, well trained sales people, excellent installers. Very good service. When Tyco took over, the accountants restructured the company, then they started franchising, putting unqualified people in the business. Disasterous does not come close to describing the end result. A shame, really.

I was helping my friend with his paperwork through a difficult time in his life. I gave up on them after 3 months of my trying to get the service stopped. He had already been trying for maybe six months before that. It was insane. They finally sent his account to a collection agency over a year after he last sent them any money and tried to cancel his service. Bean counters strike again.

I have a friend who worked for 25-years for Simplex > Grinnell > Tyco and took an early retirement to get the berkeley out of there. I actually interviewed with his boss several years back and was absolutely floored with the high level of both arrogance and idiocy from he and the entire organization.

Re: Simplex/ Tyco. My wifes BIL was terminated six months before eligible for retirement. 20 years with the company, position eliminated. Re: Cut phone/ alarm signal wires- That risk can be eliminated by useing cell phone tech. It will cost you ~30.00 per month, though. Some companies are switching to internet based monitoring, but reliability is a big problem.

Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote: Like people have said - if they want in, they are getting in so... what you need is a trap door, a chute and a cage in the basement. ... and lots of insulation so the neighbors can't hear them scream.

Don't forget to put lots of lime in the bottom of the chute.

Ever see those TV shows on English castles? They'd have a chute with a steel spike down at the bottom, 50' or so down. They'd toss whoever pissed them off down the chute and forget about them. These chutes where usually right off the party room. I guess that was entertainment for the rich. Must have stunk pretty bad, but then I think people didn't pay as much attention to stink back then. People were buying these castles and having to clean all the bones out. They found a gold wristwatch in one.

Dr. Hess wrote: Ever see those TV shows on English castles? They'd have a chute with a steel spike down at the bottom, 50' or so down. They'd toss whoever pissed them off down the chute and forget about them. These chutes where usually right off the party room. I guess that was entertainment for the rich. Must have stunk pretty bad, but then I think people didn't pay as much attention to stink back then. People were buying these castles and having to clean all the bones out. They found a gold wristwatch in one.

You know... normally I'm not the murderin' sort but if I went and paid to have a deathtrap right there off the party room... I think its going to get packed full of irritating guests and Jehovah witnesses eventually.

I think maybe it needs a log chipper in place of the spike.

I'm enjoying this topic, and it's very timely and valuable to me as well. Our local Elks lodge has been broken into a couple of times over the past few months - just kids stealing liquor from the club room so far - and we realy need to up our security and need the best bang for the buck.. We are a very small lodge in a very small town, in a historic building to boot, so we are both cash limited and visual impact limited. We have done the steel door frames, etc, since the last breakin, can't really do the dog thing, and are hesitant about motion detectors outside because we have lots of deer (and a few bear in the summertime) that walk within 5 feet of the building all the time.

I really like the castle pit, but our members who are also policemen might not agree.

Anyhow, keep up the suggestions, we are already investigating a few of them.

If any of you are Elks and are ever in southwestern Colorado, please stop by!

Jim Pettengill Ouray, Colorado Elks 492

I can't count how many bars I've wired up. Most interesting one was Dukes Club. At least that's what the manger said in the initial phone call. When I get there, brass plaque by the door says "Las Duccas Della Abruzzi". Hmm. I make the deal, put in a VERY good VERY expensive system and present Red, the manager, with the bill. He says" Oh, you have to go see Mr. Naples for that". That was the Youngstown Godfather. Collecting money from the Mafia was interesting.

cwh wrote: Most interesting one was Dukes Club.

Was it "Bada-Bing" ish ?

Large, protective dog. Mossberg next to the bed. It works for me.

You don't need to make it impossible to break into your place. You just have to make it less attractive than the obvious alternatives. Anything that will slow an intruder down (this includes dogs), loud noises (this includes dogs), bright lights, and "this place is protected" warnings (this includes dogs) are all good.

Remember that a break in is most likely going to be the stupid 15y.o. kid from down the block who just wants your booze/guitar/electronics to play with.

Was it "Bada-Bing" ish ?

You have no idea. This was the real thing, the real Mafia. I did several more bars for him, a few trucks. Then Red called me, wanted to talk about an alarm. I went to see him. He grabbed a bottle of Jack and we made some small talk. Then I asked him whay he wanted to put in. He told me, no, they want me to take one out. Defeat an existing system. Gave me the location of the jewelry store, the model numbers of the alarm panels, the phone lines they were on. I had the knowledge to get around these systems in minutes. I also knew what my life expectancy would be if I got involved. So I told him "Man, I have no idea how to do that. We'll all go to jail, I don't want to do that to you." He said " I guess I don't have to tell you not to say anything about this to anybody, do I.". Never told that story till I got to Florida. Do a Google search on Joey Naples, you will see who I was involved with. By the way, never got another penny from them.