Would Appreciate Any Insight, And Experience You Might Have Regarding Home Security Systems That You Use To Protect Your Audio Gear And Home

[Lobbster]

I have a good wired alarm system integrated into home automation. Part of the automation system is a Vacation function that learns our lighting use behaviours and plays back when we're out. I feel much more comfortable that my house looks like someone is there and don't have to worry about a false alarm or something. I rarely use the alarm unless I'm gone for a week or more.

[TubeLover]

22 hours ago, rex4539 said:

Move to a safe place.

When I moved to the house I am living in now, last October, there had never been a home break in, or any violence or other crime related issues in over twenty years, which was a factor in my choosing this area. I wanted to get away from the heavily populated suburbs and the continuing and increasing crime. If you think you are truly safe anywhere, in the current world, you are fooling yourself. 

 

JC

[TubeLover]

Thanks to everyone for their helpful comments and thoughts on the matter. Enough positives have arisen, here and elsewhere that make SimpliSafe a real, and affordable possibility. It was in a couple reviews where they noted that they only notify you, and not the police etc. in these circumstances. I will talk to them personally to get o the truth of that.

[MetalNuts]

Apart from surveillance camera installed and household insurance, the extra security I can think of is to buy equipment bulky and heavy which surely create difficulty and time for the intruder if he wishes to take your equipment.

 

 

 

 

[cjf]

A few counter points I would make to some of the responses in this thread.

 

1. Yes have insurance for sure....but I wouldn't put too much weight into the insurance company making everything whole again if/when such a situation occurs. They have so much fine print in the policies its sickening. Then some might say "well I'll just sue them". All I'll say is, I wish you the best of luck in your endeavor.

 

2. I actually prefer to monitor my Alarm system personally. One reason is its waay cheaper. Second reason is, I've had several "Monitoring plans" in the past from supposedly good companies but IME each one never did their part as good as I did when an alarm went off be it for real or by accident. Be honest with yourself when making a choice here.

 

3. Cameras are recommended but be sure they are setup correctly. By this I mean, make sure they are not physically accessible to the intruder as much as possible. Ideally mounted waay up high but not so high that you use up all the available pixels required to make out a face should you need to. There is allot of crap on the market for sale when it comes to IP Camera's. If you do your research you'll probably notice most Camera's are pretty much useless after about 15ft and even worse in the dark...even with IR lighting supporting them. Don't skimp on the Camera. I use Axis Communications camera's. They are up there in terms of price but there is a reason many corporations with something worth stealing also use them. Bring your wallet but you likely wont be disappointed. I'm very satisfied with mine.

 

3a. Make sure the video footage is very inaccessible and not just sitting on an SD Card within the camera itself. It should be elsewhere on a NAS that is also very inaccessible/hidden. If using an IP camera be sure to have the POE switch on a UPS all of which is also hidden away from prying hands. If your cameras can be easily defeated they are useless!

 

4. For Alarm systems I went the DIY route using upper tier brands. This worked out fine for me because I am very familiar with the inner workings of configuring them but realize not everyone is in the same boat. I'll just say stick to what the Pro's use and avoid the Amazon specials.

 

4a. Ideally pick an alarm panel that uses both Internet and Cellular communications. Or Phone line and Cellular. A smart thief will bring his wire snips along for the ride. Cutting the Internet connection or phone line would be no problem with a system that also uses 4g/LTE as a secondary outbound communication path

 

4b. Yard signage is a good idea, window signage is a good idea. If they get past those two warnings and still come in your house then they clearly no longer have a will to remain above ground. I'll leave it up to you how to proceed from there ;)

[TubeLover]

Thanks cjf. I appreciate the input on this topic. I will certainly take all of your recommendations and advice into my decision making.

And speaking of insurance, while I "believe: I have a good policy, and it has actual amounts they will cover, in total, including them being aware of the value of my audio gear, music gear, firearms, etc. Alternately, speaking of insurance companies, I spoke to an acquaintance that was the victim of  a major robbery last year. His claim was for something well over $50k. Within a few months of the insurance company cutting him the check, his rates rose by over 30%. So, you get robbed again, this time legally. It leaves me speechless that we pay such significant monthly premiums for insurance to protect ourselves, and our possessions and then, should we ever actually USE the coverage we pay for, they jack up rates simply for us having had the nerve to actually cost them something. 

 

Unlike some people, and I understand their position, someone willing to break into my home to steal things I have worked hard to own has crossed a line in the sand that I cannot back off of. If I am there, I would honestly have no problem dispatching them. These days, as in these robberies near me, and many others, the thieves are very often on dangerous drugs, and there is absolutely no way to assume that it is safe to do anything other than shoot first. Their widely variable and unpredictable behavior, greater than normal strength while under the influence and other things simply allow for no safe way to deal with them otherwise. And I have had two local police officers state this to me. Granted, this definitely assumes that they are in the home, when you come across them. 

[cjf]

17 hours ago, TubeLover said:

Thanks cjf. I appreciate the input on this topic. I will certainly take all of your recommendations and advice into my decision making.

And speaking of insurance, while I "believe: I have a good policy, and it has actual amounts they will cover, in total, including them being aware of the value of my audio gear, music gear, firearms, etc. Alternately, speaking of insurance companies, I spoke to an acquaintance that was the victim of  a major robbery last year. His claim was for something well over $50k. Within a few months of the insurance company cutting him the check, his rates rose by over 30%. So, you get robbed again, this time legally. It leaves me speechless that we pay such significant monthly premiums for insurance to protect ourselves, and our possessions and then, should we ever actually USE the coverage we pay for, they jack up rates simply for us having had the nerve to actually cost them something. 

 

Unlike some people, and I understand their position, someone willing to break into my home to steal things I have worked hard to own has crossed a line in the sand that I cannot back off of. If I am there, I would honestly have no problem dispatching them. These days, as in these robberies near me, and many others, the thieves are very often on dangerous drugs, and there is absolutely no way to assume that it is safe to do anything other than shoot first. Their widely variable and unpredictable behavior, greater than normal strength while under the influence and other things simply allow for no safe way to deal with them otherwise. And I have had two local police officers state this to me. Granted, this definitely assumes that they are in the home, when you come across them. 

Agree 110%

 

My recent experience with my own insurance company who I've been with for over 25yrs and never filed a claim has reconfirmed my long standing suspicion that I've had on them doing their part when needed. I had recent storm damage and had to file a claim for the very first time ever. They had their inspectors come out and inspect the damages and write up a report. Insurance paid out a few bucks worth of what it would actually cost a professional to fix it back to normal. This was after the professional submitting their own quote to the insurance company. Long story short, it was a joke. Could I get a lawyer and go down that path? Sure, but who wants to deal with that mess. With unlimited time and funds maybe but short of that it would be a losing battle. I'm still waiting to see what happens to my rates.

 

This is certainly not the same situation described in the thread here but I dont have a warm and fuzzy feeling things would be any different when dealing with a robbery.

 

All you can really do is try and prevent the situation in the first place to the extent possible so you dont have to beg them to pay you back some of that money you've given them after all these years. Its disgraceful to say the least.

[Desertpilot]

I went with the Qolsys IQ2+ panel through Safe Home Central and Alarm.Com with monitoring (about $250 a year).  I installed it myself plus the door sensors, CO2 and Fire monitors.  Since we are in our 70s, I added the "panic" buttons to call EMTs.