I am moving from a house where we don’t lock the doors most of the time to one that has a security system installed already. We have two dogs–one huge and one tiny (although the tiny one is the one I would fear if I were a burglar).
There is, statistically, a bit more crime at the new location but nothing to really worry about. My family in Florida uses security systems and I hate the beeping and the whole idea of living that way. I also hate the little signs in the yard and the stickers on the window.
I guess my question is–do people actually feel safer with a security system in their home? How often do they go off randomly? Should I just leave the sign and stickers up and assume that would deter would-be burglars?
Lock your doors, keep the stickers and keep the dogs. I will say that my DOG likes our security system because it lets him know when he should get up and run screaming to a door.
We have a security system. You get used to the beeping that occurs when you open a door that is equipped with an alarm but I think you can program your system to not hear every sound (our back door says, “back door open!” whenever we open it - we’re ok with that!)
I was weird about the “look” of the signs and stickers. I just chose visable but not “in your face” spots for the signs (and pushed into the ground so they aren’t 3 feet tall) and put the stickers in minimal places - one in a front window, one on one of the back door panes, one on the sun porch door - they are small and really are not obnoxious.
I don’t think I even have any stickers or signs. I just have an alarm. It beeps when I turn it on or off, but not when I open doors (such as to let the dog out). I like having an alarm system very much.
It depends how much it costs per month for monitoring and how threatened you feel. From the sound of it, given that you have dogs that will bark, you would probably have plenty of security if you just left the signs/stickers in place and locked the doors when you’re away.
Thanks for the feedback! We will for sure lock the doors at the new house. Maybe I’ll keep the stickers, but the sign by the front steps really bothers me. On the other hand, the neighbors are used to seeing it and some of them have security systems so maybe it isn’t as “unfriendly” (at least to law-abiding visitors) as I might fear. It just makes me sort of sad somehow.
We installed a system after our home was broken into when we were away for Thanksgiving. We only use it when we go away. It is monitored, never gone off randomly but I have set the smoke alarms off a few times and they are quick to call and see if it is a true emergency (need a password so if they called and a burglar answered they would not know it). No beeping at all. I don’t think a small sign announcing you have a system is unfriendly at all!
I have a security system–no stickers or signs. The only time it’s gone off unexpectedly was when there was a power outage. Fixed that when we got a whole house generator. If you have people coming to your house like a cleaning service you can program a special code for them. We also installed motion detectors in a couple of rooms–these are tied in to the security system.
We had a security system but never used it. Even had a sign in the front yard. Then we were burglarized last summer in the middle of the night while we were at home. We immediately began using the system, and within a few weeks, upgraded to get some more features.
Regarding dogs…if someone really wants to break into your house and you have dogs, they will bring along a few choice select raw steaks, and they can pretty much neutralize the dogs until they can either hurt them, or get what they want. Our burglar was in our house for less than 40 seconds and managed to get H’s watch, wallet and iPod touch… enough to cause some major inconvenience for several weeks, and cause us to be out-of-pocket for a few hundred dollars.
Yes, I absolutely feel much safer with our system… H refers to it as Ft. Knox now. We use it all the time, and with the iPhone app, when I’m nice and comfy in bed upstairs, and begin to wonder if we remembered to lock everything and turn on the alarm, I can just pull up the app and see. If we forgot something, I can take care of it from my phone instead of having to go back downstairs. We have glass break detectors, cameras, motion detectors, and window alarms as well as the alarm system.
The police told us that the large majority of burglaries occur during the day time when people are not at home. We were just lucky I guess (::sarcasm::). We moved the sign in the front yard so it is more visible now, added a sign to the back door (where our burglar came in), and added stickers to some windows and doors.
I read somewhere that homes which display stickers for security systems are less likely to be burgled. I did not verify the truth of that statement, but it seems logical.
We have a system although we live in an area with very little crime. My H’s employer insisted on it and they paid for it. We also have six cameras that we can access remotely, if necessary. The chimes for the doors opening and closing can be turned off if you don’t like it. I didn’t think I’d like it at first, but have gotten used to it and now, I like to hear when someone is coming or going. We use our system most often when we’re travelling. We have contacts on all windows and doors, and glass breakage indicators. The smoke and carbon monoxide detectors are also a part of the system, and it is backed up with cell coverage in case of a power failure. Our alarm has never gone off randomly. I don’t think the signs are unfriendly, but rather may serve as a deterrent.
As for dogs being enough. Friends of ours had their home broken into a few years ago, during the night while they were all sleeping. Their four dogs slept through it, too!
Ours is routed directly to the fire dept. for carbon monoxide. One time H was changing/fixing something on one and the truck arrived fast! We called and told the alarm company that H had messed with it but by law they must check it out.
We live on a very narrow lane and it was fun to see these strapping men have a ball backing the truck out as there is no turn around. Must have been a slow day.
If for no other reason, we keep ours for the monitoring. Also,if I get spooked I can set it so that we can still walk around the house.
What we really need is an intercome/camera. We could get it through ADT but it is too much $$.
Our entire neighborhood is on really steep hills and yet at 8:00 pm, in the dark, the doorbell rang twice.
Our front door is a beautiful wood and I do not want to put a security door in but am thinking about it.
Evidently, if you do not answer the door the burgler thinks you are not home.
Yes, dog barks and barks but could be bought for a treat.
Yes, we do save $ on our insurance for having a unit.
This is a surprisingly emotional decision for me. Part of it is the loss of innocence I feel from having to worry about this kind of thing after not thinking about it for so many years. I think another reason is that I am moving to a neighborhood that has recently gotten a bad rap because of increasing crime on the fringes and some challenges in the local schools, which have a lot of lower-income families (and thus declining test scores, etc.). In actuality the immediate area around the house is as safe as any and has no more property crime than most places. But most of the people I know live in places with no real “fringe” to them, and their experiences with diversity are limited to what they see at the schools–never in their own neighborhoods.
I have a security system. Got it shortly after I divorced because I worried that I might appear to be an easy target: middle-aged woman alone in a home with a young daughter. Put up the stickers. Refused the signs. I use it consistently, and yes, I feel safer with it. I know that a determined criminal can figure out how to bypass the system, but I’m hoping he/she chooses an easier target.
I first had a security system when I was a 21yo first-married with a spouse who was in residency and thus was often gone for long stretches or late at night. I kind of consider it a basic, honestly. It’s the kind of thing that if one of my kids were to buy a condo or townhouse I could see springing for a security system. I don’t think it’s sad, anymore than just licking doors or taking other general precautions.
^^^I disagree. If one gets to the point they are licking doors, something pretty sad is going on.
Ha ha, funny typo.
D2 lives alone in a little cottage in her college town, in one of the “safest” neighborhoods in town. DH and I had a security system installed before she even moved in. I agree that it may be more than an average thief would want to mess with, given that most other homes in the neighborhood would be easier targets. At least, that’s what we are hoping.
@sally305 - I think many people would describe where we live as an area where they don’t typically have to worry about this kind of thing. We do not live in a high crime area. What might have made us targets is that we live at the end of a cul-de-sac (with no houses around the circle part of the cul-de-sac due to a small park with a pond there with a walking path), so very little car traffic. It was an easy escape once H chased him out of the house.
But now we know, and won’t fall for that sense of being invincible again. Of course, had we been using the security system at the time of the break in, it wouldn’t have happened. A sign alone did not deter him… oh, we have a dog, too, who sleeps in the basement and heard nothing. In fact, when the police arrived and wanted to search the house and make sure no one else was there, they went down to the basement, walked right past pooch in his crate, and he never made a sound. When we let him out and they were upstairs dusting for fingerprints, we had to keep him from sniffing around in their equipment. He couldn’t care less that they were there.
