What is Necessary for a Home Security System?

I used to work for a home security system installation company. I know how confusing it can be trying to decide exactly what features to include in your home security system. Do you need motion sensors? Door contacts? What are the necessary components of a home security system and what is just extra fluff?

Homeowners should be well educated before accepting the quote for a home security sytem. Some items are absolutely necessary. Other items are only useful in a handful of situations.

Panel

This is the "brains" of the home security system. This is absolutely necessary for your system to work. Every other part of a home security system is wired into the panel.

Door Contacts

An intruder is likely to try entering through an easy access point, such as a door. I suggest that you secure all of your exterior doors with a door contact. When the home security system is armed, the door contact senses when the door opens. This causes the alarm to go off.

Window Contacts

Window contacts work like door contacts. The home security system's alarm is triggered by the window being opened.

It may or may not be a good idea to use window contacts. If you have only one window in the room, then a window contact may be a good idea. However, if a room has several windows, it may be more cost effective to install a motion detector.

Motion Detector

A motion detector protects the entire room. This includes windows. It will also pick up the movement of someone getting up for a midnight snack, so they aren't effective in high traffic areas. However, they are a great addition to a home security system while everyone is out of the house.

Motion detectors are unnecessary in rooms that have no windows or exterior doors. An intruder would have to walk through other areas of the home in order to get to the room. The home security system would already have gone off by the time they reached an interior room.

You don't have to worry about your pets stopping you from installing a home security system. There are "smart" motion detectors that will recognize a human moving about, but will not go off if a dog or cat is moving in the room.

Some motion detectors also have a glass break sensor. It is attuned to the sound of breaking glass. If a window were broken, the alarm would go off. A window contact will not cause the alarm to go off if the window were broken.

Monitoring

This is another key part of the home security system. While it is not a part that can be installed, it is vital to the security of a home.

When a home security system is monitored, the security system is able to use the telephone line to call the authorities if a break-in occurs.

If an alarm is tripped, the home security system usually calls a monitoring center. An employee of the monitoring center will telephone the authorities. A homeowner can also ask that he or she be called first in case of an alarm. This is to ensure that the security system has not been accidentally set off.

By paying a small fee, a homeowner can be assured their home is constantly being monitored.

A Basic Home Security System Consists Of...

A panel
An alarm
Door contacts for each exterior door
Window contacts for bedroom windows and other windows that are easily accessed from the outside
Motion detector in the main living area of the home (used only when all residents are gone)
Monitoring

There are other advanced components that can be added to a home security system. For example, a larger house may have several motion detectors with glass break sensors. A smaller home may only need one.

By understanding the purpose of each part of a home security system, consumers can be sure they are protecting what is dearest to them without spending an excessive amount of money on items they do not need.