We are about to move into the area and are interested in getting a reliable home sec system. There are so many different ones posted on the houses in the neighborhood. Do any of you have a recommendation about one or the other? Any real life stories of how good the system worked for you?

__________________
“Scar tissue is stronger than regular tissue. Realize the strength, move on.”
- Henry Rollins

Vector has good systems.

__________________
Rich McIlhenny
Re/Max Services Inc.
www.Richmachomes.com
Rmac88@aol.com

The City does charge for each alarm they respond to, real or false, even ones caused by late punch-ins. With 5 children the inevitable happened and the City's bill was atrocious; of course bureaucrats being true to their nature do not remove or discount the bill.

Be sure to check the condition of your doors, windows, etc. Security is about more than a police alert system.

__________________
Change is difficult.

A halfway-competent burglar is going to be in and out of your house in less than a minute, which means that he (there are some female burglars, but males outnumber them heavily) can operate knowing that an alarm system isn't likely to get him caught. The most effective part of the alarm system is, therefore, the signs outside, as they show a burglar that breaking into your house will be *slightly* more difficult than breaking into someone else's.

As I have noted elsewhere, though, a dog makes an excellent theft deterrent system. Alarm systems may be of dubious utility, but no burglar wants to break into a house only to be confronted by a snarling ball of nails, teeth, + fur.

I'm sure someone will mention the old 'house protected by Smith + Wesson' saw. It's worth noting that a handgun kept in the house for self-defense is far more likely to be used to injure another resident of the house than it is to defend against an intruder. And, lest anyone accuse me of being a gun hater, I'm an NRA-accredited Sharpshooter, 1st bar, meaning that I could, if I wanted to, give a burglar a shave before he even reached my front door.

-Z

Or you can properly register your alarm system with the City for $35 a year, then you won't be charged for police responding to your alarm, at all.

In addition, I think the city can only charge you for false alarms (on an unregistered system). I don't see how there can be a fee for police to respond to a real crime.

In 20 years of having alarms (3 houses), I've had only 2 alarms where the cops responded (neither in Philly). My mom set one off, and I accidentally hit a key fob "panic alarm" once while carrying something heavy. We have set it off a few times besides that, but quickly shut it off and gave our code to the monitoring firm (who would call the police if we didn't give the right code).

You can get the freebie or $99 systems from the big companies. They only do a couple of doors, maybe a motion detector and one keypad. Their monitoring costs about $40 / month for a 3-year contract, or you can find a local installer who charges less but charges for installation ($20/mo, but $1000 - $1500 up front depending on what you want done). I've always gone the latter route and have my basement windows covered also. I now have only one keypad (instead of 2 or 3, including one in the bedroom) but also have the keyfob that I love. Get signs on doors and/or outside, regardless. Mine's registered with the city but never had a false alarm there.

They now have motion detectors that only trip if someone over 100 lbs is in range, perfect for my 70-lb dog to have access to the entire house.

If you do go with a big company for the freebie, be careful if you want out of their monthly contract. My neighbor was moving after 3 years and forgot to cancel; contract auto-renews and there's only a small window to cancel.

What company do you use shorelover?

__________________
Rich McIlhenny
Re/Max Services Inc.
www.Richmachomes.com
Rmac88@aol.com

R W Stuart Electronics


Greenwich, NJ 08323
(856) 224-8600

Roy installed my house in Philly and a neighbor's 10 years ago. I have another friend who used him for his home and a separate business in Center City.

__________________
Chuck Norris can kill two stones with one bird.

“Anybody toting guns and stripping moose don’t care too much about what they do with Jews and blacks. So, you just think this through." Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-FL)

Yes there is a place where you wont be treated like a child.

Why I am voting Democrat!