G.mech Posted February 14, 2015 Report Posted February 14, 2015 We live in a rural area of Southern Ontario and there have been more and more daytime robberies of homes and garages lately in the 'hood so I am thinking it may be time to install a home security system. I'm not sure what the best way to go is and am debating between a camera system and an alarm system (dogs and booby traps are off the table). I would want to secure both the house and the shop which is a separate building but I do have a conduit buried between the building for cabling if necessary. My concern with the alarm system is all the exposed wiring and cost of monitoring/false alarm fees etc but I'm not sure how effective CCTV cameras really are. Any thoughts would be appreciated.
manitoubass2 Posted February 14, 2015 Report Posted February 14, 2015 (edited) I dont have a system nor experience here but I was looking at some security systems a few weeks back that looked decent. It was either wal mart or canadian tire. I believe they were wireless(?) And you could view through your phone or computer. I thought that would be pretty handy Edited February 14, 2015 by manitoubass2
fishing n autograph Posted February 14, 2015 Report Posted February 14, 2015 There are plenty of companies out there, do your home work. A beware of dog sign works too. Keep in mind, the pro thieves don't care about an alarm system though, professionally speaking.
ketchenany Posted February 14, 2015 Report Posted February 14, 2015 I live Ina m are where practically evry home has an alarm, but now with someone at home all of the time I' debating the cost. Also 50 % of the residence are pole who are retired and the are always out:) We have lost a few cars in the last two months due to people 'warming' them up. They won't listen!
Big Cliff Posted February 14, 2015 Report Posted February 14, 2015 I did a lot of research a couple of years ago on different systems because we had a few things go missing. I got some really good information from members of this site on the different systems and then on top of that I contacted a professional company to come and give me a quote. The long and short of it was: A professional system with monotoring was going to cost me way more than it was worth to me. Wireless systems are easier to install than wired systems but not as reliable. Wired systems can be expensive (and difficult if you are not experienced) to install. For what I had to protect a wireless system with a recorder was the best value for $s and the best place I found to buy it was Costco. The quality was excellent and the support was excellent. Price is going to vary all over the place depending on what you want to do with it and how many areas you want to cover. Lastly, don't bother trying to "catch" someone ripping you off, try to prevent it from happening in the first place so lots of signage "Monotored by Video" signs will do a lot to prevent someone from taking the chance even if (no, espicially if) they can't see the cameras.
Gerritt Posted February 14, 2015 Report Posted February 14, 2015 Thieves are creatures of opportunity..... If they think a certain house might be more difficult then the one down the road, they will choose the one down the road. That said I have a dog. A gentle giant that would rather lick your face off.... His bark though would certainly make you think twice.... However I have no doubt he would act if he felt we are in danger. Make yourself more difficult then those around you. As FnA suggested a beware of dog sign, a few stickers on the windows letting otherS know your alarmed.... Even a few conspicuous fake cams will help as well...... Your making it difficult, remember? That said be sure to keep everything lite up ( outdoor lighting) Should you want to I stall a system be sure if the phone line is cut... It will still work. Thieves as the lowest form of scum in the human gene pool..... They will take the easy road... The more difficult you make it the more they will avoid you. G
bigugli Posted February 14, 2015 Report Posted February 14, 2015 Dogs and evidence of redneck chique can be very useful deterrents. It may sound too simple, but leaving lights on in the house will work.
fishing n autograph Posted February 14, 2015 Report Posted February 14, 2015 Keep trees, shrubs and bushes away from the front of your house, if you do have them keep them trimmed short. What you think is privacy gives the bad guy concealment and time to move around in your yard. Keep your house well lit. Lock your doors and cars up at night and keep valuables out of your cars. If you live in the gta get a remote car starter because warm up thefts are huge here
manitoubass2 Posted February 14, 2015 Report Posted February 14, 2015 Keep trees, shrubs and bushes away from the front of your house, if you do have them keep them trimmed short. What you think is privacy gives the bad guy concealment and time to move around in your yard. Keep your house well lit. Lock your doors and cars up at night and keep valuables out of your cars. If you live in the gta get a remote car starter because warm up thefts are huge here Good advice!!!
G.mech Posted February 14, 2015 Author Report Posted February 14, 2015 (edited) Lots of good suggestions but most of the stuff going on around here are daytime thefts when everyone is at work. I do have lots of motion detector lights that work great, there are very few places for people to hide around the buildings so that's not a big issue and we are normally home at night anyway. When there's few neighbours around the scoundrels really don't seem too scared to drive in in broad daylight and clean people out which is really my vulnerability. I think I like the camera idea as Big Cliff suggests.... Edited February 14, 2015 by G.mech
ketchenany Posted February 14, 2015 Report Posted February 14, 2015 Keep trees, shrubs and bushes away from the front of your house, if you do have them keep them trimmed short. What you think is privacy gives the bad guy concealment and time to move around in your yard. Keep your house well lit. Lock your doors and cars up at night and keep valuables out of your cars. If you live in the gta get a remote car starter because warm up thefts are huge here Dave, you are soooooo right about warm up thefts. As I said we lost five in five hours recently. 3 in woody and 2 in Richmong Hill. They guys were caught I'm in Sanoma Hights and can't believe the number of cars warming up when I leave for work at 7:20. When I moved in my daughters were sitting out front waiting for us and our neighbour walked up and asked what they were doing? My oldest girl just said waiting for mom and dad as we are moving in. Some of these old folks are better than alarms. Lol I need some of those Beware of Dog signs.
fishing n autograph Posted February 14, 2015 Report Posted February 14, 2015 I responded to one of the warm up thefts lol smh
2 tone z71 Posted February 14, 2015 Report Posted February 14, 2015 Throw some empty shotgun shell casings around your entrance
ketchenany Posted February 15, 2015 Report Posted February 15, 2015 I responded to one of the warm up thefts lol smh the look on their faces must have been priceless! I hardly see you guys lol
Sandbag Posted February 15, 2015 Report Posted February 15, 2015 A gate on your driveway restricting easy access to the property can work wonders. Quite often the thieves will drive up the driveway and knock on the door. If it is answered they will say they are looking for someone fictional and pretend they got the wrong house. If the door is not answered they will kick the door in and clean you out. If they are unable to pull a vehicle up close to the house it makes it much more difficult. Cheers Craig
ch312 Posted February 15, 2015 Report Posted February 15, 2015 I'm not sure if I would waste money on an alarm system after seeing a few different people using different companies intentionally set off their alarms during the night just to see how long it would take for police to arrive. Long story short, you're on your own and alarm systems serve two purposes, deter rookie intruders and provide a false sense of security to the homeowner. I will say all 4 people had entry level systems and have no clue if response time decreases if a premium is paid? I really believe the key to preventing people from entering my home is to not give them a reason in the first place. So many people have no clue that they're unintentionally advertising their home is full of goodies by not closing window coverings at night, leaving garage doors open all day, leaving their toys in plain sight for extended periods of time, tossing the packaging from high value items beside the curb or posting pics of everything purchased on their social media pages(big one!). A few security system stickers on the windows and some dummy camera's will likely suffice. If the crooks ignore these two deterrents odds are they're experienced and the only thing that will stop them is force or an unusually quick police response time. That said, a PAL and cheap 12 or 20 gauge with a 12" barrel will run you less than $500 and will provide a last resort solution should a simple robbery turn into a life threatening situation.
Whitespinnerbait Posted February 15, 2015 Report Posted February 15, 2015 (edited) Don't shoot the messenger here, but I don't think a video camera deters in any way whatsoever. Edited February 15, 2015 by Whitespinnerbait
lew Posted February 15, 2015 Report Posted February 15, 2015 Don't shoot the messenger here,but I don't a video camera deters in any way whatsoever. And also it seems 1/2 the time they show a video of a suspect it's so darned blurry it's impossible to see anything discernible anyways.
fishing n autograph Posted February 15, 2015 Report Posted February 15, 2015 Camera technology has gotten better by leaps and bounds. The bad camera footage is either old systems or a cheap camera. I've seen some that are crystal clear and the person is identified immediately. It all comes down to how much you want to pay and how bad break and enters are in your area. If I lived in the GTA I would spend money on a camera system. Thank god I don't though lol
bigugli Posted February 15, 2015 Report Posted February 15, 2015 Trip wires, daisy cutters and land mines.
fishing n autograph Posted February 15, 2015 Report Posted February 15, 2015 Don't forget bouncing Betty's and spike pits
Raf Posted February 15, 2015 Report Posted February 15, 2015 big dog and tasteless hunting decals on your vehicles. a set of 'testes' hanging off your hitch couldn't hurt either.
bigugli Posted February 16, 2015 Report Posted February 16, 2015 Don't forget bouncing Betty's and spike pits Weren't that far back when the wealthy in Ontario would have armed guards on their properties ( I'm sure some still do), or lay snares like the trip wire and daisy cutter for the undesirable visitor or poacher.
mistaredone Posted February 16, 2015 Report Posted February 16, 2015 I bought a house few years back, the alarm kept beeping through the night and finally went off in the morning, 10 mins later the police showed up, I told them I just moved in and they left without ID check or anything. As soon as the cops left I ripped the alarm off the wall and cut all the wires
lookinforwalleye Posted February 16, 2015 Report Posted February 16, 2015 Where the hell do you people live....
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