A home security and surveillance system can be an essential part
of any modern automated home and should be designed early on during the
pre-construction design phase if you choose to do so. The scope of this article
concerns the basic security and monitoring considerations used in selecting the
final security blueprint. Did I say “final”, no such luck. As the
industry advances, so do all the extra bells and whistle add-ons that make the
security/monitoring design both easier to apply and maintain. The result is
both peace of mind when away as well as when you are occupying your home either
day or night. Evergreen is quiet area but you can’t be to rich, to thin or have
too much peace of mind.
The basic design of a security system begins with analyzing the
needs of the occupants, studying the layout of the house as well as the land it
sits on, surveying existing technology and hardware, reviewing system costs,
considering monitoring choices, and finally planning the installation.
In addition to the advanced perimeter and interior protection
offered by most security systems, most new designs allow for surveillance
monitoring which include features that enable the owners to observe both
real-time video (even on a smart phone) and environmental conditions inside and outside the home when
at home or away.
Home surveillance system, video cameras and display systems are
considered by most contractors to be optional after the sale items. And they can be with IR tech. However, I
feel if possible they should be part of the original design process.
One of our clients owns a heavily wooded ranch style home that sits
over multiple acreage with over 7,000 square feet of living area with a 15kw
standby generator, significant landscaped and irrigated gardens, 5 acre
perimeter monitoring, and all monitored and gated 700 foot driveway. He
wanted a system that was easy to operate as well as easy to maintain. His final
design consisted of over sixty sensors of various types both hardwired and wireless. During construction they hardwired “all”
perimeter entry doors as well as hardwired significant glass break coverage
for all windows in a multi zoned design
which included motion traps, and numerous smoke and heat detectors per our
local building codes.
After they planned for the hardwired detectors they went back and
installed redundant wireless monitors which included garage door sensors, and
service utility rooms monitoring for heat, cold, motion, water, smoke, and
carbon monoxide. This home contains a radiant heat system in all areas including
the garage spaces so it was important to monitor three zones with cold temp alarms.
There is a monitored 5 acre pet perimeter invisible fence installed as well.
This home has a fully featured professional weather station installed as well
as numerous wireless and wired IP cameras to finish off the system. The master
alarm panel is not only battery backed up but they have added a standalone UPS
system to it.
The master panel is constantly monitored by a central station
which offers a significant discount on
home insurance policies as well as continued peace of mind while they are
away.” It is nice to see it snowing while we are away in Florida on the beach.
Likewise we can monitor our property via the IP cameras from our cell phones as
well as receive alerts from our monitoring company from practically anywhere
with cell phone or internet access.”
Other clients utilize safe rooms and even a metal detector under
the drive just to have a heads up for when guests drive up. If this all seems a
bit much, a k9 companions work great too with additional benefits.
A little thought goes a long way, and features will expand and
become more reliable.
We don’t show up unannounced ……
