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History of Alarm Systems

In 1874, L.H. McCollough invented the first mercantile alarm system. The first alarms systems utilized a single zone of protection that extended around the perimeter of the facility. The zone was nothing more than an electrical circuit that allowed current to constantly flow from one end to the other. When a door was opened, or a window was broken, the flow of electricity would be interrupted and the panel would cause an alarm. The panels would utilize a McCollough transmitter to send a type of code to the local police or monitoring facility. The McCollough transmitter was a wind-up device that was connected to a dedicated copper circuit. When the alarm was triggered, the McCollough transmitter would unwind and send a series of pulses along the dedicated copper wire.

The signal is best compared to a type of Morse Code or Telegraph Signal. After the alarm went off, the McCollough transmitter would need to be re-wound so that it was ready to send the next alarm.

The McCollough Receiver would tap out holes in stripes of paper. An alarm dispatcher would compare the holes with a list to pinpoint where the alarm had occurred. The earliest McCollough transmitters were utilized for fire alarm pull stations.

Needless to say, this forever changed the way that alarms were responded too. Fire Brigades could now respond much faster to the scene of a fire.

Alarm panels have come a long way since the days of the McCollough transmitter, but as a testament to the technology invented by McCollough, some of the most secure alarm transmission methods available today utilize a very similar technology.

How A Burglar Alarm System Works

In its simplest form, a Burglar Alarm System utilizes a control panel, an arming station and a combination of perimeter and interior protection to provide a deterrent shield to protect your most valuable assets.

When an unauthorized entry is detected by a perimeter or interior sensor, the system will initiate an alarm.

The alarm panel is tied into your telephone line to allow it to send digital signals to a Central Station Monitoring Facility. The Central Station Alarm Monitoring Facility receives the alarm signals and immediately tries to verify that the alarm is real.

Depending on the type of alarm, the Alarm Dispatcher will first call the premises to try and contact the alarm user. If the user answers the phone, they are asked to provide a pass-code that identifies them as an authorized user. If they can provide the correct pass-code, the alarm is logged, but authorities are not dispatched.

If no one answers the phone, or if the person answering the phone cannot provide the correct password, the authorities are dispatched to the scene immediately. After the authorities are dispatched, the Alarm Dispatcher will attempt to reach a pre designated call list of individuals who can meet the authorities at the site to let them in to investigate the cause of the alarm.

Alarm systems are a valuable resource that can provide you with a strong deterrent to forcible entry and help you to protect your most valuable assets.

The Security System Control Panel

Depending on the size of your home or business, there are many different types of alarm panels that can meet your needs. Hardwired or wireless, from 4 to 8 zone hardwired panels to intelligent addressable systems that can monitor hundreds of points. The options are endless and varied, but they all accomplish the same basic thing, keeping intruders out.

Make sure that the control panel that you purchase is U.L. Listed for your application. Underwriters Laboratory offers separate listings for alarm panels that are utilized for Residential or Commercial Burglary and Fire Protection.

Control panels vary greatly in features and benefits. A smaller 4 to 8 zone panel will only support a few devices and a handful of user codes. You can add more than 8 devices to an 8-zone panel by wiring multiple devices in series. Smaller panels will also offer limited choices in arming stations, and the total number of users/codes offered to the end user.

If you are installing a basic burglar alarm in your home with four outside doors and three interior motion detectors and everyone will utilize the same code to arm and disarm the system, a smaller 4 to 8 zone panel will work great.

In a commercial building with multiple outside entrances and hundreds of users, you are going to want a panel that supports multiple zones with individual point identification, an alphanumeric display and individual codes for each user.

Personal Identification Numbers

Alarm systems normally provide several different "authority" levels for security codes. The authority levels are based on Personal Identification Numbers or PIN numbers as they are sometimes referred to, which should only be known by the user. PIN numbers should be easy to remember, but sufficiently hard to guess.

Most commonly PIN numbers are 4-digit numbers in the range 0000-9999 resulting in 10,000 possible numbers, so that an attacker would need to guess an average of 5000 times to get the correct PIN.

Security System User Authority Levels

The Installer code allows entry into programming, and will allow arming of the system but cannot disarm the system unless the system was armed with this code. All systems come with a default installer code. You should make sure that your security provider changes this code during the installation.

A Master code will arm and disarm the system, allow access to event buffers (explained later) and provide the ability to add/delete or change the system user codes. These codes should only be assigned to system managers.

A User code allows standard arming and disarming of the system. This code is assigned to the everyday users of your alarm system.

Baby Sitter or Housekeeper codes can only arm the system but cannot disarm the system unless the system was armed with this code.

A duress code is intended for use when you are forced to disarm the system under threat. When used, the code will disarm the normally, but will silently notify the alarm company of your situation. The duress code is only useful if the system is monitored by a central station.

Event History and Reporting Options

Most burglar alarm panels provide an event buffer that keeps track of recent events on the system, such as alarms or opening and closings by the user codes. The buffers vary in size and in some cases, the event buffers can be turned on or off in the system programming. If this is a feature you desire, make sure the panel you are considering supports this option.

An alarm panel can be programmed to send opening and closing reports (arming & disarming) to a Central Station Monitoring Facility. The Central Station can then send you a weekly report of who has armed or disarmed your system. The reports will include the date and time and they can be invaluable in an investigation. Central Stations will charge a premium for this service, so be sure to check on the pricing if you desire this service.

Both the event buffer and the opening & closing report features are more valuable and useful if every user of the alarm system has their own individual code for arming and disarming. In a large facility with multiple users, it is also easier to delete an individual code than to make everyone remember a new code. Keep this in mind if you have a high turn over of employees.

Alarm System Partitioning

In some cases, you may want to arm and disarm different areas of your building separately and independently from each other. In the security industry, this is called partitioning. There are several manufactures that offer panels with up to 8 separate partitions. Each partition acts like its own independent alarm system.

When it comes to partitioning, you definitely want to enlist a professional. In a partitioned system, User codes can be programmed to arm or disarm single areas, multiple areas or the entire system. If not managed correctly, individual user codes in a partitioned system can be become difficult and confusing.

Central Station Monitoring fees can also be more expensive for a partitioned burglar alarm system. This is especially true if each partition is programmed with a separate account number and you require opening & closing reports from each partition. If you require an alarm system this sophisticated, make sure your factor in the monthly monitoring and management fees into any purchasing decision.

Important Considerations

Some other things to consider; If you opt for Central Station Monitoring, make sure that all connections to your telephone line are wired to provide line seizure so that the alarm panel takes precedence over any incoming or outgoing phone calls.

All alarm panels should be provided with at least a 4-hour battery back-up. You can increase or decrease the capacity by simply adding more batteries. If you experience prolonged power outages, you might consider adding additional back-up capacity. If your alarm panel is more than 4-years old, you should have your batteries replaced.

Make sure your alarm panel is connected to a good building ground such as a cold water pipe, or a buried ground rod. This simple measure will insure that your investment is protected from transient voltage spikes.

Be sure that any hardwired zones on your system are wired for supervision (explained later) for shorts or tampering.

Hardwired or Wireless Security System

Hardwired alarm panels are less expensive than wireless panels, but they are harder to install. Keep this in mind if you are planning on doing the installation yourself. An average home installation with a hard-wired system takes about 12-16 hours. A typical wireless installation will take less than 4 hours.

Some types of construction lend themselves well to a hardwired installation, and others will require the use of wireless. Normally all commercial alarms are hardwired, and most new residential installations will utilize wireless.

Even if you purchase a wireless alarm panel, most installations will require that some of the devices are hardwired. These typically include the power transformer, the electrical ground wire, the telephone connections and any keypads/arming stations and audible alarms. There are some exceptions to this like some of the newer all-in-one units currently being offered which incorporate the base unit, arming station and audible alarm into a single unit that plugs into one of your existing phone jacks.

Alarm System Supervision

The most secure and reliable installation methods utilize hardwired installation with end of line (EOL) 1 or 2-resistor supervision. In fact, Underwriters Laboratory installation standards for federal government and other high security installations require all zones of protection to be hardwired with complete 2-resistor line supervision.

While a normal electrical circuit is a parallel circuit, a typical alarm circuit is a 2-wire normally closed loop with end of line supervision.

A normally closed loop allows electrical current to flow from the alarm panel, down one wire through the alarm initiating device and back to the alarm panel. When the current is interrupted, the panel will register a fault on the circuit/zone. End of Line (EOL) resistors are added to the circuit so that the alarm panel can supervise the condition of the zone for ground faults, electrical shorts and open or cut wires.

Multiple normally closed devices can be connected to a single zone by connecting the devices in series, with the EOL resistors installed on the last device in line. This way, the entire circuit is completely supervised from the panel to the last device in line.

If you opt for a hard-wired alarm system, make absolutely sure that the system is installed with the supervisory resistors at the end of the line. To make installation simpler, many installers will place the resistors in the alarm panel rather than at the end of the line. While this method provides supervision of the zone for ground faults, it does not provide protection for a direct short or worse yet, someone splicing into the wire and shorting them together which will essentially close the loop so the panel will not see the zone open or close.

Point Identification Remote Modules

In larger commercial or residential installations, many panels will support remote modules that can greatly expand the number of alarm zones on your system. These remote modules/zone expanders tie into an RS485/422 Data Loop and have built in supervision between modules. Depending on the manufacture, they come in 1, 2, 8 and 16 zone configurations. In a 50,000 SQF warehouse, the use of remote point modules can save thousands of dollars in wire and labor costs. An alarm panel with remote point modules can be expanded to 128 zones or more of protection.

In large alarm system installations, it is not unusual for the panel to have 8 hardwired zones directly into the panel and a combination of remote point modules in the field. Many top end manufacturers build the point modules directly into door position switches or motion detectors to allow you to simply wire from device to device without the added costs for individual point identification modules.

Wireless Alarm Panels

When wireless alarm systems first appeared on the market, they were not very reliable. Most of them were Non-Supervised. A non-supervised wireless alarm transmitter would only send a signal "one way" to the alarm panel receiver when it was activated. For example, when a door or window was opened, the transmitter would send a signal. The alarm panel would receive the signal and activate the appropriate zone. The transmitter would not send a signal when the door or window was closed, so the receiver/zone had to reset itself after a few seconds. With a non-supervised wireless system, you could actually arm the system with a door or window wide open without even knowing it.

Another problem with the older non-supervised systems is that you do not know when the batteries in the transmitters are low or need to be replaced. The only way to verify that they were working is to periodically test them.

Most of the early wireless systems were very limited in their addressing schemes. They utilized dip switches with binary addressing to differentiate between points on the system. This was O.K. if your wireless system was installed and commissioned correctly, but what happened when your neighbor installed the same type of system? If the neighbors motion detector was addressed the same as your garage door, your alarm would go off every time they moved around their house. As you can imagine, this could cause some major problems that were very difficult to troubleshoot.

Most modern wireless systems give you the ability to program a transmitter as supervised or non-supervised. There are still a few circumstances where you would want a wireless transmitter to be programmed as non-supervised.

A wireless panic alarms that personnel can carry with them is a good example. If someone takes the panic alarm transmitter away from the premises, a supervised alarm panel will go into trouble when the transmitter is out the range of the receiver.

A fully supervised wireless alarm utilizes two way communications between the transmitters and the receivers; therefore, It can tell you the real time status of a door or window. If a door is open, it will keep the zone faulted until the door is closed. If your transmitter has a low battery, the keypad/arming station will immediately inform you of the trouble condition.

Most wireless security systems utilize the 300 MHz frequency to transmit alarm signals to the alarm panel. Recent innovations in wireless alarm panels utilize 900Mhz frequency hopping, spread spectrum technology to send multiple, redundant messages in a short burst which greatly enhances the signal and increases the range. Although the 300 MHz systems are a proven technology, a 900 MHz system will have a much greater range because the FCC allows 900 MHz to be broadcast at a higher power.

Even the most sophisticated wireless alarm panels are useless if the transmitter batteries are dead, therefore supervised wireless panels are programmed to check in with each of the remote transmitters at least once every 24 hours. They can be programmed to check in as much as every 10 minutes, but it will greatly reduce the life of the transmitter batteries.

To extend the life of the batteries, most systems will only transmit the supervisory signal as described in the preceding paragraph or on a change of state, such as a door or window being opened or closed. Wireless motion detectors will send a signal when they detect motion, and then shut themselves off for a few minutes to conserve battery power.

In order to provide the longest possible life, most wireless transmitters do not use standard batteries. They typically utilize some type of proprietary Nickel Cadmium batteries that cannot be bought at your local electronics store. Remember that the life of the batteries will vary depending on the type of sensor, how the system is programmed, and the environment in which it is installed.

Modern wireless systems utilize serial numbers, binary house codes, or other proprietary technology to assure that only transmitters enrolled into your panel will be received by your alarm system. If you do your research and purchase a good reliable supervised alarm system, you should never need to worry about your neighbor’s wireless transmitter setting off your alarm system.

With any wireless system you should always test your system regularly. The performance and range of any wireless product can be affected by the environment and the structure in which it is installed. Additionally, the range can be adversely affected by environmental conditions, interference form electrical devices or even the orientation of the transmitter in relation to the receiver.

Be warned, there are still systems being sold and installed today that are non-supervised, so make sure that any system you are considering offers complete wireless supervision.

Alarm System Keypads and Arming Stations

Your interface to the alarm panel is through the keypad which is sometimes referred to as the arming station. It provides a window into the system to allow you to arm and disarm the system, summon for help, check the status of points, add or delete user codes or check your alarm panel’s event buffer. With a few possible exceptions, the keypad/arming station will also allow you complete access to the system programming.

Almost all alarm system keypads offer a 3x4 PIN pad user interface just like a standard telephone system. The PIN pad allows you to enter your personal identification number to arm and disarm the system and perform secondary functions such as adding a code, sending a silent alarm or activate any of the other system features or options.

All alarm system arming stations include small audible alarms to provide feedback and annunciate entry & exit delays and most of them incorporate "instant action" keys to summon emergency personnel.

All systems will have at least one keypad near the main entry door. Many people opt for additional arming stations at secondary entrances or in master bedrooms or even wireless keypads that can be moved around the house. Systems that support system partitioning will require a keypad for every partition.

Not every system will support 8-keypads, so be sure that the system you get will support the total number of keypads that you want to install, including any future expansion.

The simplest keypads offer annunciation of the zones with LED annunciators. Most of these keypads are limited to smaller installation with less than 12 zones of protection. For basic functions, these keypads are very simple to use. Be forewarned, performing system programming with this type of keypad can be cumbersome because the feedback provided to the programmer is in binary and requires you to pay close attention to the programming manual.

The next step up in security system keypads offer fixed alphanumeric displays. This keypad offers enhanced functionality over the standard keypad and will provide the user with more detailed information. The fixed alphanumeric display will provide you with feedback such as "alarm zone - 1", or "system trouble - low battery" which can help you quickly decipher what is happening with your system and provide a friendlier programming interface.

The top of the line keypads offer 2-line 32 character alphanumeric displays that can be programmed with custom descriptions to individually annunciate alarms. A large library of standard "words" are available along with user definable custom words so that you can have the system display exact information such as "Tony's Bedroom Window", or "West Office Motion". These keypads are only available on higher end systems, but some people feel that the extra price is well worth it.

If your plans include multiple partitions or more than 16-zones, Security-Kits recommends that you do not even consider anything less than custom alphanumeric arming stations.

Security System Keypad Functions

Note: Not all options are available on every system and each system may refer to them differently.

• Armed Stay : Arms perimeter protection but not interior protection.
• Armed Away : Arms all protection & enables entry and exit delays.
• Armed Instant : Arms all protection & disables entry and exit delays.
• On Watch : Keypad annunciates all door or windows being opened with a beep, but does not cause alarms.
• Bypass : Allows bypass of faulted zones or devices.
• Silent Panic : System sends silent alarm to central station. *Alarm system must be monitored for this feature.
• Duress Arming/Disarming : User enters special "duress" code at keypad, system disarms normally but sends a silent alarm to central station. *System must be monitored for this feature.
• System Test : Pulses sirens for 2-3 seconds and annunciates and records each device as it is activated.
• Code Add or Delete : Allows user to add or delete additional codes through the keypad.
• Auxiliary Functions : One-touch request for police, fire or medical emergency.

Most keypads are hardwired, although a few manufacturers are offering wireless keypads as an option. Some manufacturers are even offering wireless keypads that are non-supervised so that you can keep it in your vehicle to allow you to arm or disarm the system remotely.

Alarm System Sirens and Audible Alarms

An alarm is usually accompanied by a loud audible alarm. The audible alarm can help to scare off the intruder, and alert your neighbors that there is a burglary in progress. Most local codes require that the audible alarm shut itself off after 10 minutes.

An outside siren will typically be installed in an attic vent, or on the outside of the building facing the main road or area of population. Outside sirens are extremely loud, with some producing over 110-decibles. They can have different tones depending on the type of alarm. Steady for fire, whooping for burglary, etc.

A siren installed in an attic vent will offer plenty of protection, while one installed on the front of your building could be tampered with. Some of the more expensive outside sirens will have built in tamper switches and flashing strobe lights. If the siren includes a tamper switch and it is pulled of the wall, it will immediately cause an alarm.

Indoor audible alarms are offered in many varieties and audible levels. Some are much smaller than an average door bell and produce over 100-decibles.

If you have fire protection on your system, National and Local Fire Protection and Life Safety Codes may apply to audible and visual alarm placement and design in your facility.

Whether you choose inside or outside audible alarms, they are sure to minimize your losses, as a burglar is not going to hang around very long with a loud audible alarm going off.

Alarm System Zone Types

There are many different types of protection available that can be tied into your burglar alarm system to protect your assets. Any type of protection you install on the system will be programmed to react based on one of the following zone types.

• Entry/Exit : Typically an outside door that triggers a programmable entry/exit delay to allow you time to enter the building and enter your code to disarm the alarm *only active when system is armed.
• Perimeter : Normally an outside door or window that causes an immediate alarm when the device is tripped *only active when system is armed.
• Interior Follower : An interior motion detector that will cause an immediate alarm if tripped, unless the entry/exit zone is triggered first *only active when system is armed.
• 24-Hour Audible : This zone type is usually used for smoke alarms, flow & tamper switches, water sensors and occasionally glass-break detectors. This zone will send an alarm 24-7 to the central station and set off the local audible alarms.
• 24-Hour Silent : Panic alarms are normally programmed to react 24 hours a day whether the system is armed or disarmed. This zone will send a silent signal to the central station, but will not set off any type of local annunciation or audible alarm *only useful if the system is monitored.
• Trouble : A zone type used to provide feedback from valves, or other supervisory switches. A trouble signal causes the keypad/arming station to beep, but does not send an alarm to the Central Station, or set off the system siren or outside audible alarm.
• Trouble Day/Alarm Night : A zone programmed to cause a trouble alarm during as described above the day and an audible alarm at night. The alarm is only sent to the central station after hours.

Burglar Alarm Sensors

Door Position Switches

Every exterior door into your home, office, warehouse or store should have a door position switch installed. Depending on the application, they can be a magnetic reed switch or a roller/plunger type switch. Some applications will require surface mounting while others can be flush mounted.

Double door applications will usually require (2) contacts that are wired in series although some double doors such as those that have manual flush bolts with a single active leaf, might only require a door position switch on the active leaf.

Most door contacts will be the magnetic reed switch variety. In burglar alarm applications, this is a simple normally closed switch that utilizes a small magnet to close the contact. When the magnet is present, it closes the switch, when the magnet moves far enough away, the switch opens.

Magnetic reed switch contacts react very quickly. Normally they trigger an alarm within milliseconds. This fast reaction time makes it extremely difficult, if not impossible to try and open a door and quickly replace the magnet while keeping the switch closed.

Overhead Doors will utilize a rugged surface mount type of door position switch that has a wider gap than a typical pedestrian door switch. This wider gap allows for a little bit of play in the door without causing an alarm. This really comes in handy if your overhead doors are not in the best of shape, or are shaken around by vibration, wind or other environmental conditions.

If your overhead doors are really beat up, or move around a lot, a pull cord can be attached to the doors. A fixed plug is attached to the overhead door with a small chain. A matching plug is installed on the wall, next to the door. Before arming the system, you simply plug the two cords together to complete the circuit. If the door is opened while the system is armed, the cord pulls apart and sets off the alarm.

Balanced Magnet Door Contacts

Extremely high security applications will require the use of balanced magnetic door contacts (BMS). These contacts are specially designed to be very sensitive. While most magnetic reed switches utilize standard magnets, the magnetic field of a Balanced Magnetic Contact is so sensitive, you can not substitute a different magnet to try and bypass the system. The price of a Balanced Magnetic Switch is at least 10x more than a standard reed switch.

Safe Contacts

Many business and home owners will install contacts on their safes. Some higher end commercial safes will come with contacts already built in which are ready to be tied into your alarm system. This is very helpful considering the difficulty involved in trying to mount a door to a safe door. Shock and Vibration Sensors are also widely used to protect safes.

Window Protection

Windows offer quick access into a building for a burglar. Magnetic Reed switches can be installed to protect window openings. Depending on the window type, single hung, sliding, or crank open, the reed switch window contact can be flush mounted or surface mounted. Window contacts can be added to sliding, crank-out or single hung windows. In existing homes, it can be difficult to install hardwired window contacts, so wireless is generally preferable. If you are building a home and you are going to install an alarm, you should consider having each window pre-wired for window contacts.

Rather than try and pound through a door or pick a lock, a burglar interested in a quick in-and-out will simply smash your window and quickly grab what they want. Hence the term; smash and grab. Most burglars are in-and-out within a couple of minutes, so your system needs to cause an alarm as quickly as possible to minimize your losses. There are several options available to protect you glass openings.

Window Foil

In the early days of alarm systems, window foil was the most common form of glass protection. Believe it or not, Window foil is exactly what it sounds like, aluminum foil applied to the window to form a circuit. If the window is broken, it breaks the foil, which interrupts the circuit and causes an alarm. While offering an excellent visible deterrent, foil is difficult and time consuming to install and is especially hard to troubleshoot. Imagine finding a hair line tear in a zone that covers eight or ten windows. Foil cannot be used on windows that open, which rules it out for most residential applications. With that said, window foil is still widely in use today although mostly on older existing commercial applications. Most installers will opt to replace the window foil in your facility with more modern forms of protection.

Shock or Vibration Sensors

A shock or vibration sensor can be attached to the glass or the window frame. Shock/Vibration sensors react to the vibration or bending of the glass that occurs when a window is smashed or broken. Some units will require a central processor, while others can simply be tied into a hardwired zone, or a wireless transmitter. Depending on the sensitivity and the technology employed, a shock/vibration sensor can cover up to 10' of glass. Besides providing an exceptional visible deterrent, they can offer 24-hour protection for hard to cover skylights, storefront or bathroom windows.

If you are trying to protect multiple panes of glass, each panel should have its own shock/vibration sensor. You should also know that shock/vibration sensors can cause false alarms from loud noises, close lightning strikes, or from the vibration caused by large trucks or machinery rolling past.

Acoustical Glass Break Detectors

Acoustical glass break detectors offer another flexible alternative to protect your windows. Acoustical Glass break detectors "listen" for the sound of breaking glass. By breaking thousands of pieces of glass, security engineers have recorded the entire high frequency spectrum of the sound associated with breaking glass. Whether it is solid plate, wired, laminated or tempered glass that shatters on impact, the sound associated with the glass breaking will fall within a known frequency across the audio band and cause an alarm. Although range varies by manufacturer, acoustical glass break detectors can protect up to a 30' radius which means a single detector can sometimes protect an entire room.

Because glass break detectors are listening devices their range can be greatly affected by blinds, drapes and other window coverings. Careful placement and full testing should be considered standard installation procedure.

Many manufacturers offer combination glass break, reed switch window contacts to help protect single windows from being opened or broken. If you require 100% perimeter protection, you should consider a combination glass break, window contact for each window that is accessible.

Many people choose to program glass break detectors as 24-hour zones. In most cases, this is O.K. but remember that acoustical glass break alarms are prone to false alarms that can be triggered by sudden loud noises or certain high frequency sounds.

Dual Technology Glass Break Detectors

Some manufacturers have answered the false alarm problem with acoustical glass break detectors by creating "dual technology" glass break detectors. These detectors require that a secondary event occurs simultaneously with the sound of breaking glass in order to cause an alarm. The most common is a shock wave sensor. When a pane of glass is broken in its frame, there is a low pressure shock wave that occurs. The low pressure shock wave and the high frequency sound of breaking glass will occur simultaneously. In order to cause and alarm, both events need to occur within milliseconds.

Be advised that it can be quite expensive and cost prohibitive to provide 100% protections for the entire perimeter of your home or building by installing door contacts, window contacts and glass break detection. That is why many people choose to utilize interior motion detectors.

Interior Motion Detectors

Interior Motion Detectors are one of the most cost efficient forms of protection currently available and if they are placed correctly, they can provide effective protection. By strategically placing motion detectors in key areas such as hallways, living rooms, stairwells and entry ways, you can provide excellent protection that can still be quite cost effective.

There are many ways to detect motion including active and passive infrared, microwave and acoustical type sensors.

Passive Infrared Motion Detectors (PIR)

Most motion detectors utilize passive infrared technology to detect intruders. Passive infrared detectors do not put out any type of energy. They gauge the temperature of every thing they see and look for sudden changes in temperature. Something warm moving across a cold room or something cold moving across a warm room will set off the motion detector.

A typical passive infrared motion detector will utilize some type of signal processing to analyze motion and reduce false alarms caused by heaters and air conditioners, hot and cold drafts, sunlight, lightning and moving headlights. Specially designed lenses break down the coverage into opposing zones. Normally two or more horizontally opposed zones needs to detect motion in order to cause an alarm. Passive Infrared detectors can have single, dual or even quad detection elements that can greatly reduce false alarms.

Some motion detectors automatically adjust for timing, amplitude and heat signatures to reduce false alarms from small targets such as rodents and small pets while maintaining the catch performance of humans sized targets. Many have changeable coverage patterns to adjust for large rooms, hallways, barriers or pet coverage.

Dual Technology Motion Detectors

Dual Technology Detectors combine active microwave signals with Passive Infrared in order to reduce false alarms. The active microwave sends out a signal in the 10 GHz frequency that bounces off fixed objects in the room which creates a repetitive reflection that is sensitive to background disturbances. In some cases the detectors have an intelligent circuit built in that adapts to adjust to certain background disturbances. You should know that unlike passive infrared, microwave signals will go through walls, ceilings, or other hard obstacles and detect motion. Cars driving through the alley, people moving in the next room or even a ceiling fan in an adjacent office will set it off the microwave portion of the motion detector and effectively turn it into a single technology detector. This can be avoided by making careful adjustments to the coverage pattern and walk testing to insure proper coverage.

Panic Alarm Systems

Many people, especially in retail and commercial environments will install 24-hour panic alarms as an integral part of their protection. A 24-hour panic alarm will send a silent signal to the central station so they can take immediate action and dispatch the police department.

Warning ; The police department takes panic alarms very seriously. While you can call the central station and ask them to not dispatch the police for a burglar alarm, provided you can give them the correct pass-code. The police will always show up for a panic alarm situation. The only phone call you will get is typically from the 911 dispatcher right before the police come in with their guns drawn.

Panic alarms come in many varieties including wireless, hardwired, foot activated, under desk push buttons or even bill traps which activate if the last bill is taken out of the till.

Medical Alert Panic Alarms

A newer use for panic alarms is to program them for medical emergencies. This is especially popular with older persons who might fall down or otherwise become incapacitated. They can wear wireless pendants around their neck or wrist and simply push a button to summon help. The medical alert function of alarm systems has proven to be very valuable by saving many lives. If you are concerned about an older person living on their own, a medical alert system can provide you with piece of mind, and still allow them their independence.

Smoke Detectors

One of the most popular and useful additions to burglar alarm systems is smoke and fire detection. A burglar can come into your home and steal your television, stereo, computer and I-Pod. It can all be replaced. A fire can destroy everything you have ever cherished in a matter of minutes.

Smoke Detectors save thousands of lives every year. Early detection is everything. Security-Kits strongly recommends the addition of smoke detectors to every floor of your home.

In a real fire, time is of the essence. A fire can double in size every minute. In just a few minutes, a fire can engulf large areas of your home, blocking exit paths and filling your house with smoke. The sooner a fire is detected, the sooner the fire department can arrive. In a fire, seconds matter. You should install smoke detectors not only for the safety of you and your family, but to minimize damage to your home and your belongings. Think of all the irreplaceable things in your home and then think about your current protection. A monitored smoke alarm saves lives and minimizes destruction.

There are 2 main types of Smoke Detectors; Ionization and photo-electric.

Ionization Smoke Detectors

Ionization detectors, utilize extremely small amounts of the radioactive element americum-241 to ionize, or electrically charge the incoming air particles coming into the chamber. A positive and a negative sensor measures the electrical current created by the charged particles. When smoke enters the ionization chamber, it disrupts the electrical current and causes an alarm. Ionization type smoke detectors are extremely cost effective and therefore very popular.

Ionization type detectors are more sensitive and therefore better at sensing flaming fires with less smoke. As you gain altitude, Ionization type detectors lose their effectiveness due to density of the air entering the chamber. At altitudes above about 4,000' above sea level, photo-electric detectors are typically used.

Photoelectric Smoke Detectors

A photoelectric smoke detector utilizes a small light source in a 90 degree chamber. In normal conditions, the light shoots straight across the detector and is ignored. When smoke enters the chamber, it deflects some of the light particles which are reflected onto a light sensitive sensor, causing an alarm. Photoelectric type smoke detectors are better at sensing smoldering which causes a lot of smoke.

Heat Detectors

Heat Detectors are another effective type of fire alarm protection. Heat detectors are great at sensing flaming fires but are not affected by smoke. This makes them the preferred protection in kitchens and dusty environments such as warehouses, boiler, mechanical, electrical and telephone rooms.

Heat detectors come in 2 varieties; Fixed temperature and rate of rise. A fixed temperature sensor utilizes a thermal sensor that goes off at a pre-determined temperature. The 2 most common temperatures are 135 degrees and 194 degrees. Rate of rise heat detectors also have a fixed alarm temperature, but they incorporate a thermal sensor that goes off if the temperature rises very quickly.