Home Security System?

[Velvet Jones]

Originally Posted by PeeAye Native

And BTW, $30 is about the absolute very lowest you can get home security for. That price is kinda like buying a car with four wheels, four doors, an engine and two seats. Absolutely no frills and anything beyond the barest of basics costs more.
.

Where are you getting that? I've had Guardian for years. Price was $26.95, recently went up to a whopping $27.49. That includes everything except the real-time "listen in" feature which I thought was creepy anyway.

[jimazee]

Originally Posted by PeeAye Native

And BTW, $30 is about the absolute very lowest you can get home security for.

Endless Mountain Security currently charges $20/mo.

Cellular based connections are used as backup to land lines or as the primary communication. If you haven't buried the telephone lines and worry about someone cutting them, cellular may help. I don't know how much more it costs. There is added equipment and maybe different monitor charges.

Note that some systems will detect and issue an alarm when phone line is cut but can't call central station of course. These newer systems are also getting more sophisticated with cold/heat sensors, smoke/CO2 detectors, and of course many break-in/intrusion detectors. Talk to the installers....

Are these systems perfect and fail-safe? NO. Based on multiple systems and houses over years we like them versus the alternative. Does this mean you don't want added/other means of protection? No. Whatever works in your situation.

[jimazee]

Originally Posted by jimazee

Endless Mountain Security currently charges $20/mo.

Ooops...I apologize for being a bit Internet disoriented. The above company in in NEPA, near Scranton. I just caught that I had mistakenly posted it on the Pittsburgh forum.

In any case, the larger point is to check out some local 'independent' companies, who may offer similar services at lower prices. The above company is a few years old, very capable, and aggressively obtaining new accounts. You may have similar companies in Pittsburgh area.

[ebyrnes]

We have a Guardian monitored system, and are pretty happy with it. We are more concerned with personal safety than we are with protecting our stuff - we don't have much that anyone else wants! - and it does give me a bit of peace of mind when DH isn't here. We also installed cameras to monitor the perimeter of the house; my lovely neighbor has a penchant for throwing trash from her bedroom window into my garden, and isn't really interested in changing her behavior. Since I come in alone late-ish, we have a big mirror that shows the entire front porch from the sidewalk; that has really helped my sense of safety! We also removed a big hideous yew that would be convenient to hide in. I considered a gun, but since I haven't been able to make myself go as far as touching one, that's out of the question for me. Oh, and the place is lit up like a spaceship; we live on a corner and a number of the neighbors have thanked us for that, since they feel safer as well.

Do you feel confident to defend yourself if you need to do so? Do you have valuables that you are especially concerned about? I agree that talking with the police is a good idea; they probably know what is going on in your 'hood as far as this type of risk.

e

[thepacifist20130]

Googling around tells me Frontpoint is good. For $34.99, they offer wireless security features - mesning no cables to cut by intruders, the system I think uses cell phone type signals to reach out to the security center.

[steeltowngirl]

We bought a SimpliSafe home security system and we both really like it. We knew we weren't going to stay in this rental for more than a year and all of the big security places were going to charge us through the roof/void our warranties for moving. You can add on what you want for as many rooms as you want.