house protection securityEvery home has its share of locks, but until a few years ago, it used to take Ming Dynasty porcelain vases, Picasso sketches and other high-priced, high-visibility valuables for home owners to justify purchasing home security systems.

But a growing rate of burglaries, which now account for nearly 35 percent of all the crimes recorded in the United States, along with fires, has changed the minds of owners of homes both lavish and modest, career-minded families who spend long hours away from home and even senior citizens who worry about being unprotected.

Home security has come a long way in recent years, both in options and prices. Microchip technology has made the newest home security systems even more reliable than that most lovable and popular of home alarms – the big, barking canine and accompanying “Beware of Dog” sign.

Most home security systems are built upon combinations of two-key devices: perimeter and interior alarm systems. The burglar who triggers an alarm by breaking a window or opening a door becomes a victim of a home’s perimeter security system, made up of small sensors attached by wire to a central control panel. When he disturbs one of these sensors on a door or window, a signal is sent to a central control panel, which in turn signals action.

The prowler who makes it inside a house can signal an alarm with movement, sound or merely his presence. These interior systems, which include infrared, microwave and ultrasound space protection units, also alert a central control panel once they detect change in their realm. Once signaled with either type of system, the control console can transmit a signal to sound an alarm or alert authorities at a professional monitoring station who will check out the situation.

There also are automatic telephone dialing devices that will dial a preprogrammed telephone number and deliver a prerecorded emergency message when an alarm is tripped.

A home security system combining both perimeter and interior devices could include sensors for front and back doors and bedroom windows, an interior unit strategically placed around an area that needs extra protection and central control panel and alarm.

“Smart home” systems take home security into the future with alarms that interact with one another and actually “decide” what to do when an intruder is detected. One system, for instance, will identify an entry from a door or window by location when no one should be home and automatically call police. Another lets the home owner decide who can enter his house in his absence and dictates when a guest can come in and where they can go.

Smoke detectors and alarms could be considered another type of security system – since they warn home owners of potential fire, which have, the potential of being even more devastating than a burglary. Smoke detectors rely on sensors similar to those used in security systems; many can be incorporated into these systems for all inclusive protection.

The most sophisticated systems boast improved features such as extra-loud horns that can alert hearing-impaired individuals and the heaviest sleepers and high-intensity safety lights that can mark exits and hallways in heavy smoke.

There are also false alarm control models that prevent harmless steam or kitchen stove smoke from setting off the alarm. The most security-savvy home owner, who would hire his own guard if he could afford it, may also choose to reinforce home security with TV cameras that offer him a bird’s-eye view of areas around his house via a surveillance screen.

A less costly alternative would be an intercom system – that allows him to speak to questionable parties at the front and back doors before letting them in.

Other high-tech precautionary home security devices devices center around the control of a home’s lights – one of the simplest and most effective deterrents around. One illuminating idea is found in security timers – designed to fool potential prowlers into thinking someone is home when a house actually is empty. These timers automatically turn indoor and outdoor lights on and off at designated times of the day.

Another version is an outdoor lighting system that’s equipped with infrared sensors. The lights automatically turn on when someone approaches a house, and hopefully send potential prowlers scurrying.

Basic home improvements aren’t quite as glamorous as high-tech additions, but are invaluable in terms of protection. Home owners can improve their fortresses by making simple, inexpensive changes. A few ideas include:

• Replacing flimsy, hollow doors with solid-core construction models on exterior exists.

• Securing doors leading outside with single or double cylinder dead-bolt locks.

• Installing peep holes that offer a wide-angle view of the area outside the door.

• Adding thumb-keyed slide bolt locks on windows.

• Planting “security shrubbery.” Thorny plants that will make hiding or entering a window more difficult.

Home owners can hide valuables such as jewelry, coins and documents in a home safe for extra protection. Even the best-armed homes should be backed up with adequate home owners insurance. The best policies command an adequate combination of liability – which protects the home owner if an accident occurs on his property, or he causes damage to someone else’s house – and property – which covers the house itself.

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