Home Security

As a home owner, it is your number one priority to keep your family safe from harm. Proper measures must be taken to ensure that intruders cannot just come and go from your home, especially during nighttime.

Aside from your material possessions, your home is where you and your family share the most memorable moments in your everyday life and you should take steps to prevent thieves and intruders from physically getting into your house.

One of the most effective ways in making sure that the perimeter of your house is adequately protected is by installing a home security system. You can setup the alarms and monitoring system yourself, or you can have it professionally installed.

Take a peek at this checklist when installing a security system in your home:

- Install burglar alarms and motion detectors in strategic areas within your house.

- Mount mechanical locks and motion sensors to alert you of intruders.

- Place fire alarms in the kitchen or in other areas within the house where excessive heat or smoke would most likely gather.

- Windows and doors are alarm ‘must-haves’. Your home security system will not be complete without locks and alarms on your doors and numerous windows.

- Your garage and the vehicles stored there should have proper alarm and anti-theft devices.

‘Outdoor Security Cameras’

Aside from the entrance, exit and windows within the house itself, the area surrounding your home should be protected as well.

For the best security system possible, you can have outdoor security cameras installed.

Outdoor security cameras are not just good for home use. They are especially helpful when mounted on public places like shops, banks, restaurants, office buildings and other similar establishments.

When looking for an outdoor security camera for home and office use, here are the following factors that you should take into consideration:

1. Is the security camera waterproof?

Since the cameras will be installed outdoors, they are most likely to be exposed to harsh weather conditions. Make sure that the cameras that you will purchase will survive rain, snow or sleet.

Your outdoor security cameras can come with sun shades to protect the equipment from too much sunlight during day time. Also, the material should be tough enough to last through varying weather conditions.

2. Is it suitable for day and night use?

A run-of-the-mill, inexpensive camera may be good enough for day use. However, they are not helpful at all when detecting intruders during night time.

When having outdoor security cameras installed on your home or in an office, get one that is good for night use as well. There are brands available in the market which are inexpensive yet effective. There are models available which give out colored images during day time. Black and white images are captured when there is insufficient light as the day progresses.

3. Does it have sufficient vision range?

The main purpose of the outdoor security camera is to visually alert you if there is an intruder within the secured area. There are cameras with sufficient vision range, from about 24 feet or more during nighttime.

4. Is it easy to setup and install?

The outdoor security cameras should be easy to setup and install. Also, they must easily connect to either a television set, a monitor or a VCR for viewing and recording purposes.

You can make use of outdoor security cameras to ensure that your home or office is safe from thieves and intruders. Peace of mind and feeling secure in any environment is priceless. Home security is something that should not be taken for granted to make sure that you and your loved ones are safe from harm.

By: Dave Poon

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In case you did not know, infrared cameras are great alternatives to the more expensive night vision security cameras. Infrared cameras are great if you’re thinking of using them as outdoor DVR security cameras for your home security system. To make the most out of your infrared cameras, here are some points to remember.

Focus On Your Property’s Entry Points

Since most infrared cameras do not have pan-tilt-zoom (PTZ) features, you can maximize its field of vision by placing it in key areas around your property. Driveways, front and back gates, garages, and porches are some examples. To turn infrared cameras into efficient DVR security cameras, make sure that they are always pointing at the right direction to avoid gaps in security.

Go Wireless If You Must

Putting an infrared camera at the mouth your long walkway means that you have to go wireless to prevent exposing any wires or cables to intruders. The good thing about wireless infrared DVR security cameras is that you can easily change camera positions and fields of vision. Predictable camera placement increases the risk of robberies and trespassing, so move your cameras around when you can. Most wireless infrared cameras are battery-operated to counter power outages that could cripple your surveillance systems. Use uninterrupted power supply (UPS) devices as power backups for your computer and DVR.

Hide Your Infrared Cameras

Infrared DVR security cameras would not be so effective if it is too visible, would it? If you are using wireless infrareds, mount them in plastic or metal cases to keep them away from trespassers. This way, it would be easy for you to take the camera out and mount it somewhere else. However, if you are camera placement is fixed, the best way to keep your infrared cameras secure is to ***** the casings to the walls of your home. Bolt your cameras in very high places. This way, its field of vision is wider and it would be hard for intruders to tamper with your camera because it is so out of reach. When you protect your cameras, you are also making them weather-proof.

Do A Line-of-sight Check

When your infrared DVR security cameras are in the right place, it is time to evaluate your system’s lines of sight and fields of vision. You can ask your friend to walk around your property while you monitor him through your surveillance software. If there are blind spots, attend to it immediately by changing the angles your cameras. Because your infrared cameras may not be able to zoom in on objects, make sure that there are no obstructions, such as trees, to lines of sight and fields of vision.

It is a fact that most homes are intruded during the night time. That is why you must use infrared cameras for your DVR surveillance system. You can use these cameras indoors or around your property. Either way, you would be sleeping more soundly because your infrared cameras are keeping you safe even in the dark.

By: Nahshon Roberts

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In the home security industry, Honeywell has been an industry leader for more than 100 years. In fact, Honeywell home security systems are considered by many to be the finest your home can have. Here is a look at some of the products the company has to offer.

Honeywell is all about keeping your family safe. And in today’s society that is more important than ever. Burglary and home break-ins are all too common and having a home security system is really a necessity and not a luxury.

Honeywell Smoke Detectors - Yes, this company even makes a basic smoke detector that is reliable and designed to protect your family at the first sign of a fire in your home.

Honeywell Security Kits - This is a build your own home security kit that is designed to fit any individual needs. You can mix and add in various components to make your own security system.

Honeywell Structured Wiring System - Honeywell can hard wire your home for everything from cable TV, satellite, HVAC, home sound systems and much more, in addition to a security system. Called Future Smart, this wired design is a step ahead of technology and is as good as it gets.

Honeywell Home Security System - Here you will find wireless home security products like the LYNX -I, which utilizes the power of VoIP and cell phone technology. This system includes two-way voice and other features such as reminders and a built-in messaging center.

If you are serious about home security and protecting your family against break-ins, burglars and other criminal acts, then you should take a look at a Honeywell home security system.

By: Terry Edwards

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There is a great demand for highly effective security systems by both homeowners and small business operators, however the majority are on a budget and don’t have a ton of money to spend on an expensive, complicated camera system.

Wireless IP cameras operate in exactly the same way as computers do, sending video information through the same network and back to a receiver, a DVR. This means that the installation process of a wireless security camera system is very straight forward, you simply have to mount the camera and setup the DVR to manage the feed.

Public security cameras are now being considered an invasion of privacy. There are security cameras capturing you entering you pin number into an ATM, capturing your bank numbers on your open check book while paying for groceries, and security cameras even capturing you entering the keypad number to unlock you vehicle in a public parking garage.

We manufacture our own DVR systems and import our security cameras directly from the manufacturer so we can offer high quality products at a great price, all backed by an industry leading 4 year warranty! All our security cameras and CCTV systems pump out 600 lines of resolution, letting you see exactly what’s happening.

Wireless Security Cameras – The Pros and Cons

Not only do wireless security cameras offer a high level of flexibility and easy installation, they also allow for advanced remote access with IP cameras. When it comes to a wireless setup all security elements remain the same as a hardwired system, however the signal is transmitted to the router and back to the DVR. This will allow for flexibility when it comes to installation, the cameras can be installed virtually anywhere and new elements are easily installed and added.

Typically, installing wireless cameras is a highly simple process; there are no requirements in terms of wiring or demolition. If you are on an Internet enabled machine, you can access your cameras remotely – any computer becomes your own personal remote monitoring station. This reduces limitations when it comes to monitoring, as it can be viewed down the street, the same city, or across the country.

There is one flaw, however. All of these elements require battery power. It’s important to check the cameras regularly for batter life, at least once a month, replacing the batteries as required. Be sure to enable and set a password to prevent your wireless IP camera from any sort of tampering.

Applications of Wireless Security

Wireless cameras work in a variety of ways, but their strengths lie in the flexibility to be installed virtually anywhere without the need for wires and construction, showing that these types of systems are ideal for rented homes or offices. If you’re renting, you can avoid the hassle of having to come to an agreement with the landlord in regards to wiring installation throughout the walls and everything is also portable if you choose to move to a new property.

A great example is if you’re currently living in a rented apartment, the best suited system would be a DVR unit or an Internet PC to capture the feed and images. Even these units don’t require any construction or demolition. This is also more straight forward because apartments require limited cameras for monitoring. In most cases a single wireless security camera would cover the entire apartment exterior.

Wireless cameras are also much preferred in cases where someone owns their own property. Condos are a prime example and wireless IP security cameras are ideal for this type of application, very similar to an apartment. For an application such as a townhouse, a hybrid system (physically installed cabling in additional to wireless) may be a more practical solution. For example, the upstairs of the townhouse could be wireless where the ground floor is installed with the wired system. If you own a building that is detached, such as a bungalow, a guest house, or a barn or shed, wireless security cameras are a simple setup. Rather than running wires and cables across your yard, you can transmit the signal wirelessly, which is ideal in this type of situation.

In conclusion, wireless security cameras will provide you with maximum flexibility and usability for both your home and business alike.

By: Brett King

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It may be nearly impossible to protect your home from a professional thief because the truth is if somebody wants in your home bad enough they will find a way in. However, most thieves are not professional, and actually many are looking for an “easy” target. You can easily protect your home from these amateurs by following these 5 simple security precautions: