5 Easy Ways To Fix it
By Tony Navarrete
There are several factors that will render your alarm system useless. These are common and not so rare in traditional alarm systems.
An Alarm system contains a control panel which is the brain of the system. This unit should be located away from the keypad and the siren because if the control panel is disabled by an intruder it could potentially disable the alarm system. The panel should be located in a place with no easy access. Locate the control panel in a not-so-obvious location Try to hide and protect it as much as possible.
As customary practice, the alarm system gives the homeowner some time to enter the premises and disarm the system, normally 30 seconds this time could be extended if, the needs of the homeowner require it. Failing to disarm the system within the first 30 seconds upon entering, the alarm will trip the siren but normally will not send the alarm signal to the central station after a one-minute communication delay. This is done to avoid false alarms. If an intruder enters from an entry door he has about one and a half minutes before the alarm signal is sent. One and a half minutes could be an eternity for an intruder to find and disable the alarm system. Once the alarm signal has been sent, the central station has to attempt to contact you before calling dispatch authorities. You can easily add 3 or 4 minutes, before possible police arrival. That is a minimum of 5 long minutes, that is if a police patrol happens to be nearby.
To make things worse, in recent years, alarm companies and manufacturers have introduced all-in-one systems. Where the control panel, keypad, and siren are all one unit. I remember visiting a home where the burglar ripped the unit off the wall and sank it in the water. The central station never got the signal, therefore the police were never dispatched. What you can do?
Make sure that a feature called “Smash And Crash” is set up on your system. This will require the central station to receive a disarmed signal right after the entry door signal is received! Otherwise, it will go into alarm mode.
Also, make your to use GSM and the Internet to communicate with the central station. This is the best practice for the alarm system to communicate with the central station and avoid using old telephone lines as a way of communication.
Consider asking your alarm company, to shorten the one-minute communication delay programmed into your alarm system, only do this once you feel comfortable operating your system, remember they still have to call you before dispatching police, but many cities may impose a fine on you if a false alarm is received. So try to balance to best suit your situation.
Install a surveillance system to complement your security. Remember in the best scenario, a police arrival may take up to 5 minutes from the time an entry door is violated. A Video feed may provide discouragement to target your home and will provide important evidence.
Make sure to test your equipment and check signals with your monitoring company on a regular basis.
If your get a false alarm, find out why, and solve the issue so it will not happen again.
