There are many blogs out there to explain the technical aspect of each piece of home security equipment. If you click that link, you can even find one of mine that lists each piece of equipment and exactly what duty it performs within the security system. Now don't get me wrong, it is important to know what things are made for. How else would we tell our kids not to use things for uses they 'were not' made for? But what you really want to know is, "What will it do for me?" So here is that question answered. Beyond telling you that a door sensor protects your door, here is why that matters to you and your loved ones.
ADT Technologies - Cellguard and 2-way Voice
ADT Cellguard (Wireless Cellular Alarm Communication)
Cellguard or ADT's cellular communication is cellular technology built into the alarm system. This takes the place of accessing your land line to call into the central monitoring station. With Cellgaurd, every alarm system has it's own "cell phone" connection that it uses to call into the central station. Now you don't have to be concerned about the land line going out, getting cut or the phone company doing work in the street and not reconnecting to your house exactly as it was before.
ADT 2-way Voice Control
2-way voice is the super power that doesn't get the recognition it deserves. Remember the commercial where someone falls and cannot get up. The panel on the wall is able to talk to them, hear them form anywhere in the home and get help on the way. That's 2-way voice. If you have an alarm system and someone in your home has any kind of health impairment, you need to pay the couple bucks extra a month for 2-way voice and get a medical watch or pendant. (This service outside of an alarm system is $25 to $50 a month to monitor a health pendant)
2-way voice also benefits the average family in quite a few ways. When you accidentally set off the alarm, you need to find the phone and catch the call before authorities are dispatched. This blog goes a bit more in depth with why that system is not the best option. But with 2 way voice, they open up the microphone and talk to you directly to be able to cancel the dispatch. This is also great when it's not you and it wasn't an accident. Burglars are voice challenged and informed help is on the way. Police also put a higher priority on a "burglary in progress" where the people are verified to be in the house.This is also much safer if you are home. It's not like you will run to grab the phone that is ringing if an intruder is in the house. The voice mail would pickup and the call is dispatched as an "alarm incident" the police will go check it, but not as high a priority as a confirmed robbery in progress.
Standard ADT Home Security Equipment
ADT Keypads and Alarm Panels and Keypads
Your panel tells every other device in your system to do what you say. You arm to stay, the perimeter devices like door and window sensors, glass break sensors and motions "go into protect you mode." It is now ready to alert you and the monitoring station that there is an issue. Your panels's job is to coordinate all the devices in your home to do what you tell it to do. If you are working from home, be it chores or the 9 to 5, when you say arm to stay no delay, the panel tells all devices to be on high alert so that it can sound an alarm the moment the perimeter is breached.
The panel will also have a toggle feature to turn the chime on and off; that's the feature that tells you every time a door or window is opened. This is a great feature when your kids are at the age that they try to escape. There are also emergency buttons that when held down for 1 - 3 seconds will alert the monitoring center to immediately dispatch the fire department, medical personnel or the police.
And then the bells and whistles... An upgraded panel can be touchscreen, portable and quite attractive. It can double as a photo frame, give you traffic alerts and scroll the morning news. Talk to your representative if you'd like to get these features.
ADT Door and Window Sensors
These sensors have two parts and one part goes on the permanent portion of the opening; usually the frame, and the other part goes on the opening portion; the actual door or window. However, he uses are endless and make this piece one of the most customizable sensors available. Do you have a home office that no one should be in. You can surely use on there. With ADT Pulse, you can tell your pal the alarm panel to text or email you if it is opened.
I am sure you get the picture here, but other uses could be a detached garage, a liquor cabinet, a gun closet, a tool shed or any other opening that should be staying closed most of the time. Another clever us is venting. You might want to crack a window at night but know that a cracked window looks like an invite to a lazy burglar. Venting is a third part added to a door or window sensor. Usually the sensors need to align when an opening is shut to be armed. Having another part a few inches from the first one allows you to have a door or window open a bit and the sensors still align. You now have two positions for the opening to be in and still arm.
ADT Recessed Door and Window Sensors or Micro Door and Window Sensors
These sensors are smaller sensors that might give be more aesthetically pleasing. Micro sensors are merely smaller that usually and might even lay fairly flat against the walls. Recessed sensors are actually placed into a hole that is drilled into the door or window frame and the door or window. They are completely hidden when the door or window is closed.
ADT Motion Sensors
Motion sensors detect motion. They are highly sophisticated and can detect that the motion is from a pet and not a human, when the pet is under 80 pounds. Motion detectors help you by covering a fairly large area with one sensor. Motion detectors can be pointed towards the bottom of a stair case and capture anything trying to come up the stairs. They are also a budget friendly option in a room with may windows. You might choose to cover a whole section of windows with one motion sensor. Motion sensors also help paint a picture of what is going on in your home. Systems like ADT Pulse can notify you of censored tripped in your home. Where a notification that a door sensor was tripped will cause concern, a notification that the front door was tripped, followed seconds later by the front hall motion detector then the stair case motion alerts you that someone is walking through your home. This information also paints a more urgent picture for responding authorities and can help them identify where an intruder is at in your home.
ADT Glass break Sensor
The glass break sensor can have a similar use to a motion detector. it detects that double action should that glass makes when shattering. This is great because if a burglar smashes a window but does not move the frame, a window sensor will not pic that up. Window sensors detect a window being opened, not smashed. So an area where you have windows tat don't open but can be broken to gain entry, the glass break sensor will detect that. Glass break sensors are also armed when you are in stay or away mode where when you are for stay, the motion sensors are not armed which lets you walk around your home.
ADT Key fobs or key Chain Remotes and Your Alarm System
Key Chain remotes are a right out blessing. Now clearly, with smart phones and modern alarm systems, you can whip out your phone and arm or disarm from your driveway. But you have to whip it out. When you arrive home, you will often have your keys in hand and presto, one click and the system is disarmed. That's amazing when you are juggling groceries and don't want to run to the keypad before setting them down.
Key fobs also are fantastic for kids that are old enough to be coming home by themselves but don't have a smart phone yet. If you keep a spare around the house, you can lend it to house guests or babysitters so you don't have to give the m the code to the alarm but they can get in the home safely.
ADT Video Surveillance Cameras and ADT Pulse Home Automation
ADT Smoke Detectors and Carbon Monoxide Detectors
Smoke detectors are a must! That's why they are code in most of the country. Although your home is required to have smoke detectors, they generally are not monitored. They will simply make a lot of noise and the rest is up to you. Having monitored smoke detectors or carbon monoxide detectors is like having a an emergency pit crew when something happens. Say it's 3am and you are awaken by the smoke alarm. Do you call the fire department first or get your kids out? Clearly, you get your family to safety. A monitored system will get the fire department there for you and make the 2-3 minute call to 911 while you tend to your family.
The ADT Pulse system can really assist you in an emergency. Your ADT Pulse lights can flash in the event of a fire or carbon monoxide poisoning. This can help wake even the heaviest of sleeper. They can also light a path to the doors so you don't have to fumble with lights, possibly while trying to carry a child or per. ADT Door locks can unlock when a fire breaks out, letting in first responders and eliminating one less step for you to be outside to safety. You should also set the thermostat to turn the fan off so that oxygen is not being fed to the fire and smoke being blown around the home.
ADT Smoke Detectors also employ technology that detects a slow smoldering fire as well as a fast onset fire. It's estimated that up to 95% of home in America have lower priced units that are most effective at identifying one or the other.
ADT Pulse Cameras and Traditional ADT Video Surveillance
I might not need to tell you what cameras can do but here goes anyhow. Cameras are cool! Not just that, for some, they provide a truer peace of mind. Knowing that ADT is ready 24/7 to protect your home is one thing, seeing it is another. all ADT Cameras can be viewed in real time from your computer or mobile device. ADT pulse cameras can notify you of what is going on before you even log in to check. Set up to have an email link to a video clip every time someone comes onto your porch and be intimately connected to what happens at your home when you can't be there.
ADT Deadbolt Door Lock with Z-wave Technology
Electronic door locks are becoming more and more common. Having this technology integrated with your alarm system and other ADT Pulse technology gives you remote access and the ability to have your locks work in conjunction with other devices. Would you like the doors to lock automatically when you arm your security system? Or you can have the door between the garage and the house unlock when you lift the garage door. Remote access to the locks can eliminate the need to give a key to the dog walker, babysitter and pool guy. Just have them call for entry. You'll also then know if they are late or don't show up at all. And last but not least, you're now ready for surprise visits from the in-laws, at least from the point of view that they can get in...
ADT Light Switches, Light Dimmers and Small Appliance / Light Modules
Automated lights are great! If you get off work late and want to come home to a well lit house, simply open the app and turn them on, you can do it before you even leave work. Or you can automate it, set up an automation that turns on all perimeter lights when you open the garage door with the opener. ADT Pulse lights can also be on a schedule to turn on or off at given times daily or weekly or set up to come on randomly throughout a given period which helps a house look populated when it is not. Having constant access to your lights via you mobile device allows you to more closely monitor your energy costs spent on lighting your home.
Finally, ADT Pulse Thermostats
ADT Pulse automated Thermostat options include the very popular Nest Learning Thermostat. As with other ADT Pulse devices they can all work together. You might decide that any time the alarm is set to Away, the thermostat is automatically set to a logical temperature for an empty house. This helps you have less things to remember to do when you leave the house. But no problem if you do forget, you can arm and/or turn down the temperature with your mobile device.
Studies show that heating and air costs comprise about one third of all energy costs. Lost of thermostats are programmable to turn on and off if a certain temperature is reached but automated thermostats can respond to other devices like only heating to the set temperature if the alarm is disarmed or armed to stay mode and any time you realize it should not be running, there's an app for that.
There you have it! The WIIFM of home security equipment. Not just what each piece of equipment does but what it will do for you and your family and why you should give a flying flip that a glass break sensor detects the sound of breaking glass. If you'd like to have a FREE in-home security review and talk about protecting your home and family, give us a call today at 1-800-310-9490. We look forward to service you!
