Burglar Alarms - are they worth it?

[vwdan]

If nothing else, I like having the downstairs monitored at night. It stops me worrying too much about random noises - though ironically, one night our alarm did suddenly go off at 3:00am. Never found the cause and it's never done it since, but god, the adrenaline!

I figure it's better than not having one and might at least spook a would be intruder enough that they wouldn't hang around too long.

[Gittins Gal]

When I was a kid we had geese.

Better than any guard dog I can tell you!

Never sure if that old adage about their wings being powerful enough to break your leg is true though...

[vetran]

When I qas a kid we had geese.

Better than any guard dog I can tell you!

Never sure if that old adage about their wings being powerful enough to break your leg though...

they can give you a nasty nip though! Vicious little blighters.

[Support Monkey]

When I was a kid we had geese.

Better than any guard dog I can tell you!

Never sure if that old adage about their wings being powerful enough to break your leg is true though...

Totally agree much better deterent, unfortunately Most modern house deeds now stipulate you cannot keep poultry or livestock although they also say you cannot have an outside aerial or keep a commercial vehicle on the property but no one take a blind bit of notice

[OwlHoot]

Or you could learn the Travellers' Code.

Then on the pavement outside your property chalk the glyphs for "large dog", "nothing worth stealing", and "owners would steal a fly from a blind spider".

[AtW]

An alarm connected to a plasma rifle in 40 watt range is worth every cent ...

[chef]

GF chef and I were just discussing this the other night.

My thoughts are that getting custom stickers for the corners of the most likely windows to be used as an entry point (i.e those facing the rear of the house) & back door with wording along the lines of "Covert CCTV & Silent Alarm" with a reputable logo from a known firm would act as a suitable deterrant.

Who in their right mind would break into a house that has covert CCTV and a silent alarm? and how would they prove it doesnt have what it states on the fancy stickers without retorting to actually breaking in and testing it? my guess is they would simply find an easier target. Job done, for the bargain price of some custom stickers.. note i said custom stickers, having those that are readily available from Halfords or the like is a bit too obvious IMO.

[vwdan]

GF chef and I were just discussing this the other night.

My thoughts are that getting custom stickers for the corners of the most likely windows to be used as an entry point (i.e those facing the rear of the house) & back door with wording along the lines of "Covert CCTV & Silent Alarm" with a reputable logo from a known firm would act as a suitable deterrant.

Who in their right mind would break into a house that has covert CCTV and a silent alarm? and how would they prove it doesnt have what it states on the fancy stickers without retorting to actually breaking in and testing it? my guess is they would simply find an easier target. Job done, for the bargain price of some custom stickers.. note i said custom stickers, having those that are readily available from Halfords or the like is a bit too obvious IMO.

I don't disagree with your points, and I'm certainly not saying your average piece of filth is smart enough to think about, but why would you go to to the expense of fitting covert equipment and then adding stickers to warn everyone

[ChimpMaster]

We have an old alarm system but I always wanted that bit more and went through a number of wish list stages:

1. At first I thought of getting a fake CCTV camera, right down to the blinking LED on it that makes it look operational.
2. Then I thought of buying a basic set of CCTV cameras and HDD from Maplins (around £400) and fitting it myself.
3. Eventually I decided to pay a professional to install 7 cameras and a 1TB HDD (around a month's worth of recording).

I mean in the whole scheme of things, £1200 spent is neither here nor there. I spent it and the money is gone (and I don't have a lot of money at this time).

The cameras are definitely more of a deterrent than anything else, but I can keep my eye on the house from anywhere by using a simple phone app and I can also keep an eye on the wife and kids!

[DirtyDog]

Build one yourself using a Raspberry Pi - linky

CCTV motion detector, which you can view the results from any browser.