Burglar Alarm

mavers · 10 May 2016 at 20:08

Looking for a burglar alarm and would prefer it to be wireless. Any recommendations in particular? Heard good things about Visonic, any first hand experience?

Would prefer a DIY job, but happy to consider installation (in the south london area).

nutcase · 10 May 2016 at 20:57

Texecom Premier Elite - very good system.

Haze · 10 May 2016 at 21:03

only thing i have against house alarms, it makes you look like you have something worth steeling and no one takes a blind bit of notice of them, when they go off

Simon42 · 10 May 2016 at 21:17

Another vote for Texecom Premier Elite.

I always suggest plenty of internal noise to ensure anyone still risking entry will not know of potential arrivals and of course good remote signalling (dual system ideally).

DannyW · 10 May 2016 at 21:20

I have the pyronix enforcer from cts direct highly recommend it,

I've had it 3 years now and only had a couple of false alarms due to the cats fighting ect, all the batteries still show excellent and you can buy the PIR's and bell boxes cheap on eBay

nutcase · 10 May 2016 at 21:29

Haze said:
only thing i have against house alarms, it makes you look like you have something worth steeling and no one takes a blind bit of notice of them, when they go off

We've got nothing worth stealing but someone still broke in - so have it as a detterent now.

Camalot · 10 May 2016 at 21:36

Yale do a good wireless system, read lots of great reviews on them.

flowrider99 · 10 May 2016 at 21:38

Honeywell do the Galaxy 2 Series home alarm, very good system.

Where i live burglar alarms are essential, every house in the street has one so if you dont then your house will be the one broken into.

mavers · 10 May 2016 at 21:49

Thanks for all the input. Will definitely look into Texecom, Pyronix and Honeywell.

Anyone done a DIY installation, or is it better to go via an installer?

Simon42 · 10 May 2016 at 23:22

mavers said:
Anyone done a DIY installation, or is it better to go via an installer?

I do my own but used to be in the security industry, however the installation work is easy enough so its mostly about the configuration. Do follow guides on detector placement though as getting this wrong can cause false alarms.

The main issue with configuration is documentation designed for those up to speed with security standards, terminology and options - so not dissimilar to some computer equipment!

The systems mentioned here are more sophisticated than the basic DIY kits and best set-up via a laptop via special leads or standard Wifi/network connections. I would suggest you download the installation manuals for the control panels and have a look before deciding.

nutcase · 11 May 2016 at 08:12

Camalot said:
Yale do a good wireless system, read lots of great reviews on them.

Awful things - next door but one had one installed professionally (?) a couple of weeks ago and it's forever going off :mad:

I self-installed mine, took a while to figure out the details but once it clicked it's easy. I get a text and email whenever there is an issue.

kitkat9933 · 11 May 2016 at 10:32

Don't go with a Wireless Alarm. Very easy to hack into and disable.

Simon42 · 11 May 2016 at 14:00

kitkat9933 said:
Don't go with a Wireless Alarm. Very easy to hack into and disable.

It does vary with the system. The cheapy DIY systems won't even notice if a detector is gone, whereas the higher end kit use encryption, multiple communication paths and hence meet grade 2 system requirements. This means they are recognised by insurers and installed by professional installers.

For an example of issue with some cheap kits see: http://cybergibbons.com/alarms-2/wireless-alarm-recommendations/

Wired is always the best of course, but with the better systems you aren't tied to just wireless or wired. This means the easier to reach parts can be wired and the wireless used for the awkward locations or sheds/garages.

Deep · 11 May 2016 at 20:06

nutcase_1uk said:
Texecom Premier Elite - very good system.

My choice as well.

We had in our shop for years and never went wrong. As it's been so good my brother, parents and I have all got the same in my our respective houses

R.O.S.S.I · 11 May 2016 at 20:33

The Pyronix kit looks interesting. Its about £360 for their Enforcer Homecontrol kit which would has some decent features overall. Think I'll save some pennys for it.

Just a quick question if anyone knows. With the Pyronix Homecontrol+ App Kit, the main console dont appear to have a keypad, does that mean that you will only be able to turn the alarm on and off when entering your home with a fob or via your phone?

DannyW · 11 May 2016 at 20:57

R.O.S.S.I said:
The Pyronix kit looks interesting. Its about £360 for their Enforcer Homecontrol kit which would has some decent features overall. Think I'll save some pennys for it.

Just a quick question if anyone knows. With the Pyronix Homecontrol+ App Kit, the main console dont appear to have a keypad, does that mean that you will only be able to turn the alarm on and off when entering your home with a fob or via your phone?

The home control plus should let you disable it via your phone but check with pyronix first
Other wise you can disable it with a remote fob/rfid tag or a traditional code
One thing I really like is all the accessories are 2 way radio so they talk to each other properly

R.O.S.S.I · 11 May 2016 at 21:18

DannyW said:
The home control plus should let you disable it via your phone but check with pyronix first
Other wise you can disable it with a remote fob/rfid tag or a traditional code
One thing I really like is all the accessories are 2 way radio so they talk to each other properly

Yeh I know its geared around using your phone or fob, but say for example a family member is watching your house for you whilst you are away on hols (so not always have access to wifi for the app etc) or you have an agreement with a neighbour to come and put some cat food out and its not practical to leave them with a fob, are they still able to enter a code on a keypad on the control panel to allow access?

The pictures on their site show the control panel but its difficult to tell whether its just got the keypad covered or if there is no keypad at all!

LeeUK · 12 May 2016 at 01:15

Only worth having an alarm if it contacts you when it goes off. As already stated no one gives 2 damns when they hear someones alarm going off.

Deep · 12 May 2016 at 09:44

LeeUK said:
Only worth having an alarm if it contacts you when it goes off. As already stated no one gives 2 damns when they hear someones alarm going off.

See I used to think that, my alarm went off once recently. I forgot to shut a window and the blind set the sensor off, both neighbours rang me to inform me

I think it depends on how well you get on with your neighbours tbh, both of mine area always at home everyday so that helps.

LeeUK · 12 May 2016 at 11:18

Deep said:
See I used to think that, my alarm went off once recently. I forgot to shut a window and the blind set the sensor off, both neighbours rang me to inform me

I think it depends on how well you get on with your neighbours tbh, both of mine area always at home everyday so that helps.

I know my neighbours but how do you get into a situation where you have each others mobile numbers unless you are best buddies!