# Home security



## bosox_5 (Jun 20, 2018)

So on Thursday our house was broken into. Some fine gentlemen threw a rock through the window and stole a bunch of things (electronics, the wife's limited jewelry, etc). Yesterday we started the process for installing a security system, started putting up cameras, etc. Just wondering what others do out there?


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## Powhatan (Dec 15, 2017)

Nothing beats a barking guard dog. Doesn't require power or an internet connection. :wink:

I have cameras that record to the cloud and alert me via text if movement detected, it helps but I get false alerts such as sun shadows and those darn squirrels.


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## ctrav (Aug 18, 2018)

Powhatan said:


> Nothing beats a barking guard dog. Doesn't require power or an internet connection. :wink:
> 
> I have cameras that record to the cloud and alert me via text if movement detected, it helps but I get false alerts such as sun shadows and those darn squirrels.


Totally agree and my Charlee is so vicious she barks if the wind blows the wrong way :lol: :lol: :lol:


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## Jimefam (Jun 22, 2018)

I installed the ring cameras and security system in my house and it was super easy and works incredibly well imo. Couple that with the fact that we have alexa integration all over the house and i feel we use it all the time for alot of different things that arent necessarily security related.


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## Mightyquinn (Jan 31, 2017)

I have had Simplisafe home security for over 6 years now and LOVE it. Never had a problem with it and they are quick to call when we set off the alarm by accident. I also have a German Shepard and Lorex Security Cameras. I also have some RAB Motion Security Lights around the perimeter with 250W equivalent LED Night Chaser bulbs in 5K.


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## Alan (Apr 23, 2017)

Man, I hate to hear your story. Being burglarized sucks, been there before myself.

I have dogs, but they'd probably annoy the hell out of anyone that was a stranger in the house as opposed to doing anything harmful to them, unfortunately. I have a camera system, but it's a hodge podge and all the video is stored locally(no cloud), so If anyone found the DVR and took it with them or destroyed it, they'd destroy evidence of their crime too.


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## RDZed (Jul 13, 2018)

Jimefam said:


> I installed the ring cameras and security system in my house and it was super easy and works incredibly well imo. Couple that with the fact that we have alexa integration all over the house and i feel we use it all the time for alot of different things that arent necessarily security related.


Agree. I have gone all-in with Ring and love it. Front door camera, 9 exterior camera/camera flood lights, interior window/door sensors, cameras/motion and water sensors for my AC pans and full security system.

It's a fantastic product.


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## SWB (Sep 22, 2018)

We're pretty secluded here in the country. Our home can't really be seen from the street. With that we have 2 separate camera systems, several motion alarms that signal where some one is on the property, 6 trail cams, two barking dogs and personal protection within reach anywhere in the house. After typing this I realize I probably sound a little paranoid....lol. Here's a pic of our preview monitor next to the TV in the den.


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## SWB (Sep 22, 2018)

I'll also add that I'm sorry you were targeted. That absolutely sucks and I'd say you felt pretty violated.


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## bosox_5 (Jun 20, 2018)

Thanks. The wife is having a hard time. The boy is pissed he lost progress on his battlefront x box game. We are going full in on a system. In addition I'll be putting nest cameras up. But if they want to smash a window again, there isn't a lot I can do.


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## Jimefam (Jun 22, 2018)

bosox_5 said:


> Thanks. The wife is having a hard time. The boy is pissed he lost progress on his battlefront x box game. We are going full in on a system. In addition I'll be putting nest cameras up. But if they want to smash a window again, there isn't a lot I can do.


I believe alexa has a mode now where she can listen for the sound of breaking glass etc and trigger the alarm. In case you have that in your house.


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## stotea (Jul 31, 2017)

I have a monitored alarm system as well. It has the typical door and window sensors as well as motion and glass breakage sensors. Most sensors are wireless, and the control panel is cellular.

Outside, I recently got a Nest doorbell cam. Front exterior lights turn on 30 minutes before dusk and turn off 30 minutes before dawn, and the sides and rear have motion lights. All potential points of entry have alarm signs or stickers. All large shrubs around the house were removed and replaced with smaller options.

My strategy is first to make my house a less appealing target than other options. Second is to make entry difficult and/or slow. Third is to get them out of the house ASAP.


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## krusej23 (May 8, 2018)

There is nothing better than Wyze cameras. Cheap and do all of the things expensive cameras do.


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## Babaganoosh (Apr 21, 2019)

To those with with the Dvr storage. I ran all my wires into a closet and put the dvr there. The closet has a decent lock and the door to the room locks as well. It's not foolproof but it's another layer of protection.

Layers are what a complete home security plan is all about.


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## Alan (Apr 23, 2017)

My DVR is in a closet as well, like a broom closet. I suppose if I wanted to, I could set up a remote computer and record the video offsite, as well as the local DVR.

I'll add that I consider my camera system as passive, as there are no notifications, bells, alarms, etc. that go off if someone breaches the perimeter. It's like an evidence gathering device, nothing more.


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## Cory (Aug 23, 2017)

That sucks! Never had anyone try to or able to break into our house but have caught a a couple trying to get into my truck in the driveway. I have a Lorex 4K system for nighttime video quality, LNB9232S cameras and NR9082 NVR locked in a closet. Also have Nest cameras for ease of video playback and because of cloud storage Incase the NVR is stolen, and the Nest doorbell. We don't have a monitored system but I've been thinking about getting one. But my current cameras are not obscure, they are very visible so in a way it's a deterrent.


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## PNW_George (May 28, 2018)

Sorry to hear that, it can be a very unsettling feeling of violation I can understand from personal experience.

I am starting to research an on premises/DVR security camera. Our neighborhood has had a few recent issues and my wife is afraid to be home alone now and wants me to get our security system working again and wants cameras added. I have a short or bad sensor somewhere that keeps falsely tripping my system.

We had a neighbor a few doors down have their house broken into a few weeks ago while someone was house sitting. They heard noises and voices, called 911 and held the door closed while the thieves tried to open it. Scary.

A few weeks ago someone was found jumping over fences in our neighborhood and cameras alerted our neighbors who called 911 and the suspect was ultimately caught. Seems someone was found at the park at the end of the lake dead after being shot three times. The suspect was found with a gun in his backpack registered to the deceased.

My neighbor and I stopped and talked to someone walking down our street recently, looking out of place and got some suspicious answers on what she was looking for. We live on a private, dead end road so know everyone that should be there out side of guests. Found out later she was found and arrested with stolen mail.

15 years ago or so our house was broken into in the middle of the day while I was traveling, kids were at school and my wife was at work. While a lot of expensive things were stolen, the family videos that were in my camera bag were taken and all those precious captured family memories are gone forever.

A few of my neighbors have Ring and are happy with it. One has a home DVR based system. I am becoming increasingly concerned with losing privacy with our every move and internet history being monitored and shared without knowing to what extent so I am not interested in Ring or similar cloud-based systems nor Alexa or Google. I would go back to a generic phone and add a firewall to protect against Google and Apple if I could. More a decision based on principle since I'm sure I have little privacy anyway.

Our dog is a pretty good deterrent and raised by a military man, happy father's day dad, have firearms and know how to use them but pray I never need to for self defense.

Let me know if you find a DVR system you like. I would likely install it myself. POE based is what I'm thinking and I could put the DVR in a location the thieves would have to work to find.

Discouraging we need to worry about safety in our own home.


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## Alan (Apr 23, 2017)

I've got guns around the house too. I don't have any small kids nor do any come to my home, so that's not a concern.

You have to have some pretty big ones to break into someones house while they're home.

I have one of these from HFT, which works pretty well and has damn good range. I zip tied it to a downspout.

https://www.harborfreight.com/wireless-driveway-alert-system-93068.html


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## dpainter68 (Apr 26, 2017)

Like you said, if someone is going to break in there's nothing you can do about it (assuming you're not home). Most break-in's occur during the day when no one is home. Most often they come to the door and knock/ring the doorbell to see if anyone is home, then go around back and kick in a door (or throw a rock through a window...). I have the Ring doorbell which at least would allow me to talk to them, but I've seen plenty of videos where people are casing out houses and have no clue the doorbell or other security cameras are present. About a mile down the road from me someone broke into a house and ripped the security camera off the wall. They left the DVR in the house - not sure if they couldn't find it or just dumb enough to think ripping the camera off the wall was enough.

In addition to the Ring doorbell I have the SimpliSafe security system and a HikVision NVR and 4 cameras but want to add a couple more. My front camera is a motion tracking PTZ and comes in handy. Of course there's shortcomings with everything - if the internet goes down (or they know what they're doing and cut the line coming into your house), the Ring and other wifi/cloud only services will be useless. A security system will alert authorities, but they have plenty of time to grab what they want before the police could be there in most cases, although it will certainly deter most criminals. In your case I would want some glass break sensors anywhere they could come through windows like that. Some things you may want to check into is Armor Concepts Door Jamb Armor and/or Nightlock's door security devices. There's some security devices for windows out there too but I don't have any experience with them. Another good security device is retired neighbors who are well armed and can be there in under 2 minutes


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## PNW_George (May 28, 2018)

Alan said:


> I've got guns around the house too. I don't have any small kids nor do any come to my home, so that's not a concern.
> 
> You have to have some pretty big ones to break into someones house while they're home.
> 
> ...


I don't have any problem with people that keep firearms in their house with children assuming they teach safety to their children and lock them up appropriately, the guns, not the kids. Still, I choose not to keep guns in my house until my kids moved out.

I was able to troubleshoot my alarm faults, now just need to decide on a camera security system.


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## bosox_5 (Jun 20, 2018)

Guns and Dogs are a no go for me. While I have no issue with people that have guns, they aren't for me. Also, guns only work if I am home during the break in, and that wasn't the case this time. I don't think a Dog would be good because it wouldn't be fair to the dog. With everyone out of the house every day for 8 hours, that seems unfair to have the poor thing either in a crate or scratching up the floors inside. I know we could get a dog walker or something but then that is another person I would have to worry about being in my house. Looks like electronic monitoring is the way to go. Sucks because I never remember locking a door when I was a kid (maybe I was secretly driving my dad insane).


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## PNW_George (May 28, 2018)

Guns would be the last option for me as well and one I hope I never need to use but if I am home and someone threatens my family I will protect them. The break-in at my neighbors with a house sitter home having to barricade the bedroom door makes that an unthinkable option I would rather be in position to defend.

Our timing and reasons for adding security measures are similar though based on your recent incidents and those happening in my neighborhood.

My Vista 20se is now back in operation and everything tested out except the external siren. I ordered a new siren that should fix that. I also just ordered a Dahua NVR5216-16P-4KS2E NVR and 8 cameras I will attempt to install myself. Researching has not been easy but I found a number of top brands OEM from Dahua so I thought I would go to the source and since my research found support was a common issue, found a forum that could help me along the way.

https://ipcamtalk.com/#hardware.3

A different route than my neighbors that have gone with Ring but I prefer something other than the cloud solutions. What camera system did you decide on?


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## bosox_5 (Jun 20, 2018)

I will be going with two different approaches for the camera. Since I have Nest products I have been installing their products inside and outside of the house. Additionally, my new security company will be putting in a DVR system on the exterior. The nest products give me the ability to monitor remotely, while the security company gives me a local recording. Maybe overkill, but this is where we are.


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## bosox_5 (Jun 20, 2018)

So the system was installed. The installer broke my baseboard and that has to be replaced now. Just add it to the list of things that need to be fixed. When the security company was over, it was shocking how similar their system was to a simply safe or nest security system that you can install with sticky things on the windows/doors, although my system has a cell phone backup. I have very much enjoyed the NEST cameras. They were easy to install and the quality is very good. The security company actually said that these systems are going to put them out of the residential camera business.


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## jayhawk (Apr 18, 2017)

I am, like pnw, needing to get things rebooted. Naturally, skeptical of the "best buy" stuff. I look at my neighborhood and think ...how hard would it be to disable a house's internet access? (Answer: simple) think about it

Anyone deploy ubiquti and their cameras?


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