[Closed] Home Security Recommendations

Because we have to leave the house for long periods for work I have two Nest Hello doorbell cameras one on the front and one on the back door which are both used by visitors. The way the house is orientated they cover anyone entering. They just work really well, really clear and I get alerts if they see anyone and an email with a mug shot. I can also talk to anyone who rings the bell through the app on my phone. I’ve also recently fitted a yale smart alarm and that was really easy to fit including sensors on my bike shed and garage which are 30m from the house. It doesn’t use wi-fi to connect to the sensors and apparently has a range of about 200m from the alarm hub. I was skeptical as the house has massively thick stone walls but it just connected straight away using the app. The app is easy to use and can fully, part or disarm it remotely and will give me a log of any events. Its been very reliable with no false alarms. Has geofencing as well but not used that. Impressed with both systems.

We have Neos cameras which you can access from your phone and I get alerts if anything moves etc.

https://shop.neos.co.uk/

Even sent some video off to the Police after they appealed for CCTV footage related to a stabbing, the suspect rode past our house on his bike, then turned round and rode back (cul-de-sacs aren't great for making an escape).

I fit Hikvision cameras ans Pyronix alarm systems. They might not be the cheapest but they are solid and reliable, and can fit most budgets.

I’ve recently got the Ring alarm system plus some cameras and have been very happy with it. Keep an eye out for offers on Amazon or Ring. They were doing the 10 piece system with free indoor cam for £199 a couple of months ago.

Where you based stof41?

Nest system has worked very well for us. One camera on front and back covers the whole house and can set up zones and alerts. Very intuitive.

I quite like these internal cameras. I got a couple because they are cheap and they record constantly, not just when triggered. They store to a SD card, and send alerts to the app. I'll probably buy some more and just point them out the windows. Right now I use them in the garage. They're not battery though. I've also got a couple of more obvious external cameras which I will put up when Mrs.10 agrees with my plan.

Milton Keynes

I started out getting a neos camera for £20. They're supposed to be an indoor camera but I bought an external housing for it and put it on the garage. Been great for last 3 years with no problems. It only records for 12 seconds for each alert but you can increase it to 1 minute through a subscription.

The camera is WiFi and does need a power supply.

I would start there and see if you think it's a benefit before splashing out on expensive cameras.

Also got a Arlo camera which is nice but expensive. Good thing about the Arlo is it runs off batteries so can be placed anywhere

One thing I wondered is whether burglars who suspect there might be an alarm thing are prone to cutting phone/internet cables before breaking in? Our fibre cable is very obvious at the front of the house and would not be very hard to sever!

I started out getting a neos camera for £20. They’re supposed to be an indoor camera but I bought an external housing for it and put it on the garage. Been great for last 3 years with no problems. It only records for 12 seconds for each alert but you can increase it to 1 minute through a subscription.

Yep, I've used them outside as Hedgehog cameras to keep an eye on the feeding stations!

I would do them as two independent installs and use a well known camera brand.
Refer here for some info and good service https://www.use-ip.co.uk/

Although they don’t want you to install this is a very good wireless class 2 system.
Just scan the QR code on the sensor and your done, very good app.
https://ajax.systems/

You can get one here with an account.
https://cctvdirect.co.uk/products/alarms/ajax-wireless-alarms/ajax-wireless-alarm-kits/?gclid=Cj0KCQjw4eaJBhDMARIsANhrQABJ4db7CvDjmVBMHbhuUy0Ykd01KauMahR5zKe5W1IQXOizNIVCLmkaAgvJEALw_wcB

MK

Ah righto, too far. Thanks though

(Manc)

What I find so frustrating about these systems is that none of them seem to supply hidden/ invisible cameras. It's so annoying.

The first thing a scrote will do when he gets into my bike room is smash the obvious camera. I need a second camera that he won't see to film him as he sets about grinding the chains etc

Why don't they supply them?

anything but Ring. I fitted two of their cameras (stick up cams) and for two weeks they worked well. The night that my garage was done over and my bike taken, they picked up nothing. I complained to them and had a call with someone in USA who wanted me to tell them my losses. As soon as I gave them the value of the bike I got stonewalled by them.

The flaw with Ring is a) it's motion detected, no motion then no recording b) Their parent company Amazon sells wi-fi jammers that makes the aforementioned issue a real problem to them.

Ripped them out, returned them and bought a Nest camera like the one my next door neighbour had that recorded what the Ring camera failed to do.

When I do it again I will buy a hardwired HIK vision system with an IP gateway as it's not susceptible to wifi jammers.

The first thing a scrote will do when he gets into my bike room is smash the obvious camera.

Or he's wearing a mask and the footage is of no help to identify him...

As I see it the main point is deterrent, someone wanders up to our front door thinking, "what about this house?" and then sees a camera. By which time their face has been uploaded to the cloud, so they just walk away and try somewhere else...

As I see it the main point is deterrent, someone wanders up to our front door thinking, “what about this house?” and then sees a camera. By which time their face has been uploaded to the cloud, so they just walk away and try somewhere else…

Or think "what have they got worth stealing that means they bought a camera?"

I can see the point in a lot of this stuff from a convenience point of view. I bought a cheap Echo View a little while ago and it'd be handy to see who's at my front door on it. But security-wise, who pays attention to burglar alarms? You hear an alarm, you don't assume someone's being burgled, you think "that bloody alarm's going off..."

I think I'd rather spend the money on upgraded locks and comprehensive Contents insurance.

Where mine (on the front of my house overlooking the main road) has paid for itself is when people crash in to my car. Had a van hit it and drive off. When first challenging their insurer they denied it was their customer until I sent them the footage. Almost immediate full acceptance of liability. So mine is more as insurance back up, not in lieu of decent cover in the first place.

Or think “what have they got worth stealing that means they bought a camera?”

They're getting quite ubiquitous, by the time you get to our house you've been filmed on a dozen or so Ring / Nest doorbell things....

So even if the camera failed, good chance someone will have him/her on film.

But security-wise, who pays attention to burglar alarms?

Unless you're the subject of a targeted burglery it's just path of least resistance, if your house has CCTV + PIR lights + cameras, they'll just walk past and try the next one. My plan is just to be one step ahead of the neighbours 😉

Bit like running from a lion, I don't need to run faster than the Lion, just a bit faster than my companion 😉

Sure. Double-edged sword really. You want to be less insecure than next door, whilst being less attractive than next door.

They’re getting quite ubiquitous

To be fair, that's a very good point.

Or think “what have they got worth stealing that means they bought a camera?”

So many houses on our road have smart doorbells and CCTV that those without are starting to stick out like a sore thumb as easy targets for thieves.

I've got a Nest and don't pay the subscription. It is good but think the biggest benefits from it would come if you paid the subscription. Also got a couple of CCTV cameras. Got an alarm too but it sees little use. Probably could do with an upgrade but not sure how much of a deterrent an alarm is these days as everyone seems to ignore them.

My fatalistic order of priority -

1) Good enough insurance to pay out if/when your stuff is nicked and an appropriate level of security to meet the minimum standard required by the insurance

And then, optionally

2) Ground anchors, chains, cameras, smart doorbells, cages, shark pools, lasers, trained attack monkeys, etc etc

A good friend of mine had his garage roof removed to steal the bikes inside, either taken whole or as many bits stripped off as weren't ground anchored down. If they're going to nick it, they're going to nick it, the chances of them being caught are miniscule.

DIY systems that rely on Apps to notify something has happened/ cctv images etc rely on the router being on and thus the mains power supply.
Cutting phone lines etc doesn’t need to be done now; wait for a power cut in the local area and have a field day with the likes of Yale/ Nest/ Ring systems.
The domestic market for professional systems is dead and buried.
They want our advice but don’t want to pay for it.
Bitter, moi?

I fit Hikvision cameras ans Pyronix alarm systems. They might not be the cheapest but they are solid and reliable, and can fit most budgets.

After much Googling and internet reading that's what I went with. No issues after several years use. It all just works.

I really like the Reolink cameras with the “AI” person detection. Had a Neos outside that would be set off by something blowing in the wind, or a car driving past, now I only get an alert on my phone if someone steps on the drive. Gives me a few extra seconds to head down to get the door. Records locally to a micro SD but can go to network recorders too.

Video doorbells have always seemed a bit of a gimmick to me, although I wfh so rarely need to speak to someone at the door virtually.

For alarms, I value ones that can call/text/alert when they go off over noisy external sounders. Bonus if you can then listen in (or have cameras) to see if it’s a false alarm or actually a break-in.

Got a Verisure system installed a couple of weeks ago plus an Arlo doorbell. Movement sensor and camera in the house and garage. Shock sensors on all downstairs windows. Device in the upstairs landing that will completely fill the house with smoke if the alarm isn't deactivated within 30 seconds. All the devices are battery powered and use a sim card rather than relying on the router. £450 for all the kit and the install. Fully controllable with the app. Control panel in our bedroom that we can do everything from, will tell us if any windows or doors are open, we can contact the control centre from it etc. It's a hugely impressive setup for not a lot of outlay

BoardinBob

.....This message will self destruction in 12 seconds.

Dum dumdum dum dum
Dadladala

Cutting phone lines etc doesn’t need to be done now; wait for a power cut in the local area and have a field day with the likes of Yale/ Nest/ Ring systems.

We have a power cut once every few years, it would be a long wait! Plus all the cameras record to SD card....

The Yale alarms offer GSM backup, and as mobile base stations have UPS, the alerts to your phone would still work even with a full power cut.

Christ, I keep popping in to this thread as I'm interested myself. Pretty much every poster has recommended a different solution. I like the radio-controlled bong idea though.

Pretty much every poster has recommended a different solution.

There are lots of pretty much identical systems out there!

Even the cameras we have (Neos) are OEMed by two different resellers, so you can buy the exact same things as either 'Neos' or 'Wyze'.

I'm in the process of securing a workspace away from home. Thought I'd go belt & braces with window/door grilles and a sim card alarm camera/notification system of some sort. Also had the idea of going belt, braces, and vacuum-sealed trousers with a ferocious guard dog or two that could live in a kennel in the yard. Is that even legal these days? I imagine I'd go to prison if they bit a burglar?

I work for Verisure now, so would recommend a system from them haha.

They do Arlo cloud cams and doorbells (and it's cheaper to buy them through Verisure).

They also go through the monitoring system too, so if your alarm is triggered the control centre can look through any available cameras.

Oh and the Zero Vision is pretty cool too. If you do have a confirmed break in, the control centre basically sets off a smoke bomb that will fill a room within about 30 seconds!

It's really flexible and covers a lot of bases.

@johnw1984 How much is a callout from the security guard and how much to refill the smoke cloak?

I think it's all included in the monthly fee. If you do have a break in and they set the Zero Vision off, someone like me will come out and perform a "post burglary".

You would have the system tested, any batteries that need replacing and a replacement smoke canister.

I've done a few this week (a mix between business and residential).

What damage does the smoke do to the house, kids pets.. ?

It's non-toxic, so it doesn't do any lasting/permanent damage.

You have to have it mounted away from anything that can cover it as it burns at about 120c at the front of the canister.

Most people in residential have it mounted on the landing pointing towards the stairs, or in the hallway etc.

The only issue with pets is that it can panic them. That's why they can't be installed in pet shops etc.

A business owner with a very large shop space said the room was full of smoke when he got to the premises after the break in. He was doubtful that it would be effective in such a large room, but was surprised.

The thief had broken in through a top window. Alarm sounded and the control centre determined that it was a genuine break in from the images and deployed the Zero Vision. It made the thief run back upstairs and out the way he came in.

Thanks everyone - Not sure I can afford a monitored alarm like Verisure as the typical 3 year price is north of £2000 due to the £45/m fee - I'd be looking for a fixed cost of around half that.