Where To Start With DIY Home Security? 825
secretrobotron writes "I'm a recent university graduate from a co-op system which has kept me on the move every other semester, so I've never really had a permanent place to live, and I've never had the opportunity (or the capital) to buy expensive things. Now that I'm working, those restrictions on my life are gone and I'm living in an apartment with things I don't want stolen. I would love to build a DIY home security system, but I don't even know where to start since Google searches reveal things like diysecurityforum.com, which help only to an extent for a curious newcomer. Has anybody out there successfully built a home security system on a budget? If so, where did you start?" Related query: When similar questions have come up before, many readers have recommended Linux-based Zoneminder (last updated more than a year ago); is that still the state of the art?
What's that coming over the hill? Is it a monster? (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Peace of mind or deter thieves? (Score:3, Interesting)
Exactly. Putting up theif deterrants in the form of monitoring systems only attract thieves.
If you want DIY home security - put bars on windows where your firecode allows, make sure you've got deadbolts on every door - the kind that need a key from both the inside and outside (so they don't break the window and reach in) - and make sure the blinds are closed, so people can't go inside.
A camera doesn't make your house any more secure. Surveilance is not truly a form of security, it's a form of prosecution.
Woof (Score:5, Interesting)
Our primary home security system is Terri the Terrorist Terrier -- 55 pounds of friendly tail-wagging furry cuddliness if she knows and likes you, 55 scary pounds of big teeth and growls if you're a stranger.
When we first got Terri my wife and I lived in what some might call a "sketchy" neighborhood, and we KNOW Terri scared off (and likely bit, from the screams) at least one or two intruders in the yard, well before they could get to the house or to my office in a separate building. Terri is also portable; if you need to walk around a not-nice neighborhood, you can take Terri with you.
Terri has also handled the few rat infestations we've had, using the traditional terrier "shake until dead" method.
We got Terri from the Manatee County Animal Shelter. There is surely a similar facility near you that has a perfect alarm system waiting to go home and protect you from burglars, cats, and Al Queda operatives -- and who will wag his or her tail when you come home and probably even lick your face if allowed. Don't worry about breeds and all that. You'll know the right dog, and the right dog will know you. Training is not hard, and dog food is cheap. For 24/7 indoor AND outdoor protection, you'll want a doggie door and a fenced yard, but your living circumstances may not allow this. No big; millions of dogs live indoors and go out for walks and to dog parks for exercise.
"Woof," tweets Terri -- @TerriTerrier
Re:a gun (Score:4, Interesting)
Spoke with a local cop across the street. His take on the best defenses: 1) know your neighbors so they know who does and doesn't belong so they'll call the cops when they see something out of order - this is what he says catches most of the burglaries that he's seen; 2) a dog. As to alarm companies and such he says he doesn't recall a single instance where they managed to catch anyone in a residential burglary because of an alarm going off, monitored or unmonitored. Take this as hearsay.
And a safe for when you're not there to guard it (Score:4, Interesting)
a gun
And a good safe to store it in when you're away somewhere you can't take it with you. (Some jurisdictions blame YOU if a neighborhood gangsta lifts it and uses it somewhere else. So you don't want to depend on locked cases or hidey-holes.)
Get a fire safe. Not only do they help protect stuff against damage in a fire, they're double-walled with a layer of firebrick between the walls. This makes them heavy enough that it takes a special piece of equipment to move them. So the bad guys can't just haul it off somewhere else to crack it ^even if you don't bolt it to the floor with the locknuts inside).
and if that doesn't work: more gun.
Once you've got enough "stopping power" to make the threat credible and follow through if you're called, you don't need to go larger. As McClary's law of firepower says: "You can't stop a bullet with a bigger bullet." Which in this case means "they can't". Housebreakers don't go in for (ineffective) arms races. They are more into avoiding "houses that shoot" in favor of less dangerous prey.
Decent sized pistol for one-on-one or few-on-one, shotgun if mobs-on-one might be an issue, and you're golden.
For home defense load your 12-gauge shotgun with fine birdshot loads, like number 40: It's just as effective as 00 if there's nothing but air between gun and target - but gets stopped by a couple layers of drywall at any significant distance - so you don't need to include the neighbors in the exercise. Fragmenting or greatly expanding hollowpoint bullets (such as "Golden Saber" or "Silvertip") in the pistol for the same reason (and also so it doesn't go THROUGH the bad guy and hit the neighbors if the perp is such a fool that you actually have to fire.)
According to FBI stats, safest (in terms of victim injury/death percentages) defense (by a BUNCH) is with-gun, next safest is knuckling under, and everything else is far worse.
Mandatory mindset: IF you have picked up the gun you have ALREADY DECIDED that you WILL fire if the perp attacks despite it. Get that figured out in your head before considering picking up the gun - or even getting one for self/home defense. You need to already be past that internal conflict to fire in time if it is necessary.
Take the NRA "Personal Protection" firearms course - before deciding what (if any) gun to buy or dedicate for the purpose. Excellent, cheap, customized for your area and its laws, taught by certified instructors with the legal issues handled by an official of the jurisdiction. A weekend's instruction (or several evening sessions) and you'll have the skills, competence, and understanding of the law and its fallout necessary to know when to defend and do it properly.
Best bang for the buck is signage... (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:a gun (Score:2, Interesting)
Not so. http://www.colt45acp.com/ [colt45acp.com]
Go wireless networked burglar alarm (Score:4, Interesting)
I use the Scientech LS-30 [210.68.28.137] which is a device supporting several types of wireless sensors including PIR (infra-red), reed switch, glass breakage detector, smoke detector, medical alert button and wireless outdoor alarm.
The alarm system can report a break-in, fire or medical emergency via PSTN or SMS. It's very programmable, with support for lots of different zones, X10 home automation switches, day-of-week and time-of-day mode setting, doorbell and so on.
The LS-30 has accessories including a GSM module (for sending alerts via SMS) USB interface and also ethernet interface.
I wrote the LS30 project [ohloh.net] to allow me to control and monitor the device from linux. There's a daemon which connects to the alarm's ethernet port; it proxies commands (from clients on my machine) and events (alerts / status updates) from the device.
I have daemons to watch for particular events (e.g. door open/close), logging the activity rates of PIR sensors (movement detection is reported by the unit even when disarmed) and burglaries (so the computer knows and can react accordingly e.g. by sending SMS messages or twitter).
Motion (Score:4, Interesting)
I've used it a few times, easy to install and configure.
It can do time lapse, motion sense and round robin on multiple devices. Even supports a streaming function with Apache and can upload the latest image to a remote FTP server on the Internet.
Doesn't need much as far as hardware either, one of the systems I set up was a 450MHz celeron with 128M RAM. Over all the hardest part of using it was hiding the camera.
And best of all, Its free!!
Re: Barking Dog (Score:4, Interesting)
Came to say this ---^
Lived in Miami and had many things stolen from my fenced in yard and many "false alarms" on my alarm system whenever I was out of the house after dark.
Got 2 puppies from the local animal shelter and voila, problems stopped...
Barking PUPPIES stopped it all...And when they got bigger and their barks were deeper, it was just a bonus that kept solicitors away as well...
Now, they're both 15 years old and sleep all the time and they deserve it.
Be a mensch. Rescue a puppy and save yourself a lot of hassle and get a buddy to hang out with as well...
One of the best decisions I ever made.
Re:a gun (Score:2, Interesting)
If you're more of a cat person, I recommend a serval. An experienced robber will be used to a dog barking, but when they break into your house and hear a roar they are going out a whole lot faster than they came in.
Re:ZoneMinder is not all it could be (Score:3, Interesting)
Join #zoneminde on irc.freenode.net tell your story and wait a day or three. Sucks, but tends to yield results.
neighbors... (Score:4, Interesting)
It's funny you mention that - my wife and I just moved into a neighborhood that is cheap, but slightly dodgy. Not so much dangerous, but a lot of break-ins and property crime.
When we were checking out our place, I was looking at the parking lot included. I looked across the alley and realized that I was looking at a 3-story building, maybe ten or twelve apartment balconies per floor, that was a retirement home.
At any hour of the day or night, there are at least one or two people on their balconies having a smoke. All of a sudden, I stopped worrying about break-ins.
Re:make your place less attractive to thieves (Score:1, Interesting)
Disclaimer: I am not a burglar or any other kind of criminal. However, for about seven years I was a teenager. Stealing a few moments of awkward but excitingly forbidden intimacy with one's high-school girlfriend isn't exactly like stealing consumer electronics and jewelry, but the execution is similar enough to be instructive. Over the years, I've had a few opportunities to compare my experiences with those of actual burglars, and from that derived some insight into the differences between home security and security home theater.
The problem with securing your home against thieves is that unless you have breaking and entering experience, you're given to inane ideas like "plant thorny bushes." Thieves aren't lazy, otherwise they'd find a source of income that doesn't require them to break into houses, carry things out, and then hawk them to a fence, all the while avoiding being arrested. Many thieves steal out of desperation, meaning they are highly motivated by something (like agonizing drug withdrawal) to steal your stuff. Playing that motivation against them is more effective than making it more difficult to act on it. Criminals also tend to plan ahead, and they know that CSI is just a TV show. Since the cops aren't going to bring in the all-star forensics team to analyze a burglary, the name of the game is minimizing exposure to potential intervention from a live person by any means necessary.
First of all: fences. Yes, a fence impedes the criminal's access to the home - for about thirty seconds or so. If the criminal can find a thirty-second window to get over the fence without being seen, the fence is now hiding him to some degree. Assuming the criminal is unlucky enough to have an actual encounter with police, the fence is likely to be more of an impediment to the police than it is to the criminal. All donut jokes aside, the criminal can always relieve himself of the burden of your valuables; the police aren't about to shed their gear.
Next, thorny bushes. If you have a wall around your home, like many suburban houses do, the criminal has all the time in the world to overcome the monumental threat of minor lacerations. He might just cut the rose bush down, or maybe put a heavy jacket over it and use it as a step-stool to climb through your window. If he's visible, he'll just have to live with a slight stinging sensation and the possibility that the cops might swab a bit of blood off the windowsill. Remember, there is no magic CSI machine that takes in a swab of blood and spits out everything up to the perp's mother's maiden name.
Motion detecting exterior lighting relies on the human element. Your house could be lit up like the Las Vegas strip; it won't matter if nobody's paying attention anyway. Assume the cops are busy with curfew violations or speeding tickets turned possession charges. Even the most caring and vigilant of neighbors is going to quit looking over at your house the twentieth time the light goes off and there's nothing there but a cat. Besides, your neighbors have to sleep too. Also keep in mind that motion detector exterior lighting has blind spots and glass light bulbs, and that burglars are given to carrying blunt instruments and a disregard for property. Remember, crowbars don't leave fingerprints for Lt. Caine to examine with his magic flashlight.
I'd also like to chastise the people suggesting that a dog is good home security. You may scare off a criminal... or you may get the dog killed with a crowbar and all your stuff stolen anyway. You may also install a doggie door. I'm not a huge guy, but I'm not small (6'1"), and I can fit quite easily through a doggie door. You might as well leave the back door open.
Speaking of which, any security measures are hilariously useless if you have a sliding glass door on the back of your house. It's often completely obscured from view and it's quick, easy and almost silent to unlock. Punch a hole with a screwdriver, reach in and undo the lock. The door manufacturers try to resolve this by adding more and different lo
Re:Home burglary is dead (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:a gun (Score:2, Interesting)
Nah, not really. It's just good old fashioned ignorance rearing its ugly head.
Guys like him have been around since Ug argued against trying to use fire for fear of angering the sun.
Re:a gun (Score:4, Interesting)
A few years ago 3-4 of his neighbors houses had been broken into and robbed in a short period of time. My friend, a gun enthusiast who loves shooting at the range and does so at least once a week, decided there was no better deterrent than hanging one of his used silhouette targets up on the back door.
The ragged holes in the head and chest said all that needed to be said
Re: Barking Dog (Score:4, Interesting)
We also had a fenced yard with an ally behind it in south Florida (Hollywood). Not the best neighborhood. But we had a 125lb Mastiff/Catahoula mix.
She had brendel coloring (black and brown irregular spots) which was awesome camouflage. When she laid down in the bushes, she disappeared, day or night.
People would walk up and down the alley. The dog would just watch them most of the time, until they touched the fence. Then she would go nuts with the barking and drool and meanness. The funniest part about it was that people would walk by at night, get a little too close to the fence and then all of a sudden noise, slobber and teeth would come flying at them out of the darkness. It was good entertainment and my friends and I would sit on the porch and just watch the action.
One time the police were chasing someone down the alley and the person jumped the fence to cut through our yard. According to the officer, the guy jumped over, he then heard barking and screaming as the guy jumped back over the fence. He practically ran through the policemen getting away from the dog.
We got a K9 badge from the police a few days later and put it on her collar.
Re:a gun (Score:3, Interesting)
Why was this marked insightful? It should be funny. I don't have any points to do that. :(
Funny doesn't give karma so mods will sometimes mod a post insightful/interesting/informative as a courtesy. There's also the possibility a mod thought it was an insightful joke.
Re:Risk Management (Score:2, Interesting)
I'll help install it. (Score:2, Interesting)
BTW - how big is your residence? A small van's-worth? A small moving truck size? Bigger?
Re:a gun (Score:3, Interesting)
If a criminal knows they have a pretty good chance of going up against a paranoid citizen with a gun strapped to his mattress, they're likely to strike elsewhere. They do not want to go into a gunfight, no matter how well equipped they are.
The criminals in my town don't seem to have a problem with getting into gun fights, or any other kind of fight for that matter. But it's usually two or more criminals shooting at each other. There was a gang fight right down the street from where I lived when my kids were little; two gangs shooting at each other. The only shot that actually hit anyone hit an unarmed man trying to get his kids inside.
There was a different kind of firefight two days later -- the gangsters' house burned to the ground.
But note that even if guns were illegal, there would still have been as many shots fired from as many guns as were fired. The thing about criminals is, if they don't respect laws against homicide, why would anybody expect them to respect gun laws?