Alarm monitoring companies

Discussions about Z-Way software and Z-Wave technology in general
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oleoZ112
Posts: 3
Joined: 14 Sep 2015 17:37

Alarm monitoring companies

Post by oleoZ112 »

Hi,

I getting started with all the Zwave stuff, I have preordered the new Smartthings Hub and so far the only device ill be able to link to it will be a Schlage smart deadbolt.

I currently have ADT and im looking to replace them as they offer limited zwave devices. My question being, does anyone know if I buy a Zwave alarm system, what company would monitor my devices?
How do you guys usually do this? DO you buy the system through a monitoring company? if so, what companies are out there doing this.
Do you buy the zwave alarm system or panel and then look for a monitoring company?
Will you be able to Arm or Disarm the alarm remotely? Or Arm it on a set schedule?

Thanks for any tips,
Oleoc
jonarmani
Posts: 2
Joined: 16 Sep 2015 01:03

Re: Alarm monitoring companies

Post by jonarmani »

I'm new too and about to order all my Z-Wave equipment, but I for one am ditching the alarm companies and doing it myself. I'll be getting 1 or 2 of the siren & strobe alarms (ZM1601US-5) and various door, window, motion, and other sensors. SMS/email alerting while I'm away in conjunction with the siren for high severity correlations (front door sensor open while smart lock is still locked, or glass break sensor goes off, etc.) will at least alert me to an incident as well as deter most/all thieves even without auto-dial to 911.

I'm considering auto-dialing 911 somehow in the future when everything is stable and tested. Is this a smart decision? Or am I doing everything wrong by ignoring ADT and these other companies? Not trying to derail your thread, oleoZ112, but rather hope to enhance it with further discussion.
oleoZ112
Posts: 3
Joined: 14 Sep 2015 17:37

Re: Alarm monitoring companies

Post by oleoZ112 »

Jonarmani,

Great input, im also wondering if it's worth it to keep ADT.

At this point I dont feel I can rely on myself to react to alarms. What if Im in a meeting at work or away in a cruise, how would I react every time there's an event, and I am for some reason, unreachable. To your other point of auto dialing 911, what happens if it's a false alarm, you would have to create thresholds, maybe to call 911 after more than 1 sensor trips or wait 2 minutes before calling 911. I dont think the technology to make this an easy setup is there yet.

I think its better to have a monitoring company dedicated for this 24 hours a day, where you would have to confim that in fact an event is a false alarm. What im not sure is that I want ADT for the job, they are way too expensive compared to other vendors and they are very limited in the Zwave field.

Let me know your thoughts. :)
viper384
Posts: 42
Joined: 18 Feb 2015 05:25

Re: Alarm monitoring companies

Post by viper384 »

Keep your alarm panel, dump ADT. The alarm panel will do a much more reliable job than Zwave for security, and you don't have to reinvent the wheel. Zwave is best for automation.

Better yet, use your alarm panel for security, and integrate it with Zwave. For example, change the temperature when your away, change it back when the alarm disarms. Check out ad2usb which integrates into your alarm panel as a virtual keypad, from that you integrate into Zway, send and receive SMS messages from your alarm panel, etc. Remember if you get broken into, the SIREN is what scares the criminals away. When the police arrives, bad guys are gone.
toomuo
Posts: 23
Joined: 01 Jan 2015 20:14

Re: Alarm monitoring companies

Post by toomuo »

I thought that home alarms were not allowed to auto-dial 911, too many false triggers. They can only dial the alarm company, who either sends out their own patrol vehicles, or if it is a fire alert, then they can call 911 on your behalf. 911 won't dispatch to a general "somethings wrong" unless someone has seen the burglary in progress, they'll just have a car drive by if they are in the vicinity.
I'd prefer to have a video camera auto-record whatever happens, that would satisfy the police when they come to take a statement after a real break-in, and your home insurance company when you go to get reimbursed.
The alarm(s) going off inside your house should be the main deterrent, that lets the neighbors know to look in your direction.

If your system can send you an email or SMS to your smartphone, and you can review camera feeds straight away, then you can decide whether to call 911. If you are somewhere where you can't respond to that, that's the time you need the monitoring company. For most people, that's a tiny percentage of the time, but the alarm companies will try to make it sound like it happens every time.
sirelboe
Posts: 11
Joined: 11 Apr 2015 01:41

Re: Alarm monitoring companies

Post by sirelboe »

So we never really got an answer to what monitoring services are available and/or pro's and con's of each.

I'm using a dsc powerseries 1832 , vera edge home controller , and envisalink to remotely arm/disarm.
I'm trying to find a reliable cheap UL listed 24/7 monitoring service.
anyone?
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