Re: Central locking for houses

[Tim Ramsdale <tim@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Sounds not to be a pleasant experience at all.

We have had worries like this in the past - I used to have one of these
plastic front-doors that needs a key turn to stop it being opened from the
outside. It used to really spook me, and I'd leave the house then turn back
to check, and it would always be locked. Until the one time I turned back
and it wasn't....

I have fitted all my external doors not with central locking (as I worried
about the insurance situation if for any reason the house had unlocked
itself in the middle of the day), but instead with 'lock detection'. The
alarm won't arm unless all the external doors are locked.

There are 2 ways I've done this...
1) Chubb locks with an integrated lock detection signal (done thru a
microswitch within the lock assembly itself). This is then wired back to
the
panel, or to a RF transmitter back to the panel.
2) Microswitch in the lock frame, detecting the deadbolts having been
locked
in place.

I've complemented this with standard door reed switches, so even if the
would-be burglar figures it out (or smashes the door off its hinges) there
is an immediate alarm at the point of entry. I worry a bit about PIRs
letting the burglar further into the house than I'd like before the alarm
fires.

Last of all, I have PIRs in the garden, and a reed switch on the side gate.
If these get triggered when the alarm is set then I get a SMS as a
pre-warning of someone casing the joint. I've not been burgled yet -
usually
it is just the postman leaving something round the back of the house!

Finally, if the alarm does fire, all the lights go on full brightness and
the PC reads out the activated zone. This is particularly unpleasant for
false alarms at 2am, as it guarantees to wake the entire house. Hopefully
it
would assist a speedy exit from my property of any would-be burglar. Sadly
the same setup is triggered if the shed is attacked also - which is more
prone to false alarms.

HTH

T.

On 22 April 2010 13:25, Tim <tim@xxxxxxx> wrote:

>
>
> Hi,
>
> I have a nasty feeling that one of the great unwashed got into my
house
> last night. Alarm sounded at 2:30AM and when I went to investigate all
was
> in order except for the smell of stale tobacco smoke in the
conservatory -
> when I investigated further one of the doors was unlocked (our fault I
> believe). I think that the scroat must have tried the door, strolled
in,
> tripped the alarm and fled empty handed.
>
> This is conjecture because all was exactly as we had left it and the
doors
> between the conservatory (no PIR) and the PIR that tripped were
closed, as
> was the external door - I don't know if when fleeing from a house you
would
> close the doors after you - and had it not been of a suspicion of
smoke I'd
> not have noticed anything and put it down to a false alarm.
>
> This has spooked my wife, so I have been investigating "Central
Locking" -
> it would only have to be deadbolts on external doors - I can't believe
it
> would be a difficult thing to install. Does anyone have it? Know
anything
> about it?
>
> TIA
>
> Tim.
>
>
>



--
--
Tim Ramsdale.


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]



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