| The first step in installing a wireless security system is to determine what you need. In order to do this, we have provided a wireless security design worksheet.
You first need to figure out what areas need to be secured. Entry areas such as doors and windows represent the primary risk areas, so you should write down the number of each that you want to secure. You can also secure open areas such as hallways using a motion detector.
Each area is called a zone, which describes the area of protection covered by a single door/window transmitter, a smoke alarm siren detector, a motion detector, or other sensing/transmitting device. A zone represents a single location, such as front door, a basement window, or an entire room (protected by motion detector).
The next consideration is how many sirens you would like. Generally, there is only one siren in a central location; however, when securing a large area, you may prefer to have secondary sirens as well.
Next, you should consider whether you need a remote control for your system, and if so, how many do you want? A remote control allows you to operate the sysetm without accessing the keypad, and will often allow you to trigger the system (panic mode) as well. You should also determine where you will put the keypad. It should be in a central location, easily accessed from the main point of entry (such as the front door).
Finally, you should consider what extra features are important to you. Possible features include home automation (that allows you to trigger lights as well as the siren), a dialer to call a number when the system is triggered, glass-breakage detectors and smoke-alarm detectors (that detect the sound of a smoke alarm).
Once you have completed the worksheet, you can compare your requirements to the available systems on our website at http://www.radioshack.com/. |
