Dogs and Deadbolts

Dogs and deadbolts By Jackie Jardine

That’s what home security consisted of when our parents and grandparents were raising their families.

Even a decade ago, home security meant windows and doors wired to protect against intruders, motion sensors, video surveillance, punching a security code into a panel mounted on a wall, then scrambling to exit the house before setting off the alarm.

To quote the 1978 hit for country music crooner Loretta Lynn, We’ve come a long way, baby.

Today, thanks to advances in wireless technology, home security has given way to home automation and security platforms are getting smaller yet with a wider reach than ever before.

Developing a security plan for your home is simply a matter of identifying needs, say local security experts.

Take, for instance, a growing family with young children and both parents working outside the home. They may need remote door locks and security cameras. The security needs in that situation may be vastly different from those needs of a retired couple – perhaps snowbirds – who enjoys travelling or spending summers at a family cottage. And those needs may not be the same as those of a working couple with teenaged children.

“Security needs are different for everyone, depending on needs, family and lifestyle,” says Brad Crawford, sales and service rep with TechPad Home Automation & Multimedia.

It all boils down to a needs assessment and family routine, concurs Shelby Janes, sales manager Atlantic Canada for ADT. “When meeting with a client, we look at their living situation and address their concerns,” she explains, “then design a solution around that.”

Homes can be more interconnected now than ever before and a feeling of security can come at any time of the day, any place, at the touch of your fingertips.

“Home automation is still a fledgling industry and is still evolving, but we believe it’s growing by leaps and bounds. Today, we need to make our homes work for us and home automation helps make our homes smarter,” Crawford says.

“Every month it seems there is a new device coming out that is able to connect to your home WiFi and be controlled by a smart phone app. There really is no limit to what can be automated these days.”

The couple with young children may find peace from the knowledge that they can use their smart phone, while enjoying date night at a nearby restaurant, to watch their children sleeping soundly while under the watchful eye of a baby sitter. A working couple may use their phone while at work in a neighbouring community to turn up the heat and lights and unlock the doors to their house at the same time the school bus is taking their children home from school, then watch those kids enter the house and have the doors lock securely behind them. Snowbirds can log into their laptop or tablet while sitting poolside in Florida and check to make sure their home is not buried under three feet of snow. Or, for a family away on vacation, a “ghost visitor” will turn lights on and off in different rooms at different times of the time to give the illusion that someone is home.

“Security companies are not selling on the ‘scare factor’ anymore,” notes Blake Smith, head of marketing with Wilson Security Limited. “Convenience and peace of mind are important to today’s consumers.”

Within the last two years, Smith says the ‘wellness factor’ has been a big boon to security companies in that it can help keep seniors in their homes longer and “help loved ones feel safer at home.”

He explains, “For example, for someone who is working out west but has elderly parents here, they can have sensors put on the doors of their parents’ home to alert them if someone goes out at an odd time of the night, or they can have sensors on medicine cabinet doors to keep track of medications or on ovens to alert them that their parents are eating.”

The possibilities are endless, says Janes – from traditional security to home automation.

The beauty of the new home automation platforms offered by companies like TechPad, Wilsons and ADT is they can be easily integrated with the older type of security systems.

TechPad uses a wireless z-wave technology in their installations and home automation controllers that have the ability to control up to 200 or more different devices in your home. These devices can be anything from light switches to thermostats and even garage doors. The controllers support a wide range of other devices such as IP cameras, existing security systems and more. Whether a consumer is integrating new home automation solutions into an existing security system or building a new home and installing it during the build, companies like TechPad, Wilsons and ADT are there for, well, peace of mind.

If you can dream it, they can secure it.

Home Security Gadgets

Some of the latest gadgets that are available to the tech savvy home security seeker make securing your home available at the touch of a finger.

One of the new gadgets out are smart locks, which attach to your door and use Bluetooth to allow you to lock and unlock the door via a Smartphone. Proximity features are also included on some of these locks to allow your phone to automatically lock or unlock the door within certain proximity.

Video monitors that alert your phone to sounds, temperature changes and motion are also available to hook up to Smartphone and allow you to view your home from your phone as well. Some security systems also allow for DIY installation of sensors around doors and windows that alert you when the window or door is opened and the system is armed.

HOME SECURITY SYSTEMS HAVE MORE THAN JUST A SAFETY BENEFIT TO THEM.

For users looking to save some money, discounts from insurance agencies are often given for working home security systems that are monitored. A monitored system counts as a security system that contacts the police or other appropriate first responders when there is a burglary or fire that the system detects. Debbie Maclaughlin of MacLeod Lorway insurance in New Glasgow said most insurance companies will give a discount for a monitored system. Some discounts are increased depending on if you have both fire and burglary protection.

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Night Light! By Rachael McLean

I’ve got a secret... I’m afraid of the dark. Being outside at night in the dark, kicks my imagination into over drive. Now just to clarify, I live and have grownup in the country, there are no street lights. We had one light in the yard that didn’t always work, It is (and was) dark! I should be used to it, comfortable even. I’m not. I always run from A to B. I am certain there are starving coyotes just waiting for me to trip. AND Now that I’m a parent, I’m supposed to remain calm! It’s only a matter of time before they see through this sham.

My own (real) fear aside, the natural environment at night is a beautiful and spectacular one, fun even! Another element of landscape design to play with. Actually it’s an entire industry in itself. One that has come a long way in recent years. No longer is the one flood light an accepted standard.

In a recent project, I was asked to design a residential landscape down in Braeshore. When I initially sat down with the property owners, Dave and Cathy Hanley, we made a list of everything they wanted included. Lighting was on it.

“We are looking for functional and aesthetic. I want the lighting to direct guests and define our patio space” Cathy told me. “Once the trees are established I’d like them to be highlighted as well” Dave said. I was excited to have clients thinking ahead!

The design took on a very strong axis with broad pathways and rectangle gardens. The challenge was to not turn this into a runway. I was once told by a seasoned lighting designer that the goal (in most situations) is to see the light, the effect, not the fixture. That has always stuck with me. See the action, the result, not the source.

In some cases, people prefer the flood light for security purposes but often lighting your landscape, house or property can be accomplished with strategic positioning that gets the job done and doesn’t contribute to another (real) problem, light pollution.

Light pollution has different categories. The one that you have the most ability to help, is Light Trespass. Shine lights down on the desired path or area. Keep it close to the ground this way, the light isn’t being sent up and lost in the darkness. You see where your feet are going. Plan ahead and install the lights properly so that they are located where most effective. Pay attention to the range and requirement for the lights being installed.

My favourite landscape light? The campfire! I am looking forward to warm nights around the fire this summer, S’mores, singing but NO ghost stories!!