Is your home really safe? When we ask ourselves that question we start to think about whether the safety measures we have taken are enough to keep our home safe. Prevention is better than the cure! Place an appropriate home security system to prevent your home from burglaries. Today, safety depends on how well prepared you are. With monitored residential security and alarm system, you can empower yourself and give your family peace of mind.

Alarm Statistics:

Government statistics have shown that around 60% of burglaries carried out on homes fitted with home security system are unsuccessful. Losses due to burglary average $400 less in residences with security systems. 90% of police believe alarms deter burglary attempts. This suggests that burglar alarms are a useful deterrent for prospective criminals.

Types of Alarms:

There are three types of alarms. They are a Burglar Alarm, Fire Alarm and Safety Alarm. These three are commonly found in electronic form today.

Features of Alarms:

– It detects intrusion, fire, burglary, and carbon monoxide presence.

– The alarm alerts you to a problem with a very loud beep and in some cases, is accompanied by bright flashing lights.

– Features also include, it beeps when doors or windows are opened.

– Fire alarm sensors are of three general categories: smoke, flame and heat.

– Safety detectors include thermostats for detecting excessively high temperatures, water sensors for flooding, excessive carbon monoxide concentrations etc.

– It can be activated and deactivated with either a simple turn of the key or a key pad control panel.

– Door alarms are relatively inexpensive and reliable.

– You no longer have to hire an electrician to run the wires through the ceiling or walls. Hence, many people now install their own door alarms.

Nothing is more important than protecting your home and family. There are many alarm companies that offer a wide range of services that can save your life and property.

Portable electric generators provide a good source of power, but if improperly installed or operated, can become deadly.

To keep families safe, The Electrical Safety Foundation International (ESFI) and Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) offer a helpful new video and recommend taking the following precautions:

• Contact a licensed electrician to install your generator to make sure it meets local codes. Do not connect generators directly to household wiring without an appropriate transfer switch installed.

Power from generators connected directly to household wiring can backfeed along power lines and electrocute anyone coming in contact with them, including lineworkers making repairs. Other tips include:

• Make sure your generator is properly grounded.

• Keep the generator dry.

• Make sure extension cords used with generators are rated for the load, and are free of cuts and worn insulation and have three-pronged plugs.

• Do not overload the generator. A portable generator should be used only when necessary and only to power essential equipment or appliances.

• Never operate the generator in enclosed or partially enclosed spaces. Use carbon monoxide detectors in nearby enclosed spaces to monitor levels. Generators can produce high levels of carbon monoxide very quickly, which can be deadly.

• Use a ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) to help prevent electrocutions and electrical shock injuries.

• Make sure fuel for the generator is stored safely, away from living areas, in properly labeled containers and away from fuel-burning appliances. Before re-fueling, always turn the generator off and let it cool down.

• Turn off all appliances powered by the generator before shutting down the generator.

• Keep children away from portable generators at all times.

Electricity is a powerful tool. It can also be a lethal hazard. Better safety standards have reduced electrical hazards that cause deaths, injuries and property damage. But good safety habits are still the best prevention against electrical hazards.

Are fake security cameras effective? The answer is a resounding “Yes.”

Fake security cameras have helped to prevent many crimes. Mounted in high profile, totally visible locations, these cameras are not hooked up to anything, they mostly operate for a long time on batteries and sometimes have a few flashing lights or other obvious characteristics to make them look as if they are doing something.

Many a would-be robber has changed his or her mind about entering someplace illegally after spotting one of these dummy security cameras looking right at them.

With today’s technology, an inexperienced thief really has no way to know whether or not he’s looking at a wireless, state of the art surveillance device or a fake security camera. Some of them actually pan back and forth, although these require more frequent battery changes.

Fake security cameras are especially effective in areas that you expect to be covered by security cameras. For instance, many of the cameras in subway stations around the world are fake security cameras and nobody can tell the difference.

During hard times, when the crime rates inevitably rise and cities are strapped for cash, the ratio of fake cameras to real ones was about 2-to-1 in some metropolitan areas.

Knowing that the fake cameras would be regarded as real, the fakes were sprinkled in among the real ones to provide an extra incentive for would-be robbers and thieves to practice their trade in another location. Except for the lack of recorded footage provided by the real cameras, dummy security cameras are almost as effective in reducing crime rates in subways as the real ones are.

Only sophisticated thieves can tell — at a distance — whether they are being observed by a real security camera.