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Home safe home
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As crime rate increases, more people are going in for hi-tech home security solutions. A. CHITHRAA DEEPA writes
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PRAMOD MADHAVAN is all set for a long holiday — waiting to relax after months of work pressure. He makes a quick check of the house before he locks up. He doesn't have a sleepy-looking watchman on 24-hour duty, but is completely confident that his house will be safe. It is not an easy job for intruders to break into his posh, sprawling bungalow in Adyar. "My home is fully wired — each and every door and window is armed to detect any intrusion," says Pramod. "The safety of your home is an issue that you cannot afford to ignore."
* Electronic security systems are in vogue
* Multi-sensors work for independent houses
* Glass break detectors .tted to windows raise alarm
* Perimeter sensors are effective for compound walls
* Panic pendants are ideal to signal any intrusion
* Personal paging available for the elderly
Burglars no longer strike only in the suburbs; busy residential areas such as T. Nagar and Triplicane are also being targeted, of late. Pramod's intrusion alarm system has gone off at least thrice over the past 15 years since he installed it. None of the instances could be dismissed as false alarms. He later found out that burglaries had taken place in his neighbourhood exactly on the days when his alarm went off.
Rise in crime rate
"The increasing crime rate in the city is a matter of concern," says Naveen Bhandari of Texonic. "Using electronic gadgets to protect homes is not new, just unexplored," says Rajeev Mecheri of DATS India Ltd., who among other things, has been into home protection for the past 12 years. Over the past few years, more and more Chennai-ites are going in for innovative solutions to home safety. As a result, there is an increasing trend towards use of electronic security equipment for home protection.
Varied devices
Pramod, an architect, says he makes provision for wiring homes for security gadgets, even at the planning level, for his clients. Naveen says, "Security devices vary according to individual needs. An apartment requires an audio-video intercom fitted to the door or just a panic alarm. An elaborate network and combination of sensors will be needed for a huge independent house or a beach house," says Rajeev.
The gadgets available in the market are imported from Europe and Japan. The various types of motion detectors, vibration sensors, perimeter sensors (both passive and active) and video cameras can be fixed at various locations and the house kept under surveillance with the help of a digital video recorder (DVR). While a wireless system costs more, wired sets come at affordable rates. Such systems are user-friendly and easy to install.
The latest development in the home security sector is that you can monitor your home from anywhere in the world either from your mobile or laptop. "A DVR fitted to the computer at home will be attached to cameras in various locations and connected to the Internet. The images can be viewed with a remote log-in facility or on your colour mobile phone," says Naveen. "The camera can be fitted to monitor one room or as many rooms as required," says Rangarajan of Securitek. "Home automation is not as expensive as people think it is," says Naveen. "It is only 0.5 per cent of the total construction cost," he adds. If cost is a constraint, then one can go in for a standalone burglar alarm with a panic button, which, if pressed, will trigger an alarm. A panic alarm button has to be installed near the main door and in the master bedroom, suggests Pramod. Cordless panic pendants that can be suspended from the neck have also hit the market. "If one can build a house, they can afford a security system too. At least they can make provision for it at the time of construction and install it later," says Pramod.
Maintenance important
Naveen stresses that there is no point in just installing a security alarm system and not maintaining it. "The tamper-proof system has to be checked periodically and the battery levels monitored, if it is a wireless set. Otherwise, the system will let you down." Rajeev of DATS agrees, saying that those who go in for such hi-tech methods should maintain and make use of them, not just flaunt them as accessories to the house. "But," cautions Rajeev, "security systems cannot function efficiently, unless combined with the appropriate response. Technology, together with proper response from neighbours and the nearest police station, will definitely protect homes. We need a rapid response team in each locality whose phone number will be connected to the alarm system. They should rush to the spot." In the absence of such a service, the next best thing is to make arrangements with the police and instruct neighbours how to react when the alarm is set off, says Rajeev. Security persons should be trained to react correctly when the alarm gets triggered. "Security systems do not protect us directly; only indirectly by acting as a barrier between the residents of a house and an intruder," says Pramod. As of now, such security devices seem to safeguard residents and, in some cases, chase away intruders, but rescue and response are still a big question mark. <
How it works
* Intruder alarm systems connected to various gadgets, fitted at different locations in the house, can be used for off-hour security (when the house is locked or when the residents are on a holiday) and to detect unauthorised intrusion when the residents are at home.
* The system is designed to secure possible areas of intrusion — fences, doors, windows and perimeter walls. If there is an intrusion through any of these avenues, an alarm will be triggered.
* When an intrusion is detected, the sensors connected to a sounder and the central control panel will be activated. The siren will stop blaring only after the system is disarmed.
* Immediately after the alarm goes off, the dialler unit connected to the system will engage the telephone and start dialling four pre-programmed telephone numbers (one of which will be the nearest police station) one after another, and convey a 20-second pre-recorded message, which informs the receiver of the intrusion. This is where the rapid response team is supposed to take over.
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