Anyone researched Burglar Alarms lately?

[Greg Pack]

Hi Guys, I got careless and let my guard down with security. I paid the price. I got hit hard last week, to the tune of 3K. Thieves got in and found my keys and had a field day. On top of that they've been back twice and got more, (much less) amounts. They're pretty ballsy. This past Sunday they emptied my vaults at 6:30pm with a customer washing. Ive got new locks on order but that hit was so lucrative I feel they'll be back. So I've got to button things up.

Like many tech things the burglar alarm industry has evolved rapidly. I wanted to see if anyone has done any recent research into alarm systems. I'm looking for more capability than simpli safe and hopefully someone has recently shopped systems and can point me in the right direction.

Thanks

 

[MEP001]

It's been a couple years since I've really looked at them, but there's a lot you can do with a basic alarm now. It can be set up to send you a text message for someone opening a meter door or vacuum vault without setting off an alarm if it's turned off with your code, but will alarm if the system is armed. Some states don't allow an alarm to call police directly unless you have a permit, but if you have a surveillance video system that can send you images or video with an alarm input you can see what's going on and call police yourself. There's so much you can do depending on what you want, I'd suggest putting together a plan first.

 

[Car_Wash_Guy]

Sorry to hear Greg! I'd sleep there to catch them. Check out Simplisafe

 

[MEP001]

Thieves got in and found my keys and had a field day.

I meant to mention this earlier, I've seen time and again both on this forum and from other operators I know, thieves usually start by looking for keys to other equipment. If they find keys, they always take them and usually come back later. Hopefully anyone else who leaves their keys in the ER, even locked up somewhere, will read this and keep them off-premises.

 

[Car_Wash_Guy]

My keys are always in my possession or someplace secure

 

[OurTown]

Here is a place we have bought some parts from and they are our dealer for the monitoring which is about the best price I have found. Even though the monitoring is about twice the amount I recommend a cellular communicator in case the phone or internet wires were cut.

https://www.alarmsystemstore.com/

 

[dukeofsuds]

I don't have a regular alarm at the car wash, but rather use SmartThings sensors to alert me to any odd behavior on motion.

Recently, however, I bought a Ring alarm for home, and am considering it for the car wash. Ring, which is similar approach with those sensors above but more alarm-centric. Ring has professional monitoring for $100 a year. It works great at home, and while not a true commercial device, the cost of it is significantly less enough to consider as an alternative. Also, you can do more than just the security with Ring. Those sensors I mentioned some are compatible, and those Zwave ones can do some neat things like (like check temperature on devices/control rooms, set alerts on activity, water leak sensors). I know someone else is doing it, because I read on here about someone who even set up a Ring Doorbell as an intercom system when unattended. These sensors and systems are really cheap and likely to shake up the alarm industry a lot.

 

[OurTown]

I like wired vs wireless sensors because wireless can be jammed by a true pro crook.

 

[mjwalsh]

I like wired vs wireless sensors because wireless can be jammed by a true pro crook.

Based on that, I wonder if a similar true pro cook might jam wireless credit card receptacles???

 

[Car_Wash_Guy]

Anything made by man is defeat-able by man given enough time. You're just buying time, and the likelihood that someone skilled enough to jam signals isn't going to spend the time on the corner car wash.

 

[JGinther]

Based on that, I wonder if a similar true pro cook might jam wireless credit card receptacles???

To prevent his credit card from working? He must really want someone to use dollar coins or something!?

 

[JGinther]

If it makes you feel better... Here is one of my changers from a couple weeks ago. Kind of wish I had keys in the equipment room now! They got a few hundred, but 18k in damage to door, changers, and other items on site. Worse part is I caught the guy and was chasing him through a neighborhood while on the phone with the police. They forced me to back off saying they have units in the area and will catch him. When they caught up with me at the wash later, they said they couldn't pursue because: 1 It was for property damage only, 2. It was a stolen truck and a flight risk. 3. They can't take my word for it without me proving it first. Amazing. Only nice word for it. So if you catch them, do what you gotta do...

 

[MEP001]

That's one of the best things about Texas, they can ask you to stop chasing but they can't force you to, and if you catch them on your property you can use whatever force is necessary to keep them there for the police.

 

[Earl Weiss]

Based on that, I wonder if a similar true pro cook might jam wireless credit card receptacles???

And they would profit from this how?

 

[soapy]

A few years ago I fitted all.My locations with GE Simon security.systems. You can use their monitoring or program them to call you. I opted.for them calling me.. Many options so you tailor it to what you need

 

[Greg Pack]

Hopefully anyone else who leaves their keys in the ER, even locked up somewhere, will read this and keep them off-premises.

Oh yeah, I left town that day and left my keys inside the equipment room. They found them alright. Nothing quite as frustrating as getting a call at 4:30 AM on your first day of vacation on the other side of the country. BY the time all is said and done with new keys, cam locks, etc I'll be out around 6K.

I'm in a rush to get some peace so I have got a ring system for now. $225 for the base, keypad, one motion and four door sensors. You can use it free with the app on your phone or have it monitored for $10/month. Setup was easy and it will send you a message on your phone when someone trips a sensor. It was almost immediate.

I figure if thieves get in the clock will start ticking and they won't have time to hang around. I walked into the office to try the motion detector and in less than 10 seconds got an alert on my phone. I'm doubtful the wireless door alarms would work on the meter doors but I'm tempted to try one and see.

 

[Greg Pack]

If it makes you feel better... Here is one of my changers from a couple weeks ago. Kind of wish I had keys in the equipment room now! They got a few hundred, but 18k in damage to door, changers, and other items on site. Worse part is I caught the guy and was chasing him through a neighborhood while on the phone with the police. They forced me to back off saying they have units in the area and will catch him. When they caught up with me at the wash later, they said they couldn't pursue because: 1 It was for property damage only, 2. It was a stolen truck and a flight risk. 3. They can't take my word for it without me proving it first. Amazing. Only nice word for it. So if you catch them, do what you gotta do...

Yes, JGinther I actually did leave my changers unlocked, but they are in a vending closet behind a locked interior door. It keeps the honest man out. I will say these guys didn't damage a thing. My brother brought some quarters and filled everything back up.

I think everyone should learn the laws in their State regarding crimes and the rules regarding apprehension and citizens arrest. In my State Burglary of any type is a felony, and citizens can use everything except deadly force to detain a suspect. But those same rules don't apply to someone that breaks into a vacuum and steals quarters. That's a misdemeanor and you have to actually witness it before you can make an arrest.

I haven't called my insurance , but a single catastrophic incident like you had it's easy to call the insurance company. And at least you'll get new changers out of it!

 

[Greg Pack]

My keys are always in my possession or someplace secure

Most days I'm walking around with my head up my butt so far that I'd lose them if I carried them around. I'm thinking about getting either a hotel safe or small inexpensive safe with a keypad. Again, its primarily a layer to slow things down so much that they won't hang around while the alarm is going off

 

[MEP001]

I'm doubtful the wireless door alarms would work on the meter doors but I'm tempted to try one and see.

I don't know how they're able to connect wirelessly through a completely enclosed metal box, but they do work.

 

[mjwalsh]

On the coldest winter evening ... many years ago ... I got to the facility like Greg before the police responding to an alarm. The 7 or 8 police officers that came down would not let me go into the building for fear of the bad guys taking me hostage inside our facility. It turned out the bad guys had just barely escaped running on foot. Nowadays, there might be a good chance depending on the 911 call ... law enforcement might have brought some K9s with them ... then the bad guys would have been found in a nearby used car sales lot where they most likely hid.

We are glad our recreational marijuana referendum was voted down in November of this year ... because the whole state's law enforcement said that all their K9s would have to retrained at a huge expense had that gone through.