Hard wired or wireless? Hybrid? How to decide.

Its no secret that hard wired intrusion alarms have been the standard for homes and commercial businesses for the last 40 years. In a hard wired system, every contact or "zone" is connected via a physical wire to the alarm panel itself-which resembles an electrical breaker box with a circuit board mounted inside. This requires pulling a great deal of wire through walls up into an attic or down into a crawl space to ultimately connect to the alarm panel which is typically located in the attic or in the closet of a residence. These systems typically have a separate sounder and keypad wired to them. The sounder is mounted at a central location and the keypad typically is mounted at a central household location or near an entrance. This type of alarm can be prewired during new construction, which saves a great deal of time for the installer-who can then install the alarm easily without having to pull new wire through finished walls. These systems remain the standard for commercial installations...but things are changing in our industry for residential customers. Residential customers now have the option of wireless all-in-one panels.

Wireless all-in-one systems such as GE's Simon XT eliminate the need to pull wires for zones and separate keypad and sounder during a new installation.  This makes these systems an excellent choice for a homeowner choosing a new alarm installation These units have the keypad, alarm panel and sounder as all one unit-which is wired only to a telephone line and AC power. The sensors or 'zones' are equipped with battery powered transmitters that allow the panel to supervise each zone and trigger the alarm in the event of a break in. When installed and maintained properly, these units are every bit as effective at reporting intrusion to the alarm monitoring central station as hardwired units. The advantage to a homeowner is these systems can be installed and activated in as little as 90 minutes when installed by a professional alarm technician. These units can be obtained for as little as a few hundred dollars-or even for no up front cost when a $35.99/mo for 36 month monitoring agreement is activated. 

These days hard wired panels have come of age and many have the ability to communicate via wireless to sensors as well as through wire to hard wired zones. These systems are called 'Hybrid' systems.
GE's Concord IV is a hybrid alarm panel that is an excellent choice for a homeowner with an existing hard wired alarm. Usually existing wiring and in many cases existing sensors can be utilized with the new panel, allowing you to retain usage of equipment you own-having invested your hard earned dollars. New wireless zones can be added easily to expand the functionality of your alarm without having to drill holes or run more wires. A Concord IV with up to six brand new zones can be yours for no up front cost also if you have an existing hard wired intrusion alarm and elect 36 months of monitoring at $35.99/month. The panels are swapped, the old equipment connected and tested; and new equipment installed. This type of job is called a 'takeover' and represents the best deal for someone replacing an existing hard wired alarm.

Whatever you decide, hard wired, or wireless, choose a professional alarm technician to do the work and a reputable monitoring provider. I welcome your questions and comments. Drop me a comment or give me a call at (504) 383-4234.