A couple of months ago my wife and I had somebody break into our house at 4 a.m. in the morning and this made it apparent that we needed to get some sort of security system. We originally thought that our two dogs would have been enough to scare someone away, but unfortunately that was not the case.
The Alarm System Research Begins
My initial thought was to try the traditional route, so I contacted companies that I was familiar with to see what they had to offer. I called ADT first and their rep came out to our house right away. He told me that it would cost about $48 per month for the basic package since we didn’t have a landline. That is ridiculous. I knew at that point that I needed to find a cheaper option for an alarm system.
Introducing The DIY Alarm System
Then I came across the do it yourself alarm system option. The first one I came across was Simplisafe, which is an alarm system that you can install yourself but still pay a small fee for monitoring.
How much of a fee? $14.99 per month! That is more than $30 a month in savings for an alarm system! But is it legit? I went to Amazon.com to read the reviews in order to see what other people have to say about this DIY alarm system. To my surprise, it had over four and a half stars and people just raved about how much they loved it.
Now I was convinced that it was worth a shot. After all, they have a 60-day money back guarantee. I ordered the system and it arrived in less than a week. I had the option for expediting shipping but did not want to pay the additional expense.
The setup was quick and easy
I was hesitant when I received the box in the mail, but I was determined to install it without any help. I opened the box and there was a keychain remote that I plugged into my computer with instructions on how to install the alarm system. It walked me through installing each sensor, step by step. All of the sensors have a strong adhesive allowing you to easily mount them to the wall by simply removing the white strip on the back. They do have screws included as well if you are concerned about keeping the sensor secure on the wall. When all was said and done, it took me less than an hour to setup the entire system.
Monitoring is optional
We decided to pay the $14.99 per month for monitoring because we wanted to be notified if someone breaks into our house when we are not home. However, this feature is optional. You can buy the system without the monitoring and there is no monthly fee. Just know that the alarm will go off if someone breaks in, however, you will not be notified by phone and the police will not be called.
Concluding thoughts:
We have owned the SimpliSafe system for more than 60 days now and have been very satisfied with it. We have not had one false alarm yet (knock on wood) and it has given us the peace of mind that we were looking for after the home invasion occurred. If you are looking for a great alarm system and don’t want to spend an arm and a leg, I highly recommend considering a DIY alarm system over the traditional companies out there.
About the author: Check out more money related tips from Deacon on his blog WellKeptWallet.com or follow him on Twitter.
