Monitoring worth it??

[BradScott]

I'm replacing my ADT system with the Elk M1G -- love the automation capabilities. Since the M1g can call, text, and/or email me, my cell, my neighbors, and relatives, I'm wondering if I really need to pay AlarmRelay or NextAlarm the $18/ month to answer the phone when I'm not home. I've had ADT for 8 years, and no alarms yet.

Any thoughts on whether to self-monitor versus paying someone else to monitor as well?

 

[WayneW]

Lots of opinions on this subject. For me, when I was only worried about protecting the house from burglary, I didn't justify monitoring. If you are concerned about the safety of others when you are not home (police or medical) and/or are concerned about fire safety, then monitoring becomes justifiable.

 

[gizmosrcool]

I just did the same thing. Replaced my ADT Ademco and went with an Elk and Nextalarm. My reasons for staying with monitoring.

• Discount. At $18/month, I get a nice discount on my home owners insurance, and they pretty much pay for it.
• Fire. Have all my builder installed alarms tied to it and also added a few new ones. Given most folks ignore alarms, I did not want to wait for my neighbors to see fire and then call 911. By then its out of control.
• CO2. I added CO2 detectors to the system. One in the basement in the mechanical room and another in the kitchen near the stove.
• Time away. We take a 2 week vacation and are gone here and there. I want the home actively monitored during these periods. Neighbors are great, but I would guess slow to an alarm, and my house is a significant investment.

I mostly worry about fire and CO2. My family and dogs get covered by the fire and CO2 and just in case there is something for intrusion. Also when I travel for business, and I do 6-8 times a year, I have a little extra peace of mind with the monitored.

For me, its worth it. Everyone is different though.....

Good Luck with the upgrade. Its a great panel.

 

[kccustom]

Well I would say you are ahead of the curve asking this question before something actually happens, I use elk and Nextalarm and the peace of mind knowing that someone is always there waiting to help is worth it to me.

 

[JimS]

Alarm relay is $9 a month. Don't think they have any options. That's just basic monitoring and dispatch like you had with ADT but cheaper.

NextAlarm has lots of options that tend to be higher but has features that would be attractive to many people on this board.

 

[IVB]

Also depends on where you live. If someone breaks in when you're home, I doubt you'll be able to call 911 and give your location as quickly as the Elk would. Plus, every second helps when attempting to catch bad guys or (more importantly as said before) call the fire dept cuz your house is burning down.

It's only $18/month, $15/month if pre-pay for 1 year, $12/month if pre-pay for 3 years with NextAlarm, so not much cash for that piece of mind. Sadly enough, today that's only 2-3 tankfuls of gas.

 

[BradScott]

Thanks for the replies. I'm not really worried about notification when I'm home -- if someone breaks in, I'm already in trouble, and I don't alarm the house at night. Though with the Elk, I'll be sure to have it make announcements on most doors or the basement motion detector. Plus, I will set it up to turn on lights, etc., if doors are opened at night and hopefully scare anyone away (my real goal).

Security versus convenience is always the issue. If I alarm at night, and my wife gets up to let the dog out at 3 am, then she would have to remember to turn the alarm off. Not only would she not like that, we'd get far too many false alarms.

When we are not home, my real goal is to discourage people from breaking in in the first place, and scare them away (alarm, lights, etc.) if they do. If someone does break in, and trips the alarm, they are not likely to stick around until the police get there.

Fire? yeah -- quick notification is important. And, I forgot about the discount on homeowners insurance which, at $70/year almost covers AlarmRelay.com.

So, this gives me plenty to think about -- the good news is it is not critical to make the decision now. I can do it any time. I just wanted to plan up front how much I'll be spending to convert.

Thanks!

 

[Jreigner]

WOW. Yet more confusion about central station monitoring. Here's what is on their website:
"NexAlarm.com alarm monitoring service in the United States is provided through two contracted third-party UL listed dispatch centers." NOT EVEN OWNED BY NEXALARM.

Nexalarm doesnt exist! it is a company which pushes your account to another central station(might even be ADT's!)the intent with a central station is to make the phone call to the police and fire department on time everytime, for you. BTW, oops:"The primary center for your account depends on your location. The other center will function as a backup in the event that your primary center is unable to respond." Unable to respond means- our workload is so high we cant even process you in real time so we waste more time by pushing your account- again- to some one who might call for help. SO......what happens when "Plan B" central station doesn't respond? Tell you what, for half of what everyone pays these half-ass internet based monitoring stations, ill call your house every day and tell you everything is alright so you can sleep better.

My suggestion, pay for a real monitoring solution or just do free messaging from your control panel and hope for the best. After all, its only life safety.

 

[sic0048]

Tell you what, for half of what everyone pays these half-ass internet based monitoring stations, ill call your house every day and tell you everything is alright so you can sleep better.

My suggestion, pay for a real monitoring solution or just do free messaging from your control panel and hope for the best. After all, its only life safety.

So you are an installer AND run an UL Rated Monitoring station. Wow - you really are like a God!

The fact is that NextAlarm uses UL Rated Monitoring stations. That UL Rating is extremely hard to get and provides lots of guidelines to prevent problems. While I'm sure you know the UL Rating requirements by heart, here is a brief overview of what the UL Rating means.

A "Listed central station" is an alarm monitoring facility that has demonstrated the ability to provide Standards-complying service. For monitoring stations, UL requirements cover building structure, receiving and monitoring equipment, and staffing issues in addition to installation and ongoing service. To be able to provide Standards-complying service, the building, equipment and staffing requirements have to be met at all times. However, the handling of specific signals from specific alarm systems is only audited by UL if a certificate is in effect for that alarm system.

Here is the preinspection checklist that must be turned in prior to the two day inspection from the UL inspectors.

The fact that NextAlarm doesn't actually run their own non-UL rated monitoring station says to me that they are serious about the service. Anyone can open a monitoring station in their basement if they wanted (just as you must be doing), but providing a service that is actually UL Rated is a huge selling point.

 

[sic0048]

Nexalarm doesnt exist! it is a company which pushes your account to another central station(might even be ADT's!)

Why do you even suggest this as an argument? I don't think anyone has a problem with ADT's monitoring. The fact that they charge so much for it and install sub-par systems by sub-par installers is usually what people have a problem with. While I'm not sure, I bet ADT doesn't use their own monitoring stations either. They probably do use the same UL Rated monitoring stations because they do the job right.

 

[signal15]

Nexalarm doesnt exist! it is a company which pushes your account to another central station(might even be ADT's!)

Why do you even suggest this as an argument? I don't think anyone has a problem with ADT's monitoring. The fact that they charge so much for it and install sub-par systems by sub-par installers is usually what people have a problem with. While I'm not sure, I bet ADT doesn't use their own monitoring stations either. They probably do use the same UL Rated monitoring stations because they do the job right.

I had MAJOR problems with their monitoring. Twice they never called when the alarm was false triggered, and a third time when I was broken into I didn't get a call from them until over an hour later. ADT is useless.

 

[drvnbysound]

Some information is not included in this article, but wow... its crazy to hear a story like this..

http://www.cepro.com/article/court_rules_a...in_murder_case/

 

[programmergeek]

I think the monitoring is worth it for the discount on my insurance, if there is a fire, co2 or something like that.

Also 2 other major things.
I am not around all the time last year my alarm went off and 40 min later I found out. My cell simply would not pick up. I am also in subways, dead spots, ignore my phone at night when I am away etc. For burgler most likely they will be scared off after a couple of minutes it is all the other stuff I worry about.

Second my family has gotten the call a couple of times when I was away and the first thing my fathor does is run over to the house and looks around. He has even cancled the police now and then, I made it so he can't do that anymore with next alarm. I can't seem to stop him from speeding over as fast as he can to run inside though. All I need is a burgler in the house with a gun and he is dead, I rathor have the police dispached no matter what. I have found out family is just not smart.

 

[signal15]

Some information is not included in this article, but wow... its crazy to hear a story like this..

http://www.cepro.com/article/court_rules_a...in_murder_case/

Imagine if you were paying for cellular backup and someone cut your phone line, and the cellular backup was not functioning as you thought it would. Then imagine something bad happened that could have been prevented if the police were notified. People buy this stuff and pay for these services to reduce the risk to their life and property. ADT fell short if they knew the cell backup was down and did nothing to fix it.

That said, when seconds count, the police are only minutes away.

 

[WayneW]

I think the monitoring is worth it for the discount on my insurance

My discount for having an alarm system isn't that large, but maybe that is why my insurance company is still in business?

State Farm to Drop Discounts on Alarms in Florida on Nov. 1
Insurance company can no longer afford to offer discounts to homeowners with security systems.
http://www.cepro.com/article/state_farm_to...orida_on_nov_1/

I suspect this is probably just a financial trick to make more money without going through the legal hassle of a rate increase. Of course, it could be due to the high number of customers with security systems (or claiming to have one) such that it affects their statistics.