| Author | Message | ||
     Court |
I just snagged a place I've been trying to get for a long time. For the first time, I'll be "out in the country" and not have the relative security of all the nearby folks to deter chicanery. I'm wanting to learn about some simple systems to set my mind at ease. I'm not the least bit fluent, but it occurs to me that this had ought to be fairly easy stuff to handle and I thought I'd draw on the collective experience here on Badweb. A couple thoughts . . . . 1) DRIVEWAY - I'd like to have some sort of way to know when someone pulls in the driveway . . .to be alerted. I'm sure I'll want to activate some outside lights but that should be an easy motion detector chore. I'm more concerned with being notified if I am away or asleep at 2am. 2) OPERATING LIGHTS AND THERMOSTAT - there has to be some way, short of the $10k "smart home" system for turning on lights and adjusting temp remotely. I could run the temp up when I leave work to head home . . that sort of thing. 3) ABILITY TO "LOOK AROUND" DURING THE DAY - perhaps keep an eye on the shop, the house doors and so forth. My bet is . . . . there's a wealth of knowledge here. Thoughts or suggestion? | ||
| Bartimus |
Camera system, tied into your wifi, with an app on your phone. I use a defender security camera system with 8 cameras to view both outside, and inside my property. ANY cameras detect movement, and your app notifies you, and you have the option to view the camera to see what is moving. If you get the fancy system with all the bells and whistles, you can install and use pan and tilt cameras. All cameras have sensitivity adjustment to tone down nuisance alarms from the neighbors cat, etc. I have a honeywell wifi thermostat that I can operate via website, phone, etc. It allows me to see current indoor and outdoor temps, as well as adjust my schedule, or quick temperature adjustment. I know there are systems for lighting and other electrical devices, but I am not using any at the moment, sorry. Hope this info helps. | ||
| Natexlh1000 |
No matter what you do, change your password from defaults!! There are entire websites devoted to logging into unsecured camera feeds. | ||
| Pwnzor |
These cameras have really good reviews and are totally wireless. I'm about to pick up a set as a Christmas present to myself. As for locks and thermostats, not too sure about the locks... | ||
| Wolfridgerider |
This has been the best alarm I have ever had. I had a guy walk up my drive that said he was looking for his lost dog while eyeballing everything in my garage. Then big red stuck his head over the fence and sounded the alarm.... Dude about $hit his pants and left in a HURRY. I know its not the info you are looking for but it was a opportunity to post a pic of my puppy...   | ||
| Fast1075 |
Court, Honeywell has several "WiFi" thermostats that can be operated remotely from a smart phone. No "10K" system needed. Tell me what kind of heating/cooling system you have, and I can recommend a model of thermostat. They are not hard to install yourself. You just need WiFi in your home. | ||
| Zane |
I second the idea of a large dog on the property. The neighborhood I currently live in is experiencing a rash of break ins to both homes and cars. I don't have that problem.  Just remember, you can't have an outside dog and think it's going to care that much about you. Bring him in and spend some time with him/her. It's good for your blood pressure and once it knows it's part of the pack, you can not find a more loyal companion. Yeah, electronic stuff will help keep you safe too but won't keep your feet warm at night. | ||
| Pwnzor |
My alarm system is better... lol I might be biased.  | ||
| Ebutch |
 my Mini Lion is my Gard (Message edited by ebutch on November 08, 2016) | ||
| Mtnmason |
So, Court... YA GONNA GET A DOG ?!?!?! | ||
| Ratbuell |
I have an ecobee thermostat and love it. Will be watching for camera ideas. I'm rural as well. Nice area but been considering anyway... | ||
| Ourdee |
We are talking about this guy, right?  Court, Spend the money on the geewiz system with all the bells and whistles. Contract with a service to set you up. From driveway to safe room. What I'm saying is splurge on it and yourself. Find an upstanding K-9 officer that provides kennel service if you get a dog. Then your dog will be taken care of when you are out. Find one with good children and you may also find a house sitter. I lucked into that situation when I came to Illinois. | ||
| Thumper74 |
I love the Nest system. Wifi control of lights and HVAC. The wifi stuff is easy to set up, but as mentioned above, make sure you change the defaults. Lots of wifi cameras out there. I'm interested in a rolling save to the cloud, ie., it saves the most recent amount of time and then records/deletes the oldest stuff. Night vision would be great, especially with the pet enclosure in the backyard and coyotes running around. And the Amish, no one can be that polite without some sort of ulterior motive. | ||
| Thumper74 |
Oh, and a doggo. Perry is pretty good for alerting us to anyone on the property. I think a dog barking, any dog, is a deterrent for most people. | ||
| 86129squids |
 I've got 2 dogs- one is a Jack Russell/Chihuahua mix, 10# of $hit in a #5 sack, whom we've nicknamed "Little Cujo". My GF's brother can't even show up without our little guy raising heyull. The other isn't big, about 25-30 pounds, but he's a Basenji- won't bark, just stares at you HARD with his hackles up. We love our boys, fo sho. However, I've no illusions about their limitations. A Pit or Malinois, something that size, will always be more intimidating than our guys... all the suggestions above are spot-on. Seems I've read/scanned about even using drones patched into your security system lately... but, now we're talking $$$. It's fun to think about a semi-autonomous, motion sensing drone though, capable of tracking across one's property, with a live feed to your smartphone/computer, maybe even patched into the local LEO/first responder system... Here's my cheep, but effective solution to my shed out back. Chinese of course, but very simple to install and set up. I've been very happy with it. Solar, wireless, with a remote. Even has a "panic" button on the remote! https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0129G46NE/ref=o h_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Good luck, Court, and congrats on the new shack in da woods! | ||
| Airbozo |
This site has a lot of products of different technology levels; https://www.x10.com/ | ||
| Zac4mac |
Best advice so far, IMO, is Nate's. Dogs are a very close second. Smartest dog I ever had was an Aussie Shepherd. If I ever get another dog, it will most likely be a Jack Russell tho. serious case of attitude Z | ||
| Doz |
Really Court? What did you expect from these guys- but it is funny! | ||
| Ratbuell |
When the time comes for a new dog here (have 3 now - 12 year old pug, 7 year old border collie mix, 3 year old husky mix)...it'll be a pit. Sweetheart animals..but enough bad press that nobody wants to come close to them unsupervised. For now though I need to figure out cameras. And I do like the idea of some sort of "eye" at the end of my 500' driveway. Far enough from the road that all the u-turn yokels don't trip it, but far enough from the house that I get decent time. Catch here is, my driveway is built across Deer Central. It's a highway for the bastards and I don't want something they'll set off. Maybe something magnetic? | ||
| Court |
>>>Far enough from the road that all the u-turn yokels don't trip it 6 trees in . . . . .  | ||
| Reepicheep |
Wow. Can't wait to ride out and visit. We have a Jack Russell rescue, and you are right about the attitude. Until we rescued a stray Dachshund... who has even more attitude.   | ||
| Reepicheep |
Pictures by Audrey Kilgallon, who was showing off with an F1.8 Nikon prime lens...  | ||
| 86129squids |
Dangit! Now that we've made this a dawgie thread, I still haven't lernt how to post pics here, after all these years. I like to say that my Basenji is the George Clooney of Basenjis, he's so handsome. Tri-color brindle, or "trundle". The One-Eyed Jack HaHa is just frickin cute, with an underbite and all. Until he sees YOU. Then, little Cujo goes to work. | ||
| Strokizator |
If that picture is of a private drive then install a gate. 99% of meth-heads aren't going to walk down that long drive just to see if you're home. Install an intercom if you'd like or a keypad that accepts temporary codes for plumbers, painters, etc. Wifi connected thermostats are great and will even alert you if temps get too low (power outage or failed heat system?). Install a hub ($99) and you can get as fancy as you like. For about $15 each you can operate individual light bulbs from your phone (GE link bulb or Cree). Security cameras, leak detectors, smoke alarms, motion sensors - the list is quite large. Think of the fun you can have with your guests turning lights on and off in your "haunted" house. | ||
| Zac4mac |
I like to start my Buick with remote start in the parking lot, just as somebody gets near it. |
