Pet Friendly Burglar Alarms
How can you keep your home secure with pets in the house?
It is well known that the UK is a nation of animal lovers, but since the start of the pandemic, pet ownership has soared! Now, 59% of UK households own a pet, with the most popular choices being dogs and cats.
There are many benefits to owning a pet, but it can create some additional considerations when it comes to maintaining your home security.
Take for example, a standard burglar alarm that uses passive infra-red sensors (abbreviated to PIR sensors) to detect the heat given off by a moving object or person. When an object such as a person passes through the sensor’s field of view, the amount of infra-red radiation it detects changes from room temperature to body temperature and back again, causing the sensor to trigger the intruder alarm. Whilst this is exactly what’s needed to detect intruders, it will also trigger the alarm if your household pet wanders past. Not ideal.
So can you have an effective intruder alarm fitted if you own a pet? The answer is of course yes, and we can help you find the right system to meet your needs.
At Mint Security we supply and install a range of pet-friendly alarm systems that will keep your home safe and secure, while minimising the risk of false alarms.
One of the ways we do this is to use pet-friendly PIR sensors. These work by assessing the size and shape of the moving object, to determine whether it’s an intruder or a household pet. Our sensors are effective for pets weighing up to 20kg which makes them ideal for homes with cats or small to medium sized dogs. With pet-friendly PIR sensors, if an object moving in the sensor’s field of view weighs less than 20kg, the alarm won’t be triggered and a false alarm will be avoided.
We also supply sensors that are designed to ignore movement near ground level, below 2ft high. These are a great choice if you have dogs and cats, but aren’t a good choice if the pet can climb up on to furniture such as sofas or tables, as this will take them above the height threshold and trigger the alarm.
But what if you have a larger pet that weighs more than 20kg or a pet that can fly or climb above the height threshold? Can you still have a burglar alarm even with these kinds of pet around? Absolutely!
In cases where a PIR sensor can’t be used when your pet is in the house, additional sensor technologies can be installed that focus on protecting the perimeter of your property. Examples of these include shock detectors on windows and door sensors that trigger an alarm if the door is opened.
Another good option for households with pets is to choose a smart burglar alarm and combine it with a CCTV system that’s viewable from your smartphone. The smart intruder alarm will automatically send a notification to your phone when an alarm is activated which you can then check by viewing your CCTV cameras (again from your phone), allowing you to see if the alarm is a genuine activation or a false alarm caused by a pet.
Whatever your situation, or pet, we can advise you on the best solution to protect your home and valuables. Whether it’s pet-immune PIRs, perimeter protection technology, CCTV or a combination of all of these, we can design and install the perfect solution for you and your furry friends!
If you need any support with a burglar alarm for your home, get in touch. We’re experts in all kinds of intruder alarm systems, and can guide you from initial planning and design through to installation and maintenance. Call us on 01246 888 444 or email [email protected]