3 Little-Known Overlooked Things You Can Do With Your Home Security System in Charleston

If you already have a home security system in Charleston, you most likely know the most basic — but most important — functions that your system has.

These functions include arming/disarming your alarm, adding/removing system users and even remotely setting your alarm, if you have that option available with your monitoring service.

Having a system in place & understanding how to use it is vital, but did you know that with most modern security systems you can extend functionality to help out your daily life even more?

Here are a just a few things you can do with your home security system you may have overlooked.

1. Safe, Closet or Cupboard Notifications

You window/door sensors in your home aren’t just for external windows and doors; you can easily add them to liquor/gun cabinets, medicine cabinets, closets, and even safe doors.

The functionality can work two-fold: letting you know when one of those cabinets/closets/safes are opened and letting you know if one of those has been left open for too long.

While the primary mechanism of adding these sensors is to let you know if someone has gotten into one of those areas in your home, the secondary function may be just as important.

When you access your safe, for example, you’ll most likely lock it up tight when you’re finished. However, in case you accidentally leave it open, your system can send you a notification. This way you can return to its location and lock it back up.

2. Geo-Fence Alarm Activation/Deactivation

For those of you with an alarm monitoring service setup, most home security companies will have an app that will allow you to remotely arm/disarm your system from anywhere you have an internet connection.

With some of the newer types of systems, like Alarm.com, you’ll be able to setup something called geo-fencing.

Geo-fencing essentially means you setup a virtual “fence” set at a certain distance around your home, condo or business.

This virtual perimeter then acts as a safety-net & automation of sorts, allowing your system to be armed/disarmed if you pass out of or into the fenced area.

Why is this important and how is this helpful?

For one, if you happen to leave your home or work quickly and forget to set your alarm, your system can automatically set once you leave your preset geo-fence.

Second, if you’re on your way home or to work, once you enter your geo-fence perimeter you can have your system disarm automatically for you, allowing you to enter your home without the worry of manually turning off your system or even triggering your alarm by accident.

This functionality, combined with the section below, can really allow you to customize and simplify the transition to/from work every day.

3. Home Automation

Geo-fencing is a great way to automate your system’s basic functionalities, but it can also be used to automate other devices and equipment around your home to make the to/from home/work even better.

For example, if you have a smart thermostat connected to your security system, your geo-fence can allow you to turn up or down the temperature in your home or business based on if inside or outside your geo-fence.

This allows you to save money on your energy bills by optimizing the usage of your heating and air conditioning system, which represents a large portion of Lowcountry home and business owners’ monthly electric bills.

Other things you can automate are: door locks, lights, security cameras, garage door openers and more.

We’ll go into more depth in a follow-up post about how these home automation devices work, but as you can see from reading above, your security system can be used in incredible new & overlooked ways.

Have questions about your system or want to find out if your system can do some of the things mentioned above? Let us know by contacting us today; we’ll be happy to help.