Burns & McBride Home Security’s Central Station meets the requirements for UL-Approval to provide state-of-the-art service to its home security customers.
Why is UL Approval Important?
Underwriter’s Laboratories is a non-profit product safety certification organization. The UL Labs have been testing products and writing safety standard for more than 100 years. UL was originally founded by a group of insurance companies to test fire-rated building materials. Today, UL’s testing and certification have been expanded to an immense number of products and services throughout the world.
To be UL Certified a Central Monitoring station must have an on-site inspection every year by UL Inspectors. They are looking for: monitoring equipment that is in good working order, the construction of the building (i.e. fireproof walls; secure doors; second floor location; no outside windows), power supply security and redundancy, staffing and operating procedures.
A major UL requirement is that the Central Station and its staff must be solely dedicated to monitoring and monitoring only. Some non-UL companies also use their monitoring staff to run an answering service which helps to defray the expense of the station but can distract the dispatchers from the important task of monitoring and responding to alarms.
In order to offer you a discounted homeowners’ insurance policy, many insurance companies insist that all installed alarms be monitored and be monitored only by a Central Station which is UL approved.
In choosing who we would use as our Central Station, UL approval was critical.
According to Energy Star, the average annual energy bill for a typical single family home is approximately $2,200 – 58 percent of which is dedicated to heating, cooling and lighting. The good news for homeowners seeking to reduce this significant expense is that a Burns & McBride Smart, Safe Home system is an easy and convenient way cut your energy bill. Not only can you control lights, locks and thermostats remotely from a computer or smartphone but they can also set up schedules to make their homes smarter and conserve energy at the same time.
With advanced triggers and rules features, consumers can define custom settings that connect their security system to their locks, lights, and other automation devices. Here are three key ways consumers can utilize their home energy controls and leave planning anxiety behind:
1. See the light
By integrating home automation with a security system, it’s simple to turn your lights on and off from afar or just have a home control the lights itself. Set up custom rules and schedules based on other activity at home like alarms, arming events or sensor activity. For example, when a family member comes home and disarms the security system, the light in the front hallway can be set to turn on automatically, adding a layer of security and comfort to the nightly routine of entering a home. Or, if activity is detected by motion sensors upstairs, the upstairs lights can be set to turn on automatically as well.
If conserving energy is a priority for you, create light schedules based on specific routines such as the bedroom and living room lights turning on when they wake up at 6:30am on weekday mornings and turning off at 8:00am when you head out for the day or leave for work. For additional protection on top of a security system, you can automate the lights to turn on and stay on for thirty minutes if a security alarm is triggered.
2. Lock it up
Home automation solutions can also assist in locking and unlocking doors in your home. One useful application is setting a security system to disarm automatically if the front door is unlocked. Or, if you know when a guest or the contractor will be stopping by, set up unique lock codes for them and have the security system disarm only if those specific codes are used to unlock a door. Plus, be notified vial text message or e-mail of this activity. Finally, for added peace of mind, lock one door lock and have that action trigger the rest of the door locks in a home to lock simultaneously.
3. Know what’s cool
Do you know what’s cool? Integrating not just lights and locks into security system settings, but also your thermostat. What’s really cool is that with just one click to arm the security system and all the lights in a home can turn off, the thermostat can cool the house down and all the doors can lock. Just like that – 1, 2, 3, 4 steps in one click.
Versatile home automation schedules and powerful security rules can do more than make life easy; they can help you stay secure and stay connected while running a home more efficiently and simplifying daily routines. While out and about choosing your day-to-day activities, the home will be busy making automated choices of its own. Smarter energy decisions and convenient, customizable control of lights, locks and thermostats are within reach.
According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, a home robbery occurs every 12 seconds.
While there are many types security system options available in the market today – traditional telephone lines, internet and cellular. Which is best for you?
Burns & McBride can offer five reasons why a wireless home security system using cellular technology is the best. It is the superior option when it comes to providing homeowners with the peace of mind that their homes can remain safe, secure, and connected at all times.
1.Easier to install – A wireless interactive system is much simpler to install than a traditional wired system. For starters, there’s no hassle with running wires and the chances of drilling holes into walls, ceilings, woodwork or concrete are slim. The installation of a wired system can be time consuming and invasive. Also, when choosing to go wireless, the motion detectors, door and window sensors and other equipment products are easy to place wherever you want to keep track of activity.
2. Offers flexible options– For decades, even dating back to the old “tin can” systems, security systems have often been a purchase that only property owners could justify. Not today; wireless systems are so convenient to set up that even as a renter the assurance that your residence is secure with a top of the line system is available. Plus, there’s an added benefit of easy portability enabling homeowners and renters alike to take the complete system with them when moving to a new location. With a wired system, if moving, you’re out of luck.
3. Less vulnerable – Traditional wired home security systems expose the consumer to significant vulnerabilities associated with the power grid, phone lines, or Internet connections. That means whenever there’s a line cut or power outage a wired system becomes inoperable. Wireless security systems are not vulnerable to such scenarios and even have built in battery back-up that continues to keep the home secure even when the power is out. Not only are wireless systems resistant to savvy criminals cutting phone and power lines, the Burns & McBride Smart, Safe home system features patented ” crash and smash protection” and is able to still alert professional monitoring stations even if the security panel is damaged or destroyed.
4. Provides a foundation for whole home solutions – Wireless systems utilize wireless communications over dedicated, secure networks making them ideal for both homes and vacation properties without a land line. With today’s technology your Burns & McBride Smart, Safe home system also provides text notifications and system alerts that keep you aware of what’s happening at home while you’re away. You can even control your home’s lights, thermostat and door locks through the security system. Plus you can control all of those features from free mobil apps.
5. Simple to troubleshoot – An added benefit of wireless systems is that if there is an issue that needs attention, it can most frequently be identified and fixed by the installer remotely. Over-the-air system tools enable quick troubleshooting access to the system to find the cause of the problem, without even needing to schedule a technician’s visit. Also, many wireless alarm systems do their own troubleshooting and pro-actively notify you of the problem component, such as low battery alerts for wireless sensors.
Your home is your castle, a place to go at the end of the day to rest, find comfort and have peace of mind. When considering the type of security system to keep your home secure and connected, keep the advantages of a wireless alarm system in mind.
2GIG Technologies, the Carlsbad, CA-based maker of home security and connected systems and a Principal Member of the Z-Wave Alliance,recently passed a substantial milestone — its 500,000th GO!Control panel supplied in US And Canada.
That sales volume for the popular security and home automation control was realized in less than two years of being on the market. “We’re thrilled with the rapid adoption of our revolutionary Go!Control home management system,”states Lance Dean, Co-Originator of 2GIG. “Outstripping 500,000installations is pretty thrilling and shows that we’re becoming the industry standard for tech and modernization.”
About 2GIG Technologies. Formed in 2007, 2GIG Technologies design sand manufactures the most technologically-enhanced residential security and home management solutions in the industry. 2GIGintroduces GO!Control — the first self-incorporated, all-in-one security and home management system. 2GIG Technologies is a Principal Member of the Z-Wave `(TM), which allows 2GIG to provide customers with one of the most ground-breaking, interactive home security platforms on the market. Additionally, the organization’s partnership with AT&T Mobil and T-Mobile supplies an effective wireless infrastructure for its security suite of goods. 2GIG Technologies is committed to supplying buyers with the flexibility and cost-operative tech needful to manage their home automation and security functions from the panel’s Flat Panel touch-screen display, the Internet, or smartphone.
About Z-Wave. Z-Wave is an award-winning, attested and interoperable wireless mesh networking tech that permits a wide array of devices in and around the home to converse incorporating lighting, appliances, HVAC, and security systems. Z-Wave brings lots of benefits to daily life incorporating distant home monitoring, home medical care, safeness and security, and energy conservation. Z-Wave endorsed goods are at present obtainable fromleading customer trademarks in Four Hundred goods worldwide.
For more information on this exciting product call us at 302-656-5110 or visit our website at http://www.burnsandmcbride. Finally you might want to follow our blog at http://www.burnsandmcbrideblog.com. Just as Smartphones are adding applications and changing every day so to with the technology behind our Smart, Safe home system. Our blog explains some of the constantly changing things that are happening in the industry and we hope that you find it informative.
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