Automatic Garage Door Closer

A high percentage of burglaries and home invasions occur by way of an open garage door. It simply makes sense. You're in a rush, you leave quickly and forget to close the garage door. Maybe you think one of the kids will do it. Still, whatever the reasons, (and we can all imagine reasons why the door would be left open) an open garage door is still incredibly attractive to a potential thief/intruder. Ok, so what do you do?

You can make a concerted effort to close your garage door each time you leave your home. Ok, that's good, except you're already doing that at some level and the garage door is still being left open. So, what do you do? I think your best option, the one most likely to protect your home and family, is to purchase an automatic garage door closer.

The Garage Butler attaches to your existing garage door system. After you open the garage door, it is set to automatically shut the garage door after an interval of your choosing. And whats great is that it works with your existing safety features on your garage door controls. So, if your system currently has a safety feature if the door meets resistance, that remains with the garage butler. Additionally, it will give an audible warning signal once the predetermined time has been reached for the door to close.

The Garage Butler is an excellent choice if you're in the market for an automatic garage door closer. And at less than $50, its a steal you won't want to miss.

GE Simon XT Kit: Build Your Own

The GE Simon XT is one of the finest wireless home security systems on the market. Its ease of use and functionality, not to mention the reliability of a GE product, make it the top choice in the wireless security world. Ok, so none of this is new. Why am I writing to you today?

To let you know that SafeMart.com is offering a new GE Simon XT build your own kit. Up until know any kit came with certain preset items. From there you could upgrade your kit to meet your needs. The new build-your-own kit is nothing more than a panel and a ton of great options to let you customize and design the perfect kit for you.

If you're in the market for a home security system (and you should be), you should definitely be taking a look at the GE Simon XT system in general, and this kit specifically.

Internet Safety

This won't be a long post. I just wanted to draw your attention to a featured video on Honeywell's Security Channel concerning Internet Safety It is a short, good video; and any parent with a child using the Internet should watch it.

Too many times parents back off of their job to protect their children in order "give them space" or "let them be themselves." And when this comes to Internet use by children, we can only ask "At what cost?" To answer that question, simply turn on the news. Now, you wouldn't let your child go walking around the back-alleys of a crime ridden city neighborhood? So why let them put themselves at as much risk through the Internet.

Now I know that we usually cover home security topics, but I saw this video and I think its important. After all, whats the point in barring the door and setting up an alarm system against burglars and other intruders if you simply give them access through the Internet.

Swine Flu Mask

Swine flu masks are all the rage these days. News report after news report shows people in various walks of life and living in various countries happily (or unhappily) sporting a mask. So, are they really that helpful?

It all depends. What really helps is avoiding crowds in infected areas, washing your hands thoroughly and practicing good general hygiene. That being said, if you are going into crowds, or if there have been a number of infections in your area, then yeah, its probably a good idea. So, what kind should you get? Well, there are a number of different options out there, the CDC and others give some recommendations, but ideally, it would be a mask specifically designed to help protect against the flu. Here's an example of one that would make a good swine flu mask, an NIOSH approved N95 respirator mask.

Good luck and stay healthy!

Home Security Tips

Home security is usually one of the last things on people's minds as we head into the beautiful world of spring and prepare for those summer vacations. Unfortunately for us, its not even remotely the last things on a potential burglar's mind. So, here are a few tips to remember for home security at this time of year, especially if you're taking a vacation.

1. Trim bushes and trees that are close to the house. Keeping these trimmed will remove a handy hiding place for a potential intruder.
2. Let neighbors know when you are going on vacation. This is good for two reasons. One, so that your neighbor can keep an eye on your house and notify police if there is anything suspicious going on. Two, so that you can have them collect your mail. Nothing says, "I'm not home, come rob me" like a week's worth of mail on the front porch.
3. Close your garage doors and lock them if possible. An insane number of burglaries are committed through the garage, and its incredibly easy to prevent. But, even if they don't make it into your home, you don't really want them stealing all of your tools out of your garage, do you?
4. Last but not least..get a security system (you knew it was coming eventually). They're incredibly affordable and provide a measure of security above everything I just mentioned.

Pool Alarm

A Pool Alarm is an important part of home safety and security, but sadly, many homeowners consistently overlook this life saving device. So first, what is a pool alarm?

A pool alarm is a device that attaches to the side of your pool, with a sensor in the water. If any object weighing more than 18 pounds(pet, child, lawn chair) falls into the pool when the alarm is set, it will sound a loud siren at the pool itself and on a base receiver placed in your home, with a range of up to 200 feet.

Why do you need this? Well, the reasons should be clear for anyone who has a family or even has friends or relatives visiting with children. It only takes a short time for a child to fall into a pool and drown. In that scenario, every second counts, and a pool alarm will give you the means to immediately respond.

Still don't think you need one? Here are some sobering facts (source: CDC):

• In 2005, there were 3,582 fatal unintentional drownings in the United States, averaging ten deaths per day.
• More than one in four fatal drowning victims are children 14 and younger.¹ For every child who dies from drowning, another four received emergency department care for nonfatal submersion injuries.¹
• Nonfatal drownings can cause brain damage that may result in long-term disabilities including memory problems, learning disabilities, and permanent loss of basic functioning (i.e., permanent vegetative state).

And just how serious is the problem for small children (also from the CDC):

Children: In 2005, of all children 1 to 4 years old who died, almost 30% died from drowning.¹Although drowning rates have slowly declined,^{1, 3} fatal drowning remains the second-leading cause of unintentional injury-related death for children ages 1 to 14 years.⁴

If you have children, I'm not trying to freak you out. However, I do hope you're a little scared. You need to realize the importance of having adequate protection for your children when playing in your swimming pool. There's simply too much at risk not to be prepared.

Ademco 5870API

The brand new Ademco 5870API is a Wireless Indoor Asset Protection Sensor. Which is a long way of saying that its a small wireless device that attaches to your home or office valuables and notifies your alarm panel if those valuables are being moved. It will communicate with any Ademco security system that accepts their 5800 wireless technology.

Ok, so what does it do? You place the sensor which is 1.8" x 1.7" x 0.63" on any device that you want to protect and that shouldn't be moving. So, this would be a computer, jewelry box, television, safe, etc. You set the sensitivity to one of three settings. Setting 1 is a hyper-sensitive setting, which should only be used for completely fixed items that have no real vibration as a normal part of their placement. So, this wouldn't be a good idea for a computer monitor where you come in, bump your desk as you sit down and the thing vibrates for a few seconds. It would, however, be a good idea for a heavy safe that you have mounted in your closet, which won't be vibrating anyway. That setting means that movement for 1-3 seconds will cause the sensor to notify the panel. The second option (the right one for the computer or computer monitor) is the Standard Security Mode. In this setting the sensor will notify your alarm panel after 5-8 seconds of movement. The third option is for Tilt Mode. This would be for a device (like a jewelry box) that has a lid or a door and will be tilted (when opened, for example). In this case, the sensor will notify the panel after the sensor is tilted greater than 30 degrees.

Ok, so whats the actual benefit of this thing? I mean, if your home is armed at night, this doesn't offer much benefit because the burglar should have already tripped the alarm before he picks up the jewelry box. The main utility is for people who have access, but shouldn't be taking things. So, for example, if you have a maid service come (or any interior work by an outside contractor), you may want this device to protect your belongings, even though the crew is supposed to be in your home. This device, however, isn't just for residential applications. It would also work great for a museum or business where people are coming in and out all of the time but aren't supposed to be leaving with anything.

The item comes in at the low cost of $79.00 and comes in either grey (dark grey) or white. If you are a homeowner with lots of outside workers in your home, or if you are a business owner, you need this device. Stop by SafeMart and get one today!