History of Home Security...(Sort Of)

Guard Animals

If you lived in ancient Rome or Greece (or anywhere in the ancient world for that matter) you were limited in your options of protecting your home. Sure, if you were a king, emperor, provincial governor or any other member of the elite class, you may have had some options when it came to security. But, if you were an average Roman, it was a sturdy door, your slaves, and you to fend off any would-be attackers...oh, that and a giant Beware of Dog sign. A giant Beware of Dog what??

Apparently, things don't change much over a few thousand years. You still see beware of dog signs to this day, but none quite as elegant (or permanent) as the Cave Canem mosaics placed outside Roman villas. This particular one was found in the excavations of Pompeii, rediscovered in 1824. Source

Moats and Gates

This is a pretty slick idea. You have a city or personal castle that you want to protect against raging hordes of barbarians, or nighttime thieves...what do you do?

You build an enormous ditch (read river) around the outside of your property and fill it with water. This, like guard dogs, is apparently a pretty natural thing for humans to do. I say that because moats were used in ancient Egypt, Europe in the middle ages, and ancient Japanese imperial cities. Source

They were used to protect fortified cities, sacred temples and shrines, the palaces of noblemen and kings. Safe to say, if you were inside of one of these moated castles, you were living in a relatively safe place. And, let's be honest...it looks really cool.

The gates idea goes hand in hand with this. Even if you got through the moat, the gate was going to keep you from getting in. Basically, in the middle ages, you would have two of these gates. The idea is that the guards would trap you between these two gates. Then they would drop heavy items on you, or shoot you with arrows through...wait for it...murder-holes. Yeah, they were serious about security. Source

Guards

In Ancient Rome, it was a big no-no to bring the armies of Rome into the city itself. It had been done, but always with great damage to the Republic. But, at the time of Caesar, and later, Augustus, the state organization switched from Republic to Empire. Still, the people loved their traditions, and weren't interested in Roman armies hanging around. So, if you're the Emperor, you'd like some military protection in the city of Rome, but can't have the military itself. What do you do?

If you're a genius like Augustus you create a paramilitary force called the Praetorian Guards. Basically, they were to keep peace and order in the city, and protect the emperor and his family.

It was a great plan. Worth noting, however, that the Praetorian Guard sometimes did the opposite of their protection role. When things got crazy with the Emperors and the Guards had enough of their foolishness, they would kill the emperor and pick the new one themselves. This was always a possible downside of personal guards...if they're close enough to protect you, they're close enough to harm.

Home Safes

Home safes aren't an overly difficult thing to make, so thats why they've been so ubiquitous throughout much of human history. What do you do to make a safe? Take a chest, slap a big lock on it, and you're in business (at least on a simple level). That concept evolved until you get to the

all iron safe of the middle ages. These began to be a bit more burglar-proof. But, of course, they weren't entirely, and given enough time and dedication, the thief would probably have all of your stuff. Source

Eventually, as the technology developed, safes became impregnable, utilizing unique keys, fire and explosion-proof materials, and, of course, combination locks. Today, you can put your stuff in a safe, blow up your house with some dynamite, and smash your safe with a sledgehammer...and it'll be totally fine (depending upon the safe, obviously).

Security Systems

We finally come to the security system. And while all of the above are still in use (ok, maybe not moats and murder holes, but I digress), the electronic security system has come to firmly embody the modern age of personal and property protection.

With high-speed wireless systems like the GE Simon XT or reliable, incredibly expandable systems like the Ademco Vista 20P, home security is at a whole new level; and its just beginning.

In the next couple of years, we're going to see completely customizable, ridiculously expandable, simple to use next-gen home security equipment. Only, home security (as an idea) will become (dare I say it?) a thing of the past. In the next era of home security, its all about home automation. The ability to use your security system to control everything in your home easily and remotely is already here, and that technology is really just ramping up.

Home Security in 2010

Well folks, we're back now from a long hiatus. We've been working on a ton of great stuff over at SafeMart, from new monitoring options to better more advanced system packages. I wanted to highlight just a few products/services to keep your eye out for in 2010. (Note: some of these have been around for years, but are worth taking another look at). So, in no particular order:

1. Freeze Alarms: Ok, thats pretty boring sounding. Plus, they've been around forever. True, but most of us haven't seen a winter this cold in a long time. If you don't have a freeze alarm and you don't want to spend thousands of dollars when a pipe busts, you should get one. Available http://www.safemart.com/Freeze-Alarms/Basic-Feeze-Alarm-wVoice-Alarm-FA-B-CCA.htm for $65.

2. The DSC Alexor: This is a fairly new system. It was released with a lot of hype but sort of died out after that. I would say this: If you are in the market for a versatile home security system, that is super-fast, and can handle some decent upgrades, the Alexor may be for you. Check it out here http://www.safemart.com/Wireless-Home-Security/DSC-Alexor-2-Way-Wireless-Alarm-Kit-KIT495-1CP01.htm. Starts at $299

3. New Releases in Home Alarm Monitoring: I'm not going to get into this much, even though its the most exciting thing coming down the pipe, since its not fully live yet. Just check back at this link from time to time if you have a Honeywell system. We'll be offering you great products at an incredibly low price. Stop by and see us. And if you simply want central station alarm monitoring, click the above link. Its available at wholesale pricing.