Glass Break Sensors Tips

Charlie Bars Protect Sliding Glass Doors

Sliding doors can be easy for thieves to enter. They can force open the lock with a screw driver or simply lift the door off its tracks.

Swing-down aluminum bars called "Charlie bars" offer protection. They have a pin lock to secure them against the back of the sliding door. With a Charlie bar, the only way a burglar can get in is to break the glass. For optimum security, add a glass break detector, which will activate an alarm the moment the glass is broken.

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Use Glass Break Detectors for Additional Security

Don't expect to find glass break detectors included in many standard home security packages. Window and door sensors tend to be the basic components of most home security packages. The sensors activate an alarm when a door or window is opened. Systems also may include a central control panel, or command station, siren, motion detector, and keypad.

Glass break detectors typically are extra features that you can add to your security package for a low price, ranging from about $15 to $50, depending on the model. The detectors generally are for added security. Because the alarm sounds when glass is broken, the noise may scare an intruder away before he has a chance to enter your home.

If you already own a home security package, contact your dealer, who should have glass break detectors that are compatible with your system.

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Glass Bricks Offer Protection and Appeal

Extra windows and glass panels in front doorways are attractive features. They let in natural light, which makes your home an inviting place.

But extra glass windows and glass panels also can be an invitation to burglars. Glass in or around the front door can make it easier for an intruder to gain entry. The intruder can break the glass and reach in to unlock the deadbolt on your door.

Before you wall off windows and turn your home into a fortress, consider some easier options:

• Install a two-sided deadbolt that requires a key to unlock either side. But there is a drawback: If there's a fire at your home, your family may be at greater risk. It takes more time to find a key and unlock the door to get out.
• Use reinforced glass in the entryway. Reinforced glass with wire inside keeps intruders out when the glass breaks. But it is not that attractive. Glass bricks, on the other hand, are appealing and let natural light in. They also are thick and hard to penetrate. Use glass bricks in highly visible parts of your home and wire-embedded glass for basement windows.
• Add home security, which offers a high level of customized protection and no drawbacks. Products include glass break detectors, motion detectors, and contact sensors that activate when a door or window opens.

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Look for Dual Technology in Glass Break Detectors

Look for glass break detectors that "hear" both high and low frequency sounds. Otherwise, you may get a lot of false alarms.

The dual technology listens for an object hitting and flexing the glass, followed by the high sound of breaking glass. When it "hears" the two sounds, in that order, the alarm activates.

Sometimes alarm companies use single technology because it is cheaper. But a single technology alarm sometimes mistakes other noises for breaking glass, like music playing, lightning strikes, even someone sneezing.

Dual technology ends those problems and allows for a much more sensitive device.

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Glass Break Detector Can Secure Several Windows at Once

Customize home security packages with glass break detectors, which are highly affordable when placed in strategic positions around your house.

A glass break detector typically mounts on a wall or ceiling in a room where you want protection. The detector can "hear" glass breaking from 15 to 35 feet away, depending on the device.

But the detector may not "hear" through walls, doors or around corners. Heavy curtains and blinds may also hinder its effectiveness.

Remember, the more windows you have in a room that need protection, the better value you get from the product.

Here are some examples of where you can place your glass-break detector:

• Open-area rooms, such as great rooms or kitchen/dining areas, that often have several windows that can be secured with one device.
• Adjoining rooms, such as the living and dining areas, may be covered with one device if there is open space between them.
• Unfinished basements, which can be prime entry targets for intruders, may take just one glass break detector. They often have wide-open areas with several windows that need protection.

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Add Security to All Windows Accessible from the Outside

When adding home security, install sensors and glass break detectors on windows that can be accessed easily from outside.

Of course, you can bypass third-story windows. But if someone can climb through second-floor windows from a fire escape or tree limb, you may want to secure them as well.

Glass windows should be protected with both a sensor and a glass break detector. The sensor activates an alarm if the window opens and someone tries to enter. The glass break detector will pick up low and high frequency sounds of glass breaking.

Both the detector and sensor will send a signal to the control panel of your security system, which sounds an alarm. A monitored system will signal a professional responder who can dispatch police.

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Glass Break Detectors Enhance Home Security

Window sensors are a basic component of home security packages. They activate an alarm when someone opens a window and tries to enter your house.

But they don't offer complete protection. For that, you also need a glass break detector. An acoustic glass break detector triggers an alarm when the window breaks. It "hears" the frequency sounds of glass breaking.

An alternative is a shock glass break detector that is mounted on the window and "feels" the shock of breaking glass. There also is a new kind of detector that uses dual technology, or a combination of both.

There are advantages of adding a glass break detector to your home security package, no matter which technology you choose. It activates an alarm as soon as someone outside breaks the glass, even though the intruder has yet to enter your home.

The sound of the burglar alarm may be enough to send the burglar away. If you have a monitored alarm system, your monitoring service will be notified and summon help.

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Glass Break Detectors Provide Affordable Security

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