Adding video or audio surveillance to your home or office security plan is a useful method to keep the things and people you care about safe. Nevertheless, the quantity of available options can get bewildering, and not every home or office is identical when it comes to security needs.
We’ve made this guide to help you assess your needs and choose the surveillance system that’s right for you.
Location, Location, Location!
Knowing where to install your security system’s components is vital. The better your security camera placement, the more effective the system. Catching crooks and vandals is most likely if your equipment is placed to monitor the widest field possible. Outdoors, try to find high, nondescript locations to mount cameras. Indoors, focus cameras on major access points and on objects most likely to be the target of theft.
Make a Plan
It’s overkill to monitor every inch of your property. Prioritize the most important areas. Sketch a rough map of your property, and circle the places you want to monitor. Afterwards, physically check out each place and the best place to mount a camera. Some places to consider:
- Front and Back Doors
- Back Windows
- Kitchen
- Living Room
- Driveway
- Porches
- Stairs
Think about bottlenecks, places through which people cannot avoid passing.
Do your Homework
Buy the system that best meets your needs. If you prefer, you can buy each component separately, but it’s usually more cost-effective to purchase a bundled security system. A basic system needs to have one to three cameras, a digital video recorder, wiring equipment and cables, and one or more power cords. If you aren’t monitoring a huge area, wireless cameras are sufficient.
