I used to be a big fan of DIY home security monitoring. I still think it is a valid option and something that should be available to anyone who wants it. But an experience I had just a few months ago has made me acutely aware of how valuable professional monitoring is.
For the record, professionally installed home security systems almost always come with the option of monthly monitoring. Providers like Vivint Home Security offer various levels of monitoring services to meet most budgets. But did you know that DIY systems can usually be connected to remote monitoring services as well?
Modern technology is such that it is possible to find professional monitoring services from most systems. That is not the case for individual devices, like single cameras. So be aware of that if you plan to shop for professional monitoring.
Far Away With No Internet
With all the preliminaries out of the way, let us talk about the previously mentioned event I experienced. It was an event that had me far away from home – and without internet access. I was on a ship in the middle of the Atlantic.
My wife and I decided to take a 13-night transatlantic cruise. From the moment we left Spain until we were close enough to the Florida coast for our data plans to kick in, we were isolated from the rest of the world.
It’s great that my two video cameras continued to work flawlessly. It is great that my automated lighting simulated movement throughout our house during the nighttime hours.
Every piece of equipment in my system functioned flawlessly. But what if one of my cameras had detected motion inside the house and sent an alert to my smartphone? That alert would have gone unreceived while we were at sea. If the alert was sent out on day 5, it would have been 12 days before I saw it. Oh no! Too late!
If My System Were Professionally Monitored
I was enjoying a beautiful, sunny day at sea when all this dawned on me. I just had to accept the fact that there was nothing I could do in that moment. My system would remain completely unmonitored until I made it back to shore. Then I started wondering what would be different if my system were professionally monitored.
I could have called my monitoring provider to let them know of my cruise plans. For those 13 nights, they would know that I would be incommunicado should my system generate an alarm. They wouldn’t even bother trying to contact me. If an alarm went off, they would go through their normal script and, if necessary, contact local authorities.
In addition, I could designate an emergency contact. One of my neighbors would have been the perfect choice. In the event that an alarm was triggered, my neighbor could check on things. If a legitimate emergency had occurred and follow-up were required, my neighbor could have handled that as well.
More Than Just a Vacation Problem
I also realized that a lack of professional monitoring was more than just a vacation problem. In my normal, day-to-day life, I often find myself in circumstances that make it easy to ignore my cell phone. Sometimes I don’t ignore it; I simply fail to hear the push notification come through. And if I am in a meeting or church service, I actually have my phone silenced.
There are lots of reasons to embrace DIY home security monitoring. But for me, the way I live my daily life makes it clear that professional monitoring is a better choice.
