Author: GuardMe Security

You have probably heard the term “environmental sensors” when talking about home security, and put it on your list of things to investigate later, and then forgot. We, understand. It’s easy to forget something that is out of sight and not drawing any attention to itself. Home security environmental sensors are powerful, but often overlooked or forgotten elements of home protection, and you’ll be glad you found out more.

Environmental Sensor Basics

Where motion sensors are a critical part of home security by preventing and detecting entry, environmental sensors are an early warning system that prevents disasters caused by environmental factors such as water, extreme temperature fluctuation, fire, and carbon monoxide. The job of environmental sensors is to alert you to dangerous environmental conditions as soon as possible so that you can act and minimize risk, danger, and damage.

Why You Should Include Environmental Sensors in Your Home Security System

We all want to protect our home and family from intruders or thieves, and because of that home security systems make a lot of sense. But security is not only protecting your family and home from theft, violence, or vandalism; it is also protecting them from acts of nature, and other failures.

These Sensors Can Save Save Your Property and Your Life

The wonderful thing about today’s smart home technologies is that there is a wide variety of sensors that can instantly send a notification to your smartphone. Here are the most common environmental sensors used in smart homes today.

• Smoke and Heat Sensors. These sensors use photoelectronic technology to detect the concentration of smoke particles in the air as well as detects when the temperature  in a room gets too hot too rapidly.
• Water Sensors. Between mother nature and home maintenance issues, water is a strong and damaging force. When these sensors come in contact with water, they trigger  an immediate notification.
• Freeze and Temperature Sensor. These sensors are used where temperatures get quite cold. They are typically mounted in the home and trigger an alert when the in-home temperature dips below a certain temperature.
• Carbon Monoxide Sensor. Carbon monoxide is an invisible, odorless, and lethal threat produced by the combustion of fossil fuels. These detectors detect this poisonous gas and alert you immediately so you can get out safely.

About GuardMe Security

People often see environmental sensors as accessories to a home security system, rather than what they are– which is an additional and highly valuable added layer of security. Guardme Security has been providing these, and all the tools New Jersey residents need to protect their family, home and business for over 20 years.

Often times the words “home automation” or “smart home” technologies conjures images of extensive and expensive home improvement projects. In the past, the technologies were just too cost prohibitive to most people. Times have changed. Now, home automation technologies are advanced and affordable — and even better they SAVE YOU MONEY.

One of the driving factors most people opt into smart home technologies is the opportunity to save money. Here are the top technologies that make that a reality.

Smart and Programmable Thermostats

Even though the terms are used interchangeably quite often, smart and programmable thermostats are two different things.Programmable thermostats are not necessarily smart, but smart thermostats are additionally programmable. Clear as mud, right? This means that you can program your thermostat to help reduce energy usage, or you can also remotely make adjustments via a smart app or your system can learn your usage patterns all to save energy. Since the largest portion of a home’s energy bill comes from heating and cooling costs, controlling usage results in substantial savings.

Pro Tip: Not only do you not need any crazy renovations, automating simple home functions and controlling them all from one device is easier and more affordable than ever.

Zone-Based Thermostats

With zone-based thermostats, you can divide your home into heating and cooling zones so that unoccupied rooms are not unnecessarily being heated or cooled. Motion sensors detect occupancy and if no movement is detected for some time, that zone adjusts to accommodate.  

Smart Lighting

Smart lighting is another way to increase your savings. Lighting can account for as much as 25% of your utility bills, and that is significant. If you can control lighting, you add control to your budget. Interestingly, even making a conscious effort to turn off lights when you leave the room and limiting your use of electrical appliances doesn’t go nearly as far as using smart lighting in the home. Smart lighting responds to occupancy and turns out lights that have been forgotten, turns them off at predetermined times, and allows you to turn them off or on remotely by using your smartphone and home automation app.

Making your home smart certainly increases convenience and safety, but these small changes can help you noticeably cut your expenses. Not only do you not need any crazy renovations, automating simple home functions and controlling them all from one device is easier and more affordable than ever.

About GuardMe Security

GuardMe Security has corporate headquarters in Old Bridge, New Jersey but serves residential and commercial clients coast to coast. Since 1997, GuardMe has been serving customers with custom integrated home security systems based on the individual needs of each client.

You want to protect your family, home, and possessions but wonder how to do this most effectively. You have probably read articles about the best way to secure your home, or best places to hide your valuables and knowing these things provides some comfort and actionable objectives. The problem is, according to statistics and according to the thieves themselves, many of those things just don’t work. Here are some surprising facts about burglaries and what really works.

Do You Hide Your Valuables?

Keeping your valuables out of plain sight and not viewable from the open front door or window is a good idea, but actually hiding them may not add much, if any more security. Just from a cursory view and knowledge of the typical American lifestyle, a burglar already knows what valuables you are fairly likely to have. A burglar also already knows where to look (they read those articles, too) and what items will most likely be found there– such as looking in the freezer for small valuables not harmed by cold or moisture, like coins, gems, and jewelry. So, if you hide your valuables you might actually be providing the thief a map to where to find the goods! For seldom used valuables and heirlooms, your best bet is probably letting someone else guard the goods by getting a safety deposit box.

Pro tip: Schedule services between 10 am and 3 pm when burglaries are likely to occur. Having pool cleaners, landscape designers, window cleaners or other home services around those hours keep the property occupied.

The Right Deterrence is Surest

A burglary happens every 14.6 seconds in the US, most often occur between 10 am and 3 pm, lasts an average 8 to 12 minutes and results in a nearly $2,000 average loss per incident. Burglars gain entry through the front door around 34% of the time, first-floor windows 23%, backdoor 22% and the garage 9%, among other ways of gaining entry. Once in, very little stops them from getting to your valuables, and this is why deterrence is so critical.

Deterrents That Actually Work

Burglars want to spend no more than 60 seconds gaining entry and do not, of course, want to be seen doing it. These techniques and measures address those two important points and are most effective in preventing burglary.

• Get a home security system. Homes without monitored home security systems are three times more likely to be broken into those with security systems.
• Use security cameras. Security cameras work against the burglar’s desire of not being caught or identified. Cover all your bases and use all of the smart home technologies available surrounding smart security cameras, such as video doorbells.
• Use home automation to look home. Burglars search for homes that look unoccupied so using home automation to look and sound home is a huge deterrence.
• Use motion sensored lighting. Smart lighting that can send alerts can help you determine if there is trouble while you are away, and quite possibly foil the plans of an experienced thief.
• Schedule services between 10 am and 3 pm when burglaries are likely to occur. Having pool cleaners, landscape designers, window cleaners or other home services around those hours keep the property occupied.
• Move your second car into the driveway when you are not home. Keep cars rotating and occupying the driveway so that there seems to be activity. If you do not have a second car, invite a neighbor to park in your drive.
• Use scary dog signs. A sign that says “my dog can reach the fence in 3 seconds” or other scary facts is also a surprisingly effective deterrent. If you don’t actually have a scary dog– or dog at all– use the sign and put out signs of having a dog, like a dog bowl on the porch.

About GuardMe Security

Based in Old Bridge NJ, GuardMe Security provides user-friendly security systems specifically designed with high quality and ease of operation in mind.

You have asked yourself a million times– “Why bother with security if you’re going to leave your garage door unsecured?” It just doesn’t make sense, especially when a smart garage door has so many incredible advantages. You know, like we do, that the smart garage door is actually one of the most important components in your security system; it is one of the most used entries into the home and holds a lot of valuables. That makes it the gateway to your life.

Here are 5 important reasons for having a smart garage door.

A Smart Garage Door Protects a Gateway to Your Home

The vast majority of break-ins occur at ground level through an unlocked door. Many burglars gain entry through a garage entrance because someone either did not close or did not think to secure the garage door. A smart garage door can remind you with an alert, or close on its own after a specified amount of time.

You Have Valuables in Your Garage

The garage is not just the place to store the car. It very likely holds a lot of other high-priced and easily sold items like tools and sporting equipment. A smart garage door makes your garage more secure. If it opens, you’ll know.

Having a Smart Garage Door Helps Keep Track of Goings and Comings

If you have a busy family, it helps to know who leaves and who gets home, and when. A smart garage door can help you do that by using unique codes and sending alerts to your smartphone.

A Smart Garage Door Makes Home Automation Systems Even More Thoughtful

Using geofencing, your smart garage door can detect your proximity and trigger a system of responses in preparation for your arrival. When you draw near to home, the smart thermostat can adjust the temperature, the smart lights can go on, and enabled appliances can go on so coffee is brewing and the crockpot is already simmering. As you get closer, the garage door opens and smart locks unlock.

You Never Forget To Close The Garage Door

In the rush of getting to work or getting kids off to school or an endless list of other activities, it is easy to forget to close the garage door. And that open garage is like a beacon to anyone wishing to get into your home to take your belongings. A smart garage door detects inactivity and can either close on its own or send an alert to your phone so you can close it remotely from your smart app.
Headquartered in Old Bridge, NJ, Home automation and smart garage doors are just one reason of many, to consider GuardMe Security for all of your electronic security needs. We are family owned, local, reliable, accessible, and have over 30 years of experience.

Most people think of home automation as a super cool tech tool that lets you offload tasks to save time and money. While home automation is a cool tool that does do that, it is also much more. That is especially true in home automation wellness. Home automation wellness applications are not just convenient– they’re life changing.

Why Wellness Tools Matter

There are over 57 million Americans living with disabilities, and nearly 13 million senior persons living alone. That is 70 million Americans living with some element of physical limitations that make life more difficult. It is difficult to understand what a limitation means until you or someone near you experiences one. What seems like a simple hindrance, such as not being able to maneuver small things, can have huge ramifications. In many cases, home automation wellness tools can help remove many of those barriers.

It’s All About Connectedness

To understand how wellness tools work, you need to know a little bit about how home automation as a whole works. A smart home is a home with an integrated system which uses computer and network technologies, and wireless technology to connect a battery of appliances, devices, and systems. In doing this, it centralizes the management of these systems which is accessible even remotely. The sensors play an important role too, because they incorporate a large amount computing power and transmit information about the activity of the users, and anticipate their needs.

Home Automation is a Solution for Homecare

Home automation wellness solutions extend the connected home technology platform so that individuals can live more comfortably, safely, and conveniently in their own home. It is not just about being able to control the home from a single device; it is about the home working on the resident’s behalf.

Here’s how.

1. Eliminate Tasks-– Home automation eliminates tasks and provide control and independence where there are limitations.
2. Gain Activity Pattern Insights— Motion sensors gain information about regular activity patterns and send an alert if something is out of the ordinary.
3. Increased Awareness— Helps know if loved ones are getting up and about.
4. Get Alerts– Be alerted if a loved one is leaving the house at odd hours.
5. Integrated Personal Emergency Response– Systems can integrate with PERS pendants for even more safety.

Guardme Security provides creative, integrated home automation wellness solutions based on the needs and vision of each client.

Think you know all the benefits of home automation? Think again. If you have home automation, you know just how much safety, efficiency, and savings it adds to our daily lives. The problem is, we have grown so accustomed to the conveniences of smart home technologies that we hardly give them a second thought. Fortunately, researchers are giving the many facets of home automation some serious thought and studies are uncovering some fascinating information in how smart lighting affects your health.  

Smart Lighting and Wellness

Wellness is actively pursuing good health, and what better tool than home automation to help in that pursuit? One home automation tool in particular is getting a lot of attention, smart lighting. The ability to control your lighting has a huge impact on your health, studies show. Our bodies need light, and the need is pretty specific.  We need certain kinds of light, for certain durations and at certain times. Disturbances in that negatively impact our health. According to compelling research published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, too much of certain kinds of lighting, and light exposure at the wrong time can increase the risk of type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, and cancer. The amount of light we receive also plays a role in our emotional health and memory.

6 Ways Smart Lighting Benefits Your Health

From fluorescent lighting to computer screens our lives are saturated in light, and much of it in unhealthy quantities at inopportune times. All of that light impacts the brain and our Circadian Rhythm, a biological process that regulates sleep and hormones responsible for good health. Smart lighting can be beneficial to our long-term health because it provides a way to control and regulate lighting. Here are some ways smart lighting affects your health.

1. Reduces Night-time Injuries-– Of 700,000 hospitalizations due to fall, 20% happen in low light. Smart lighting helps reduce injuries and the costs associated with them, by providing a way to turn lights on before even moving. Smart lighting connected to motion sensors within your home automation system can also light your way.
2. Circadian Rhythm Support– The Circadian Rhythm is a sensitive process experienced by living things. If disrupted, it causes problems such as sleep disruptions which further impact health. Light at the proper times helps support this process.
3. Improved Sleep Patterns— Getting the proper light, and limiting light exposure during the wrong times results in a better quality sleep which helps improve concentration, memory, and mood.
4. Improved Cortisol Production-– When we wake up to the morning light it improves the production of cortisol, a chemical produced by the body responsible for mental alertness. Using smart lighting to simulate dawn increases the production of this chemical.
5. Decreased  Health Risks–Getting the wrong kind of light, too much light at the wrong times, or not getting enough light suppresses melatonin. Many studies link melatonin suppression with an increased risk of cancer, depression, high blood pressure, and type 2 diabetes. Smart lighting allows you to control your lighting input so that it’s lights out for “static lighting” and regulate the times and kinds of light you receive throughout the day.
6. Improved Mental Wellbeing— Lighting has a huge impact on mental health. Using smart home lighting can improve the lighting environment to help fight depression, Seasonal Affective Disorder, and anxiety.

GuardMe Security is a family owned single source electronic security provider with over 20 years experience. Contact us today for a free home automation assessment.

If you are like most people, you think of home automation as a super cool tool to add some serious convenience in your life. You’d be right, of course, in that it is one of the most incredible tools around to add an incredible amount of convenience to your life. But, in the not too distant future smart home automation may become an essential part of your life.

Big Changes are Hard to Ignore

It’s hard to miss just how much computer and internet technologies have shaped the world just over the last 25 years. In 1995, the internet was considered a luxury and less than 10% of Americans had internet in their home. Today, nearly every household not just has, but depends on the internet for many aspects of their lives. The internet has become much more than a luxury r convenience.

Home Automation in The Midst of Change

Home automation has always added convenience to the lives of users, but as our lives transition to an information economy, its role has changed. Today, we use it for far more than adding convenience. It has become a vehicle to achieving life as we see it.

Why Home Automation is Much More Than Convenience

Times have changed, ideals have changed, and so too the way we do life. Smart home automation is, not surprisingly, right at the forefront of making change possible. Here are just a few examples.

Resource Management— Today, people are much more conscious about conserving natural resources and environmental impact. Home automation closes the gap by helping users reduce their usage of things such as gas and electricity significantly.

Time Management— We have become increasingly conscious of how we manage our time. Home automation allows us to do more, do it more effectively, and get it done while on the go.

Improved Caregiving— As people live longer and healthier lives family care dynamics change. It is common for a family to have small children under their care as well as their parent or grandparents. Home automation makes that much more possible than ever. By utilizing the tools home automation provides, caregivers can provide better care even if the individuals do not live in the home. For example, caregivers can know whether a loved one leaves the home unexpectedly, or is late getting up for the day. It provides a way to check in on children to make sure they made it home from school and are doing homework, and not watching television or playing electronic games.

Creating a Hospitable Environment— As a society we have become much more aware of how our environment impacts things like mood and productivity. With tools that learn and respond to our needs, we achieve more and do it more efficiently. Controlling the environment is also important when there are residents with sensory issues, providing a way to eliminate the problems of glaring lights or too much noise.

GuardMe Security is a single source provider for any security system, structured cabling, or automation project for your home or business. If you have any questions about home automation, please call GuardMe security Today.

Smart locks have become some of the most popular home technology products in the country. In fact, NextMarket Research predicts that the smart lock market alone will grow to a worldwide value of $3.5 billion by 2019. But what makes these smart devices so popular?
That’s an easy question to answer. The smart lock is a device that enhances security and convenience with a secure keyless access, and the advantages make them pure magic. Here are just a few of our favorite.

Smart Locks Work with Smartphones

Burglars enter through an unlocked door more than any other way of gaining access to a home. The single most important act in securing your home is locking your door, yet it is the most forgotten security act. For many people, one of the best features of a smart lock is the ability to use their smartphone to access an app and lock the door remotely, so forgetting is a thing of the past.

You can Authorize Access

Not only does the ability to use unique access codes eliminate the need for having excess physical keys floating around, it allows you to authorize access to those that need it for any length of time. While a service provider might need access for a day, a pet sitter might need access for a week. When you no longer need to provide access, the code is quickly and easily disabled.

Smart Locks Provide Insight and Peace of Mind

Having smart locks provides a greater awareness to the user, which is a huge advantage. Smart access control allows you to create alerts that tell you when the door is opened using a code, and which code was used. This feature means you can rest easy knowing the kids got home, or know that a service professional arrived as expected.

Smart Locks are SMART

Smart locks can do more than open doors. They can also trigger other smart home devices to act, saving you time and money and enhancing your security. When you lock up in the morning a smart lock can trigger actions like the security system to arm, the thermostat to be set back, or the garage door to close. It can detect your presence, too, and can prepare for your arrival by turning on lights and adjusting temperature.

Smart locks bridge the gap between convenience and customization that empowers life. To find out more about smart lock technologies, call GuardMe Security today.

The ability to automate and control your environment simply from one interface is not just convenient, for some it is the difference between being able to live safely and independently. For anyone with physical limitations, home automation offers a tool that expands the boundaries of possibilities in ways we could only imagine just a decade ago.

Never Before Have We Had So Many Tools

Thanks to the rapid developments in “machine learning”, or adaptive learning and automation, and explosion of powerful portable interconnected devices—home automation is causing revolutionary change in the way we care for our bodies, minds, and spirits. Certainly, these tools have changed the way we communicate and engage with society, but now we can use them collectively to change how we connect to, experience, and give meaning to our world.

Never More Rewarding Than in Wellness Care

Perhaps the single most rewarding application of home automation is in wellness care. The rapid proliferation of technologies makes it easier than ever to meet specific needs and tailor care to any individual, whether it is providing the caregiver oversight or offering new opportunity to anyone suffering from any debilitating condition.

Advantages in Wellness

Here are some ways home automation offers a non-intrusive solution in wellness care.

• Adaptive learning allows your system to understand your activity patterns and alert if anything is out of the ordinary.
• Integrates with Personal Emergency Response Pendants
• Increased awareness of daily activities means you know if your loved one is getting about well, or has isolated themselves in their room.
• Receiving alerts is helpful when you are concerned about things like wandering.
• Security and automation features also simplify daily routines for increased safety.
• Where physical limitations exist, home automation features make a multitude of tasks doable from one platform enhancing independence and comfort.

Smarter Care is Better Care

By taking advantage of the vast array of applications available in home automation, people who otherwise might struggle in some areas of life are afforded additional freedom and opportunities they once thought out of reach. The technology provides tools while protecting dignity, and independence without sacrificing health needs.

If you are looking for a way to simplify your life or want to provide additional care to a loved one, call GuardMe Security today. We have been your trusted, locally owned, single source provider for over 20 years.