DO IT YOURSELF TO CUT ALARMING COST OF SECURITY
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`Chicago Tribune
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`May 8, 1987 Friday, SPORTS FINAL EDITION
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`Copyright 1987 Chicago Tribune Company
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`Section: FRIDAY; Pg. 64; ZONE: C
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`Length: 1857 words
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`Byline: By Rich Warren.
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`Body
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`I'm a 197-pound weakling, scared to death of guns and the owner of enough VCRs to open a video store. Even
`after the locksmith put reinforced locks on the doors of my new house, I was still having bouts of insecurity. So I
`called ADT (American District Telegraph), one of the oldest security companies in the alarm business, and ordered
`a security system.
`
` Peace of mind cost about $1,200 and a full day's work by a pair of skilled ADT installers. My ADT-wired system
`consists of three door sensors, an area motion detector, a smoke alarm, a sophisticated control panel and an
`outdoor bullhorn siren, with battery back-up, that would wake the dead. If I wanted the automatic telephone dialing
`system that would call the ADT central monitoring station in the event of trouble, which would then verify an actual
`break-in or fire and call the appropriate authorities, that would be an extra $22 per month.
`
` Imagine my surprise when, at the Winter Consumer Electronics Show, I spied a do-it-yourself home security
`system from Schlage, the lock company, that appeared to include all the features of my ADT. This wireless
`Keepsafer Plus alarm system is manufactured for Schlage, an American company, in Taiwan and Hong Kong. The
`same components wired into my house by ADT would cost about $650 from Schlage, a considerable savings. Of
`course, I would have had to install it, but that seemed easy, because the only wires were the ones connecting the
`sensors to the transmitters. The clear, straightforward instruction manual indicated only a small power drill (to drill
`holes for screws) and a screwdriver would be necessary. When I later tested the system in my home, I discovered it
`takes about 15 minutes per sensor set. Schlage will also monitor the system from its central office if you purchase
`the optional telephone emergency dialer module ($100) and pay $15 per month, an $84 per year savings over ADT.
`
`The Schlage Keepsafer Plus master control console ($349), about the size of a miniature portable typewriter,
`comes with three transmitter-sensors but accepts as many remote sensors as you desire. Schlage offers door-
`window ($25), glass break ($30), area motion ($126), smoke alarm ($60), medical pendant ($26) and bedside units
`($26); the latter two are manually activated in case of emergency. Other modules illuminate and/or flash any or all
`of the lamps in your house when the alarm is triggered ($40 for the controller, $16 for the lamp modules, $20 for a
`back-up battery power supply and $20 for a small bullhorn siren). Sensor sets without transmitters cost only $5.50.
`Remote control, standard on the Plus model, can arm or disarm the system from anywhere in the house or within a
`few feet outside.
`
` The Schlage system uses very few wires, but the price you pay is that every sensor must be attached to a
`transmitter about the size of a small Walkman. One transmitter serves several sensors. Eight inches of wire connect
`the sensor with the transmitter, although they can be connected by up to 15 feet of wire. (Screw terminals at both
`ends make the wire easy to change.) Curtains or draperies flanking your windows can conceal the transmitter
`(which mounts on the wall with screws). Otherwise, you're stuck with an undecorative, ivory-colored plastic box by
`every window. It's also hard to hide the transmitters near doors, but mounting them near floor level reduces
`visibility. A red light-emitting diode (LED) on the transmitter flashes when an alarm is sent to the master control unit.
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` All the transmitters are battery powered. Unfortunately, Schlage supplies cheap carbon-zinc 9-volt batteries.
`Because the system itself will probably never exhaust the batteries, these junk batteries will go dead within a year
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`from disuse, rendering the sensors inoperative. Alkaline batteries last for 3 to 5 years and are the logical choice for
`an alarm system.
`
` The two-piece door-window sensors, which use a magnet and a magnetically activated switch, must be parallel
`and virtually touching. Mounting them on windows that include integral storms and screens proved difficult; to
`monitor both the top and bottom of the window, you must use two sensors. Fortunately, the sensors are cheap.
`Schlage suggests mounting two magnets a few inches apart on the window so that you can leave it open a crack
`for fresh air and still utilize the alarm. The company urges you to mount the sensors with screws, although it does
`provide two-sided tape for initial positioning.
`
` A bank of ultraminiature switches in both the control unit receiver and the sensor transmitters selects a private
`code between the transmitters and receiver. That way, if your neighbor also installs a Schlage system you won't be
`triggering each other's alarms. Additional switches select instant or delayed activation of the alarm. Instant
`activation protects you at home with immediate warning of an intruder; when you're going out, delayed activation
`gives you a chance to leave and lock the door. After setting the switches you must then program in your three-digit
`personal access code (PAC), using numbers from 1 through 6. If the first digit is odd you have 20 seconds and if it's
`even you have 40 seconds to disarm the system when returning home. However, if you use the remote control this
`is a moot point.
`
` The Keepsafer Plus seems to have enough range to cover the average home. The remote control works from
`about 30 to 40 feet away from the control receiver. A sensor mounted in a downstairs doorway will trigger the alarm
`when the receiver is mounted in an upstairs bedroom. If your house has steel- reinforced or concrete walls, the
`range may be reduced.
`
` False alarms create the biggest concern of wireless security systems. Some areas are saturated with radio
`frequency (RF) radiation. Schlage's digital coding reduces the chance of accidental alarms, but it's not impossible
`that a garage-door opener, low-flying airplane or UFO could awaken you or the neighbors. Where I live RF is
`scarce, so the Keepsafer Plus and I remained on good terms. I also did not have the opportunity to test Schlage's
`motion sensor alarm.
`
` ADT made its name, and most of its income, on business and industrial customers. The virtually bulletproof, hard-
`wired ADT system proves difficult to fool. Its motion detector differentiates between a man or a mouse. Both the
`control panel and the horn siren contain rechargeable batteries that substitute for AC power. This mixed blessing
`triggers the ADT alarm when the AC power is interrupted. It outfoxes a clever thief who throws the circuit breaker or
`cuts the power lines intending to disarm the system. But if the power fails the alarm also sounds. At your request,
`ADT will program the alarm to shut off after a given period of time. Those batteries last a long time.
`
` ADT mandates a four-digit PAC, chosen from numbers 0 through 9, but insists that it cannot be an easily
`remembered number, such as part of your Social Security number, birthday, street address or telephone number,
`lest the clever criminal be able to read your mind.
`
` If like me you already have too many numbers in your head, you can program in your own changeable three-digit
`PAC, sacrificing some of your protection. Most thieves can't figure out the magic number in the 40 seconds
`provided to disarm the system. You also can use the three-digit code for people who need access to your home
`when the alarm is in use. You keep the secret four digits and can eliminate the three-digit number at any time. You
`must arm and disarm the system from the wall-mounted control panel, the insides of which are locked, with only the
`touchpad accessible. A series of LEDs indicate the status of the system, which has home and away settings similar
`to those of the Schlage.
`
` Even before the main alarm sounds, a piercing tone emanates from the ADT control box. This reminds you to
`disarm the system, and warns the transgressor that the worst is yet to come.
`
` A well-educated home invader could purchase the Schlage system, figure out the radio frequencies and the digital
`codes and possibly circumvent your alarm, because it can be remotely disarmed. Most thieves won't go to that
`trouble or expense. Conversely, that Keepsafer Plus remote control proves its worth on those bitterly cold, snowy
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`winter days when you don't want to leave your car to disarm your alarm. With the ADT system you must park your
`car, unlock the door to the house (automatic garage doors open too slowly to get inside in time to deactivate the
`system) and race for the control panel. Then you return to the car, open the garage door and drive in.
`
` In trying to make the price attractive, Schlage made two modules optional that should be standard equipment. The
`most important is the rechargeable battery pack that mounts in the controller and keeps the alarm functioning in the
`event of an AC power disruption. Second is the bullhorn power siren; the tiny 2-inch speaker in the controller works
`fine for providing you with audible cues when operating the unit but won't do much to scare a thief or alert the
`neighbors. Also, the Keepsafer horn lacks its own batteries. That matters little in an apartment, but renders it
`vulnerable when appropriately mounted outside a house.
`
` No alarm system deters a truly professional burglar intent on parting you and your possessions. However, most
`burglars are bunglers looking for an easy hit. Alarms discourage amateurs. The Schlage Keepsafer Plus works
`particularly well in an apartment. Most building owners would not appreciate their tenants inviting ADT to custom
`wire an apartment, and most tenants would not make that permanent investment in a temporary dwelling. You can
`remove the Schlage system and take it with you.
`
` With its professional system, ADT may have the edge in home security. The ADT installers managed to mount the
`various sensors with totally invisible wiring and without damaging my freshly painted walls or lifting the carpet. (ADT
`also advertises a professionally installed wireless system, but the sales representative I dealt with said I wouldn't be
`happy with it.) Choosing a wired system, however, involves a major commitment. ADT advertises a basic package
`for about $1,000, but the optional extras easily add up to double that. Also, if you want to change anything, you pay
`for an expensive service call.
`
` If a piece of the Schlage system fails after the one-year warranty, you can toss it out and buy a new one, because
`most are modestly priced. You can add to it for only the cost of the parts. The Schlage Keepsafer Plus offers the
`first practical, affordable wireless alarm system in a field formerly dominated by complex, difficult-to-install, wired
`professional systems.
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`Grouped around the control console of the Schlage Keepsafer Plus home security system are these components
`(clockwise from top, left): an area detector, power siren, smoke alarm monitor, automatic dialer, bedside alarm and
`medical pendant alarm, all optional equipment; remote control; optional glass break detector with transmitter; and
`two transmitter-sensor sets.
`
`Know-how.
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`Graphic
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`
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`PHOTO GRAPHIC
`PHOTO: Grouped around the control console of the Schlage Keepsafer
`Plus home security system are these components: an area detector,
`power siren, smoke alarm monitor, automatic dialer, bedside alarm and
`medical pendant alarm, all optional equipment; remote control;
`optional glass break detector with transmitter; and two ransmitter-
`sensor sets.
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`GRAPHIC: Keepsafer Plus home security system. Chicago Tribune
`Graphic; Source: Schlage Lock Co.
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`Classification
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`Language: ENGLISH
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`Subject: SECURITY & ALARM SYSTEMS (96%); HOME SECURITY (90%); TRADE SHOWS (52%)
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`Company: AMERICAN CO LLOID CO (58%); AMERICAN CO LLOID CO (58%)
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`Industry: SECURITY & ALARM SYSTEMS (96%); SMOKE DETECTORS (89%); AUDIO & VIDEO EQUIPMENT
`(78%); REMOTE CONTROL DEVICES (78%); CONSUMER ELECTRONICS MFG (78%); CONSUMER
`ELECTRONICS (78%); SECURITY SYSTEMS SERVICES (76%); MOTION DETECTORS (76%); POWER TOOLS
`(74%); HAND & POWER TOOLS (72%); TRADE SHOWS (52%)
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`Geographic: UNITED STATES (92%); TAIWAN (70%)
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`Load-Date: October 30, 1993
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`End of Document
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