How A DIY Home Security Alarm
Protects The Perimeter

So, what is perimeter security?

And more importantly, how does it work?

Think of your home security alarm as an electrical circuit that surrounds your home.

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As long as the circuit remains in tact, the electricity in that circuit will continue to flows all the way around your home.

If you think about it…

A home security alarm is nothing more than hardware components that are connected together to establish an electrical circuit around the perimeter of your home.

Electric current flows across the two sensors.

In a hardwired DIY alarm system, the electric circuit is created using wired door and window sensors.

In a wireless DIY alarm system, the circuit is (of course) created using wireless door and window sensors.

They run on batteries and use radio frequency signals to communicate with the home base panel.

Hybrid systems use a combination of both.

Now...

How do these electrical circuit home security alarms work?

Think about every time you want to turn on the lights on in a room.

What do you do?

You simply flick the wall switch on.

Click, and the lights are on.

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With a home security alarm, the switch is turned on when someone tries to break into a home by forcing open a door or a window.

How?

By interrupting the magnetic connection between the two sensors that are attached to that door or window.

That action interrupts the flow of electricity of the entire perimeter alarm, which triggers the alarm’s siren.

That’s the basic idea behind it.

Now…

Depending on the perimeter alarm’s design, the electrical circuit can be classified as either a closed circuit system or an open circuit system.

Then arming their home alarm system.

At this point the circuit is considered closed (or complete).

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Electrical current will loop continuously around this closed circuit from beginning to end, across all sensors, as long as all the doors and windows remain shut.

The moment a door or window is forced open, the sensors get separated.

The closed circuit is now broken (or open).

The electricity stops flowing.

This trips the perimeter alarm’s siren, causing it to sound.

Open circuit systems - An open circuit system works differently.

When all the doors and windows are closed and the alarm is armed, the circuit is considered open.

The moment a door or window is forced open, the sensors are separated and the circuit becomes closed or complete triggering the siren to soundly.

Which is better?

Burglars can easily disable wired open circuit systems. All they have to do is prevent the circuit from closing by cutting the right wires in hardwired systems.

The circuit remains open, the alarm is not tripped, the siren does not sound.

Generally speaking, open circuit systems may not be your best choice.

In a closed circuit system, the control panel handles the triggering and sounding of the alarm.

A wired control panel is usually installed in a closet or in the basement hidden away from sight, where it will be difficult for a burglar to find and tamper with.

The siren will sound, and scare off the burglar and keep sounding until it is reset.

DIY closed circuit systems are generally a better choice when considering a perimeter home security alarm.

They make for better perimeter security.

The underlying design of a perimeter alarm starts to get a little more sophisticated when we add more components to better protect our homes.

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