Home security guides

Draw the floor plan first. Mark every exterior door, including the garage-to-house door and any basement or side entry. Mark ground-floor windows a person could reach without a ladder. Then draw the path someone would take from each entry to the places valuables are. Sensors go on the openings and across those paths, not evenly around the house.

Sensor placement rules that prevent false alarms. Motion sensors should not face windows with direct sun, heating vents, or fireplaces, and should be mounted so pets stay below the detection zone if you have animals. Door contacts need a tight alignment gap — a loose fit on a door that flexes in wind is a recurring nuisance trip. The ASU research attributes roughly half of false alarms to user error and names pets and open doors or windows at arming among the causes.

Communication path. A panel that reports over your home internet alone loses the ability to signal when the internet fails, which is also exactly when a determined intruder might have cut it. Ask whether cellular backup is included, whether it carries a monthly fee, and confirm during testing by unplugging your router and verifying the panel still reports.

Cameras. Mount at a height where faces are captured rather than the top of a head, cover the approach as well as the door, and avoid pointing across neighboring property where local rules or HOA covenants may restrict it. Confirm night performance in place, not from the box. And check retention: a camera whose free tier keeps footage for a short window may have already deleted the clip you need by the time you look.

How to choose

Cover doors before windows, back before front

ASU's research identifies side and back doors as common forced-entry points. That is where the first sensors belong.

Keep motion sensors away from sun, vents and pets

These are the classic false alarm sources, and false alarms cost you fines and dispatch priority.

Verify the backup communication path yourself

Unplug the router during testing and confirm the panel still reports. Do not take it on trust.

Mount cameras at face height on the approach

A camera looking down at the top of a hat is evidence of nothing. Cover the walk-up, not just the doorstep.

Give each household member their own code

It creates a usable log and lets you revoke access for one person without changing everything.