I had an old 2Gig alarm system installed by an alarm company over 10 years ago. Many of the sensors stopped working, even after changing batteries, causing the system to keep alerting with faults. Getting the alarm company to replace the faulty sensors cost me hundreds, and I didn’t want to keep paying for that. I asked them to disable the faulty sensors, but that left gaps in the system. I was paying $45 a month to self-monitor through alarm.com, which seemed too high. I didn’t want to go with Simplisafe or Ring because I’d heard they could be easily jammed.
I wasn’t able to install a wired system by myself due to the distance between some sensors and the control panel, so I decided to do it on my own to have control over the system and replace sensors as needed. My goal was to avoid central monitoring but still have features like remote arm/disarm and notifications. Thanks to advice from this community, I went with a Qolsys IQ 4 panel and PowerG sensors.
There were a few installation hiccups, but it was wireless, and with the help of this forum, I got it set up. I bought my system from alarmgrid.com and decided to self-monitor through alarmsystemstore.com, reducing my monthly cost to $13.95. I probably saved a good amount on equipment by going DIY instead of hiring a company.
Just wanted to thank everyone here for their advice and encouragement. If you’re considering doing it yourself, it’s definitely possible!
MegWhitgal said:
You definitely saved money; companies will charge more than retail plus labor.
How big is your place? Maybe add a keypad and water sensors to protect against leaks.
Our house is fairly large. I asked my partner if we should add a keypad in the bedroom (we used to have one), but he wasn’t interested. We might add one later. Not sure where a water detector would go, though. There are potential water sources all over the place—three bathrooms, kitchen, laundry. So, it could get expensive. But thanks for the tip!
@Landen
I’d suggest starting with areas like your furnace, air conditioner condenser, and water heater, then maybe place sensors under sinks and behind toilets on each floor. If you’re not home and a water sensor triggers, it’s essential to have a way to shut off your water remotely to limit damage. Without that, the sensor alone isn’t very helpful—you’ll know about the leak but can’t do much to stop it.
If you have a phone app, you might not need an extra keypad. Save the money and add extra sensors instead. We’ve been seeing break-ins happen on the 2nd floor of larger homes, since that area often lacks sensors.