Wired vs Wireless Home Security Sensors -- Which Is Better?

When you're choosing home security sensors, the most important consideration is this: will it keep me and my family safe? The good news is that most security systems will work to protect your household from threats. So from there, you can start to look at other factors. Wireless systems have become more advanced and more affordable in recent years, and they are well worth considering...but are they better than traditional wired systems?

With wired home security sensors, wires are run from the system's control panel to each sensor, wherever it is placed. IN order for them to work effectively, you need to create a closed circuit. This is why, if a thief can access and cut your wires, they can disable your entire system. For this reason, wired systems need to be professionally installed, to make sure the wires are both placed properly throughout your home and that they are hidden and cannot be tampered with.

A wireless system, on the other hand, can be installed by a do-it-yourself mom or dad quite easily. There are no wires to run, so you can buy the system and have it set up in just a few hours on a weekend.

Instead of wires, all of the sensors are connected to the system via radio signals. Because of this, you can cover a much larger range with one system than you can with a wireless system. If you need to cover a property area that is over several hundred feet, you can easily add more sensors that have their own radio signal. There's really no limit to how large a range you can protect.

Security sensors are useless if they don't transmit properly, and wireless models are designed to penetrate and travel through a variety of surfaces that are commonly found throughout your home, such as marble and granite. It doesn't matter what your home has been constructed from, as the signal will travel through even the toughest building materials. And unlike wired systems, you don't need to drill or cut into anything to install them.

Wireless systems run on batteries, so unlike wired systems they do not require your home's power grid to work. A wired system may have battery back-up, but they do not tend to last as long as the back-up's in a wireless system. A wireless system will also remind you to check your batteries often, so you're never stuck with dead batteries.

But perhaps the most valuable benefit of wired systems is that they will alert you to any problems via your mobile phone. You don't need to rely on your telephone lines (which, like security system lines, can be cut) to contact your monitoring company either...the system can use cellular signals. This means that your system will work even if your phone lines are down, or there is a power outage. Additionally, many wireless models allow you to arm them with a remote that you keep on your keychain, which doubles as a personal panic button when you're away from home.

Wireless home security sensors have more features and benefits than wired systems do. Although both types of systems will work, if you want ease of use and unlimited protection, go wireless!