Someone knowledgeable about home alarm systems

[Alpo]

On TV shows, they open the door, and the keypad is on the wall right next to the door. Which, to me, makes sense.

 

In my mother's house the keypad was three rooms and 25 feet from the door.

 

And I just sort of idly wondered, just now, why it was so far away. It was actually right next to the back door.

 

So my question is, is there a standard spot where they put the keypads? Or do they ask the householder where he would like it? Maybe it's by the front door on the TV shows because that way they don't have to have another set?

 

Occasionally, on a TV show, the keypad will be outside. I remember an NCIS where Tony bet that he cy figure out the disarm code before Ziva could pick the door lock.

 

Do they really put them outside? While having them outside sort of makes sense - it's like the key to the deadbolt. You shut the door and then you set the alarm. You turn the alarm off before you go in the house. That makes sense. But, having it outside would also let people play with it and possibly figure out your code, with as much time as they needed to do it. So looking at it like that, having it outside is idiotic.

[Sedalia Dave]

My house has 3 keypads. One by the door into the garage that is also close to two other doors that lead outside, one near the door that leads to the porch off the master bedroom and one near the guest  bedroom area off the back of the garage.  There is not one near the front door of the house.

 

 My guess is the installer puts them in the locations nearest the doors that the home owner uses the most.

[Stump Water]

At my house you exit the garage via the side, walk-in door, traverse the breezeway to the side door of the house which puts you in the laundry/mud room.  There is a panel next to each the aforementioned doors (inside of course) and one in the master bedroom.  No panel by the front door or either of the back doors because we don't use those when we're coming and going.  

 

I've never seen an alarm keypad outside.  I'll guess what you were seeing was an electronic keypad (lock).  Could that be tied into an alarm system?  Probably so, but I  wouldn't want to.

 

 

[Alpo]

There's another keypad by the fuse box. At the end of the hall. Where you can go straight or left or right to go into the bedrooms.

 

That makes sense. I'm going to bed, so instead of setting the alarm in the living room, and then running down the hallway to make it to bed before the motion detector goes off, I casually walk down the hallway, set the alarm and walk over and get in bed.

 

But what if I got to pee at 3:00 in the morning? I have to turn the alarm off so it doesn't go off as I walk to the bathroom?

[Tell Sackett SASS 18436]

Our keypad is in the room farthest from the front door.

That is where the cell phone signal was strongest!!

We use a remote fob to arm & disarm the system.

[Stump Water]

On my system you can "arm away" or "arm stay".  The latter doesn't arm the motion sensors.

[Calamity Kris]

46 minutes ago, Sedalia Dave said:

My house has 3 keypads. One by the door into the garage that is also close to two other doors that lead outside, one near the door that leads to the porch off the master bedroom and one near the guest  bedroom area off the back of the garage.  There is not one near the front door of the house.

 

 My guess is the installer puts them in the locations nearest the doors that the home owner uses the most.

 

We have one keypad in the master bedroom and one in the laundry room, just off the garage.  That is the door we come in the most. 

[Trailrider #896]

5 hours ago, Stump Water said:

On my system you can "arm away" or "arm stay".  The latter doesn't arm the motion sensors.

Ditto, except we mainly leave it turned off now that we have four-pawed, detector that responds to a lot of sounds we can't hear. The "alarm" goes off loud enough to wake even me, who is partially deaf! He knows the difference between my car, my wife's car and neghboring vehicles! Also detects the presence of squirrels and birds!