Is it very expensive to install a burglar alarm?

[HeadFairy]

We're moving to a new house in a few weeks (hopefully) and I haven't lived in a proper house for nearly 20 years, dh for nearly 30 years, we've always been in flats. I'm starting to feel a little nervous about being on the ground floor. I've always felt so secure being off the ground.

So anyway, I was thinking about a burglar alarm. Are they hideously expensive? Can you get ones you can put on at night - but that still allow you to get up and get a glass of water in the night without triggering it off?

[wobbegong]

They'll come round and give free no obligation quotes. Our two quotes came in at about £1000 for a smallish garden flat (so we didn't install one! Otherwise there would have been no holiday this year!) We put in a grille or two, a higher garden fence and some fancy window locks instead.

Some make their cash by charging only a few hundred to put it in, but then about £40 ish per month on a 36 month inescapable contract. It really did seem to all stack up.

Yes you can set different parts of your house at night, so you can still go through certain parts of the house. Or you can just get sensors at the doors and windows, rather than motion sensors covering particular rooms.

Interestingly our insurance would not have gone down if we had got an alarm- worth asking your home insurers?

HTH and good luck with the move.

[feedthegoat]

I think ours cost £450 about 18 months ago. Three of the sensors are pet sensitive so the cat doesn't set them off which cost slightly more.

You can set part of the system at night which means you can walk around upstairs. The annual servicing contract (which was optional) started at about £25 a year.

[kitsmummy]

We got ours for around £180 from B&Q. Totally easy to install, took DH just a few hours. It's wireless so there are no electrics involved, anyone can do it. At night we set it up so only downstairs is alarmed so we can still wander around upstairs, it's great, really put my mind at rest

[HeadFairy]

Oh thanks everyone... seems like they're not beyond the bounds of mortals... not sure I'll be using the same company as wobbegong though!

[wakeupeverybody]

What company did you use feedthegoat? We have a burglar alarm in our house already but need a new sensor and want to get it serviced- they have quoted £100/yr for this (4 bed house) so a bit more than yours!

[feedthegoat]

It's just a local one man company rather then one of the national companies so unlikely to be much use to you if not South Yorkshire based wakeupeverybody!. Don't know what the basic package consisted of as we'd already decided not to bother so did't pay much attention!

However, he did fit the alarm in our previous house and only charged us £25 to come and sort that one out when the back up battery went. It worked in his favour to be reasonably priced (as well as doing a good job!)in long run as we got him to do the new alarm when we moved and a friend also used him for a new alarm system.