Beyond Driveways – Considerations for Putting Wireless Driveway Alarms to Work

Wireless driveway alarms may have been created to let you know when someone is coming up the driveway, but the technology has advanced to the point where driveway alerts serve many different purposes. Choosing the best driveway alarm system for your needs is a matter of identifying your needs and figuring out which of the many available options will best need them. These questions can help you figure out which features you need in driveway sensors and driveway alerts.

How Far Away from the Transmitter Do You Want the Receiver?

The transmitter is the part of the alarm system that you put in the driveway – or other area – you want to monitor. The receiver is the part that sounds an alert, and is usually inside your home or business. Each driveway alarm system has an effective transmission range, from as low as 75 feet to as much as 2 miles. The distances are generally calculated as “line of sight,” and any obstructions between the transmitter and receiver, including trees, buildings, hills and even the walls of the house, will reduce that range. It’s always better to overestimate the distance than to underestimate it.

What Do You Want to Detect?

The different types of driveway sensors are each best at detecting different types of objects in motion. If you only want to be alerted when a vehicle comes up a driveway, for example, a pressure hose might be your best option. If you want to detect any vehicles moving through or around a wider area, magnetic sensors give you more coverage and are extremely sensitive, but they’ll only detect metal masses. You won’t be bothered if a deer or cow wanders by the sensor. If, on the other hand, you want to detect any motion – pedestrian, animal or vehicle – through an area, a driveway alarm system with infrared sensors is the way to go. Within the infrared sector, you can choose between narrow beam detection – ideal if you want to know when someone or something passes a specific point on your driveway – and fan detection, which will detect any motion within a broad area.

How Many Areas Do You Want to Monitor?

Many wireless driveway receivers can accept input from multiple transmitters, so if you want to monitor several areas, choose one of those. The better quality ones can even distinguish between the transmitters and alert you with a different tone for each one so you know which area is being breached. There are even wireless driveway alarms that allow you to record your own voice alert so you don’t have to remember whether the door chime was for the driveway or the storeroom. The receiver will simply tell you in plain English (or whatever language you choose!)

You can learn about these and other important considerations from a supplier of alert systems like +Wireless Driveway Alarms Biz. Take the time to research a bit so you’re sure to find exactly the right driveway alert system for your needs.