My husband left to work around 5:45am and at 6:05 I get woken up by the beeping sound of the alarm (the one that you get when you open the door), I think it could be my husband but a few more seconds go by and starts beeping faster (meaning the siren will go off any second now)...
We own a gun but honesty I don't even know how to use it (lol)... Still laying in bed freaked out by what happened... Looking back I did everything wrong... I turned off the alarm and went downstairs to check, unarmed, 4 months pregnant with 2 kids sleeping... Probably not a good thing..
Called the alarm company and they can't tell me which sensor went off... Didn't wanted to call my husband because he would drive like a maniac home and probably get a heart attack on the way...
Anyway... All the doors were properly locked and everything looked good, not sure what happened but I am still a little shaken...
If your system has the wireless sensors, it could be that the batteries need a change. Mine is hardwired, but that didn't prevent a mouse inside a wall from chewing a glass-sensor wire one time. On mine, the keypad spells out what sensor tripped - we actually had a false alarm for fire! Fortunately, I was home and was able to answer when they called, meaning that they could tell the fire department to not respond.
Couple of things that could help - get an additional keypad installed in your bedroom. That way you can assess what's going on from there. Re the gun - bad idea unless you are a) comprehensively trained to use one in a high-stress situation and b) nothing else really matters but a! I live in a very rural county, and the only gun our sheriff thinks is acceptable for home defense is a shotgun - there is nothing scarier than the sound of a shell being racked, and you don't have to aim them much to be effective.
Gahh! I have nightmares about that happening, so I can imagine how freaked out that would make you! I bet the alarm company can't tell you because the siren never officially went off (our company can tell you what set if off only if the alarm went off. We bought the extra special monitor for our bedroom that says what set if off it on the screen). Were all the doors completely latched shut? We've had the alarm go off because whoever shut the door last didn't make it latch shut and thus it went off a couple hours after we left home.
At my husband's previous house that he owned before we got married, one of the sensors was defective and would go off every couple months for no reason. It took them FOREVER to figure out that THAT was the problem (they kept blaming it on fans moving a curtain, etc.). So maybe it was the system not working correctly (??)
Oh - I forgot one thing - that goes back to rural settings, LOL! We have an infrared detector in our living room that catches anything warm moving about (we only set this for vacation time). If it's set too sensitive, something as small as a mouse can set it off!
ICUwishing: That's what we have, a shot gun. But I am so against guns that ai never paid attention to my husband when he was showing me... I guess it's time for me to get some training, because I would not know what to do if it was the real thing!!!
I will check on the batteries, we had them for a little over a year, so it could be it! Thanks for the input.
mccull83: I do have plenty of neighboors around, but since everything looks good, I don't want to knock on anybody's door unless is a real emergency... I think I am going to get a little bit more paranoid now everytime I am alone, but hopefully I can move on from this...
OMG I would have had a heart attack myself waiting to see if I heard anything (and what if I did?!?).
I don't have a gun and I wouldn't try to use it if I didn't know how (!!). I'd have to throw pillows and lamps at anyone trying to come up the stairs to get me!! OMG so scary to even think about...
Cielo, you're welcome! Like any technology, alarm systems need backups. Have you considered a dog? Surveys of burglars and other human vermin have shown that they're a lot more concerned about a noisy, protective dog than they are of anything else. Doesn't even have to be a big dog - just the type that won't shut up and has a strong bond with the family!
Elvislover324: That's my biggest problem! I didn't grab anything! I guess this was a good training drill for me and I will actually start thinking what should I do in case of something like this happening again.
The guys that installed our system said that even a spider, if it gets right up next to the sensor, can set it off because they're warm blooded. Just another thought
Another thing you may be interested in is outdoor motion sensor lights. One in the back of the house and one of the front. Lights can scare away criminals. Hopefully there was just a system malfunction or something like that.
ICUwishing: Can't have dogs My DD is allergic to dogs . I was thinking a big one and keep it in the backyard, but I feel terrible about that because it rains so much around here plus it gets cold too...
I too would recommend outdoor motion sensor lights...it scared away someone from a previous place that we lived one night...also get trained on how to use the gun...my DH has several but I don't know how to use any...and I do agree with the dog, although I know you said you cant have any...we have a protective little dog who barks at anything moving or even just odd sounds when DH is gone LOL
I was a manager of a credit union and in the middle of the night I get a call from the alarm company, 2:30 AM, that the alarm went off, I drove 20 miles round trip in the wee hours , emergency personnel were waiting for me , yep, a spider caused all the commotion.
This has happened to us before. If you have magnetic sensors stuck to the windows, some times the sticky wears off and they drop. Which sets the alarm off at a God foresaken hour.
On the doors with hardwired magnetic sensors sometimes the connecting wires work loose and that will also trip the alarm. Again at a God foresaken hour. Had that on our basement door.
We have the alarm system that beeps every time a window or door opens &, sometimes, the front or back door doesn't get shut properly & a strong breeze will push it open, setting off the beep & freaking me out. Luckily, I have dogs who bark at anybody they don't know & let me know when something's fishy.
My home alarm just went off!
Doesn't even have to be a big dog - just the type that won't shut up and has a strong bond with the family!
My DD is allergic to dogs 
