recommend home security system

Can anyone advise on the above....house currently has nothing. Any recommendations for alarm system...idea of cost...level of disruption to install etc. Advice and opinions greatly appreciated.

Size of house? Number of windows/doors/rooms to be covered? Pre-wired or not? Do you want monitoring? A Dialler?

3 bed semi...front/back door...house has 6 windows (is there a need for upstairs windows to be alarmed?.
No pre wiring...therefore assume I need to go wireless..
Opinions welcome on monitoring....is it worth it?
A dialler?...not sure what this is..

Any thoughts on a dummy alarm (give the impression of alarm but not the headache of it actually going off esp if false alarm...as effective as the real thing with regards deterient??...

I am considering CCTV with motion light sensor at front and back....is this more effective than alarm....Just starting the research....don't know anything about alarms...cctv etc so advice from those who have systems in place is greatly appreciated.

Wireless will certainly be a lot less messy and quicker to install.

Many burglars gain access through upstairs windows, so yes, these need to be alarmed.

I recently put in a hybrid HKC alarm in my own place to replace a wired one. That allowed me to add wireless sensors in the garden shed and re-use the existing wired sensors. Siemens systems also get good reviews, but I believe these are more expensive.

A dialler (or digi) will dial one or more pre-set numbers with a pre-recorded message in the event of an activation. You can get land line or GSM diallers, the GSM variety are more expensive and will need an active SIM.

If you're going down the dummy alarm route, you'd be better off getting an actual bell box (SABB) and attaching a 12V supply to it so that the status LEDs blink. Looks far more convincing than the standard dummy boxes you can buy.

CCTV should be secondary to an alarm. A regular hoodie will render CCTV useless, also, burglars who are aware of the presence of CCTV are likely to go for the recorder.

Keep in mind that any company/person you hire to install alarm equipment must be registered with the . You are breaking the law if you hire someone who is not, with a fine upon conviction of up to €3,000 and/or a prison sentance of up to 12 months.