Alarm system

Submitted by john.pompei on

john.pompei's picture

I am considering installing a wireless auto dial alarm system on Ashanti. It will consist of the control panel, hatch and companionway sensors a PIR movement sensor and external siren with flashing LED's. It will have a remote control and can be accessed via an APP.

The system I'm considering is from Easy Alarms and cost £200. http://www.easyalarmsdirect.com I don't really think that the siren & lights will be much use as they cannot be kept much out of reach on a yacht but the auto dial facility via a pay as you go SIM card would seem to be a good idea.

My main reason for wanting an alarm is that during the winter Ashanti is kept ashore in the locked yard of a business premises which has nobody around at nights and weekends. I kept my previous boat there for many years without incident, ASHANTI has more built in electronics and is worth considerably more so I think spending £200 for a bit more peace of mind could be worthwhile.

Do any members have a system of this type ?

John Pompei

ASHANTI 2008 M

6 Comments

John,

Submitted by dave.newton on

John,

I would suggest mounting the siren inside the boat.
External alarm sounders are just considered a nuisance and get ignored anyway.
Internally they have been shown to dramatically reduce the amount of time a thief will spend tolerating the noise and so may reduce the amount taken/damaged.
External dummy sounders achieve the same deterrent benefits.

This of course applies equally to houses and cars too.

Dave.

—

Dave Newton Sailbadthesinner

john.pompei's picture

Thanks Dave ,

Submitted by john.pompei on

Thanks Dave ,

Im sure your right I will fit the siren inside - lets hope it never go's off.

Regards,

John

Hi John 

Submitted by mark.paget on

Hi John

you can get little trackers for £10-£30 off ebay which have a motion sensor in i.e. shock sensor, they also do Geo Fencing so if your boat goes out of a pre determined grid you get a txt on your phone, great if your on a swingmooring !! they run of USB so very little power is required and the can be hidden very easily. Plus you can replay the days sailing route back on your computer. I just bung a pay as you go sim in. model i use is TK102B

I also use a webcam with a smart phone app so i can also see when the tide is up or down, downside is when i am back behind my desk i wish i was out sailing.

Mark.

john.pompei's picture

Thanks Mark,

Submitted by john.pompei on

Thanks Mark,

Its an interesting option, I'm going to lok at those items you suggest.

As for being desk bound I know what you mean,

Regards,

John

Hello John

Submitted by stuart.mcwilliam on

Hello John

I, too, have been looking at boat alarm systems --- our Mac is on a swinging mooring at Hythe.

As power will be limited by what the solar panels can provide, it was the limiting factor.

I looked closely at two systems, MaxMon.co.uk and skippersmate.co.uk.

After a lot of thought, I installed the MaxMon app on a spare android phone and it works well, providing alarm emails in response to parameters I've set. It also emails me a photo every day to make sure all's well with the old girl. A little fiddly to set up but if you read the instructions carefully and from start to finish (which I didn't) it's no big deal. And there are no subscription fees to worry about, either.

You can extend the MaxMon system to trigger sounders etc, but I haven't done this yet.

Hope this helps

Stu

john.pompei's picture

Thanks Stu,

Submitted by john.pompei on

Thanks Stu,

I can appreciate that the system you have installed suits your location, I was wondering about the power consumption of the alarm, but as I mainly want it for my winter storage ashore, and I have mains nearby its probably not a problem.

Regards, John