Types Of Home Motion Detectors

With so many selections of motion detectors to choose from, it doesn’t take much to get lost in deciding which to buy. So, take time to learn the fundamentals before spending your money on a home motion detector.

The most standard home motion detector is a photo-sensor apparatus. This equipment emits a light beam that triggers the alarm whenever the beam is obstructed. This type of home motion detector is most effective in outdoors and entranceways where routine crossing of motions will trigger the beam to switch on the alarm or produce a sound. A person, an animal, or even a dry leaf that was blown by the wind is a few examples of motions that could cause the light beam to be blocked; thus the alarm gets triggered.

For the simple purpose of warding off intruders, most homeowners elect to have outdoor lights automatically turned on rather than disturbing the neighbors by setting their home motion detectors to create an alarming sound. Of course once it has been activated, it will also turn off automatically when there is no longer any motion to be detected.

Photo-sensor based motion detectors are very effective for use inside the home as well. Some homeowners set these up to cover large living areas such as family rooms, or other rooms where most traffic through the house is likely to pass. This provides extra protection for your home from a burglar in the case where they manage to get by your other alarm protection systems.

A more sophisticated home motion detector is the passive infrared (PIR) detector. Opposite of the photo-sensor, this high-end piece of equipment does not emit any light beam energy on its own. Rather, it detects infrared energy emitted in the environment. What this means is that instead of detecting movements by the interruption of light beam sensors, passive infrared motion detectors are designed to only detect the presence of heat equivalent to human body temperature before it triggers. What this also means is that you, as homeowners, are less likely to be woken up in the middle of the night because of a false alarm caused by your own pet.