In the northern reaches of the nation during the winter months, homeowners are typically used to accommodating particularly cold weather with measures such as running the faucet at a low flow for hours on end to prevent frozen pipes.
There is good reason for this, though it isn't exactly "green".
Frozen pipes can cause an enormous repair bill in a very short time.
Particularly when the homeowner is away and doesn't realize what's going on, a basement can easily become a flooded mess in a few minutes.
For homeowners, this creates a nightmare of repair bills, structural, sanitary and plumbing related.
Home security systems today often have the option to add features that are designed to reduce and, hopefully, eliminate the damage from such incidents.
Freeze and flood sensors are well worth adding to your system.
A freeze sensor does just what the name implies.
Should the heating system shut down or otherwise malfunction on a cold day, the reduced temperature will trigger the alarm and alert the monitoring service that there is trouble.
This could happen for many reasons aside from faulty heating.
Perhaps you forgot to arm the system and an busy burglar happens to have the door open while they're looting your house.
A change in environment is a clue that something is not right in the home.
Whether it's a mechanical or a criminal issue, it's good if the alarm company knows so they can lend assistance.
After all, that's what they're there for.
Flood sensors are a great way to ensure that a burst pipe doesn't create a calamity.
These devices, connected directly to the alarm system, offer the same sort of security as does the freeze sensor equipment but it adds another criteria by which the alarm can measure the security condition of the house.
Saving your belongings from water damage is well worth the cost of adding this feature.
Other devices can be added that monitor for household hazards such as carbon monoxide, smoke and fire.
These devices offer so much security on so many levels that there really isn't a compelling reason not to add them to your overall home security plan.
Home security is much more than it used to be.
While alarm companies have always done a good job of protecting property against crime, today they can help protect it against any number of environmental and weather-related disasters.
Many of these situations are disastrous because they get out of control before they are even discovered.
With around the clock monitoring, this is virtually impossible which means that the risk to the homeowner's investment in their house is greatly reduced.
Good alarm companies will have this technology available and will be more than willing to professionally install it for you.
If you find that this is not the case with your alarm company, you may want to consider a different vendor.
After all, security means safety on many different levels, not just deterring thieves from robbing your property.