Security tips for homes and summer houses left empty for a long time

Why is the risk of an empty house different?

When an alarm goes off in a lived-in house, either you hear it or your neighbor does. In an empty house, the siren sounds, stops and nobody may notice. A burglar knows this too. A house where the shutters have been closed for months, the garden is neglected and advertising flyers pile up at the door tells anyone looking from outside that nobody comes.

Burglary is not the only risk in an empty house. A burst water pipe or a leaking tank can cause damage down to the floor below before you return. A fault in the electrical installation can grow unnoticed. That is why a system set up for an empty house should be planned to notify you of these events as well, in addition to the burglar alarm.

In Şanlıurfa, vineyard houses, summer houses around Halfeti and Birecik, and family homes in villages stay empty for most of the year. Many of these houses also have no internet subscription, which directly affects how the system will notify you.

How will the alarm reach you?

The communication module lets the alarm reach you. A SIM card is fitted to the GSM module, and it calls you or sends a message when the alarm goes off. An internet module is connected to the modem and sends a notification to the phone app. If a summer house has no internet, GSM is the only option. If there is internet, using both together keeps one working when the other is cut off.

Do not forget the credit or the bill of the GSM line. If the line is cut off, the system works but cannot notify you. Some panels send you a test message at set intervals; if this message does not arrive, you know there is a problem with the connection. Have this feature turned on.

Also decide who the alarm will notify. Your phone alone may not be enough. Adding the number of a relative or neighbor who lives near the house as a second contact lets someone look in on the house while you are away.

Expert note: Before leaving the house, arm the alarm, trigger a sensor yourself and see that the notification reaches your phone. If the notification does not arrive, you will have found the problem before leaving home.

What happens if the power goes out?

In rural areas and summer-house complexes, power cuts can last longer. The backup battery in the alarm panel keeps the system running through the cut. How long the battery lasts depends on the number of connected sensors, the siren and the communication module. For an empty house, this duration should be calculated at installation and, if needed, a larger-capacity battery chosen.

Many panels can send separate notifications when the power goes out and when it comes back. When you receive a notification of a long outage, you need to think about the food in the fridge, the water pump and the combi boiler. This notification alone does not prevent burglary, but it tells you that something is wrong at home.

If there is also a camera at home, a separate uninterruptible power supply can be considered for the recorder and the modem. Otherwise, when the power goes out the alarm works but no camera image comes through.

Sensors to add alongside the burglar alarm

Sensors that detect events other than burglary can also be connected to the same alarm panel. In an empty house these are often at least as useful as the burglar alarm.

These sensors are defined on the panel as 24-hour zones. That means they work even when the alarm is not armed, and even when you are at home. A water leak sensor is placed on the floor, at the point where water will collect first; a sensor hidden behind a cabinet is late until the water reaches it. A smoke detector connected to the alarm means you also get a notification when nobody is home. A battery-powered standalone smoke detector only warns with its own sound, and in an empty house nobody hears it.

• Water leak sensor: next to the bathroom, under the kitchen sink, the combi boiler and the washing machine.
• Smoke detector: around the electrical panel and the kitchen, an alarm-connected model.
• Temperature sensor: to protect the pipes in houses at risk of freezing in winter.
• Exterior door and garage door contacts: including the garden shed and outbuildings.
• Glass break detector: for living rooms with large windows and sunrooms.

Is a camera necessary?

The alarm tells you something happened; the camera shows what happened. When an alarm notification arrives from a distant house, you can look at the image from your phone and tell whether someone is really inside, or whether a door blown open by the wind set off the alarm. This makes it easier to decide whether to set out in the middle of the night.

The camera also needs the internet. In summer houses without an internet subscription, a modem with a mobile line can be used. In that case, instead of constant live viewing, recording and notification only when there is motion are set; this keeps mobile data use at a reasonable level. The recorder needs to be placed out of sight in a locked spot; if a burglar sees the recorder, they can take it away.

What to do before leaving home

Small habits matter as much as the technical system. Turning on a lamp for a few hours in the evening with a timer socket gives the impression that the house is not empty. Agreeing with a neighbor to collect the mail and flyers prevents a pile-up at the door. Closing the main water valve limits the damage considerably if a pipe bursts.

Saving holiday posts on social media until you return is also a precaution. Leave the house key with someone you trust and set up the alarm code for them as a separate user. That way you can see in the event log when that person enters the house.

Maintenance at the start of the season

In a system that has not been used for months, the batteries of the wireless sensors may have run low, insects may have nested in the outdoor siren's housing, and the lenses of the outdoor sensors may be covered in dust. On the first day you open the summer house, test all the sensors one by one in test mode and check the battery warnings. Also make a note of the backup battery's age.

Desa Bilişim prepares a plan for empty houses in which the alarm, camera and notifications work together. In places with no internet, we examine the GSM and mobile modem options on site and write them into your quote.

Frequently asked