Door Sensors

mummer43

Well-known member
Jul 31, 2016
191
Lehigh Valley, PA
We are building a pool that will be fenced on three sides and will be accessible from the house. There are three doors that lead into the pool area and we want to put sensors on the doors that sound a chime or alarm whenever these doors are opened. I would like them to be easily disabled fo times when there will be people constantly opening these doors and the pool area is physically monitored such as parties. I'd also like the sensors to be as physically unobtrusive as possible. Any recommendations?
 
Most put up inexpensive alarms held on with double sided tape and remove them after the inspection. Pretty much everyone that has installed a pool with access from the house has a few of these collecting dust somewhere.
 
Most put up inexpensive alarms held on with double sided tape and remove them after the inspection. Pretty much everyone that has installed a pool with access from the house has a few of these collecting dust somewhere.

I have small children and would like to arm the doors at night so that I can sleep better. Yes, there will be a time when they are no longer needed but I will definitely use them for a few years. I've seen the small ones that you stick to the doors and I was wondering if anyone found any they really like.
 
It might seem like overkill, but how about the basic Ring alarm kit?
You would not need to add annual monitoring if you just want to be notified, and you would have notifications and control from your phone as well as the keypad.
They have the basic kit on sale as a refurb for $100 on Amazon, but you might even get a better price on the Gen2 model (smaller sensors) during Prime week starting on Monday.
 
What requirements does your municipality have for safety systems for entry to the pool area? Be sure to check that.
 
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It might seem like overkill, but how about the basic Ring alarm kit?
You would not need to add annual monitoring if you just want to be notified, and you would have notifications and control from your phone as well as the keypad.
They have the basic kit on sale as a refurb for $100 on Amazon, but you might even get a better price on the Gen2 model (smaller sensors) during Prime week starting on Monday.

I was actually looking at that system. I was also looking at the Simplisafe system as well. I do not want to pay for monitoring, but it seems like you can use the basic plan to self monitor. All I need are the doors to alarm when they are opened so I hear an audible tone. I'd love to be able to just control it through my phone.
 
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I was actually looking at that system. I was also looking at the Simplisafe system as well. I do not want to pay for monitoring, but it seems like you can use the basic plan to self monitor. All I need are the doors to alarm when they are opened so I hear an audible tone. I'd love to be able to just control it through my phone.

I have had a simplisafe system for several years for this purpose and don't use monitoring. I mainly like that the base station ( which has batteries also ) can be moved around. If I am home alone I take it to the bedroom but 99% of the time it stays in the kitchen and chimes loud enough when any door is opened.
Before this I had a basic door alarm I got at Home depot years ago, It was loud but wasn't the smallest thing :)

I have also tried wyze sense, it works great if you have your phone close by
 

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I have had a simplisafe system for several years for this purpose and don't use monitoring. I mainly like that the base station ( which has batteries also ) can be moved around. If I am home alone I take it to the bedroom but 99% of the time it stays in the kitchen and chimes loud enough when any door is opened.
Before this I had a basic door alarm I got at Home depot years ago, It was loud but wasn't the smallest thing :)

I have also tried wyze sense, it works great if you have your phone close by

Do you need to use the keypad to set it or can you enable and disable it using the app?
 
Do you need to use the keypad to set it or can you enable and disable it using the app?
Mine is an older system and I have to pay to use the app. I can use the key pad to disable the alarm but the normal ding is enough for me.
Also I can use a usb stick to change the config and make the ding louder or quieter.
 
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With Ring, you can enable push alerts to phone for individual sensors in addition to the chime.

Ring professional monitoring is only $100 per year and includes 60 days video storage for Ring cameras.
 
I have the little ge stick ups on all my doors & windows up high (out of small kid’s reach) you can set them to chime, alarm, or off. I have one ge keypad one on my carport door so i can arm it when i leave if i want.
They’re pretty dang loud. I had them before i had a pool (about 8 yrs) most of them still have their original batteries. I have my windows set to alarm & the most used doors set to ding. I got them when my kids were really small incase they wandered outside w/out my knowledge.

Different municipalities have different requirements for your windows & doors that lead to the pool. Some require specific products.

Glad you’re thinking about safety & being proactive.
I prefer them to at least chime when you have a get together with children involved (as annoying as it may be) so you & other guests are aware of who is in & out.
Unfortunately our friend’s little girl slipped out at a time like this w/ many adults around & no one noticed until it was too late. A door alarm may have saved her.
 
Does it make an audible tone on your phone or just send a push alert?

With IFTTT you would have a lot of possibilities, do you have Alexa smart speakers? You can even get their smart lights/switches to turn on when sensors activate - maybe have it turn on a radio with loud volume to alert you.

You can pop down your local HD and pick up a starter bundle for $70 and play with it, it really is a great deal even if you don't end up using the sensors - the camera alone is worth it.

 
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With IFTTT you would have a lot of possibilities, do you have Alexa smart speakers? You can even get their smart lights/switches to turn on when sensors activate - maybe have it turn on a radio with loud volume to alert you.

You can pop down your local HD and pick up a starter bundle for $70 and play with it, it really is a great deal even if you don't end up using the sensors - the camera alone is worth it.

Wyze is a cool company, just released a smart thermostat for $50!!
You can set you phone to chime also.
I will suggest if your worried about young kids get them swim lessons. Sounds silly but good chance they could fall in and they teach them how not to panic but swim to the side.
 
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Wyze is a cool company, just released a smart thermostat for $50!!
You can set you phone to chime also.
I will suggest if your worried about young kids get them swim lessons. Sounds silly but good chance they could fall in and they teach them how not to panic but swim to the side.

They will definitely have swim lessons! Since we will have the pool accessible from the house I want multiple layers of safety. Swim lessons will be the final layer if everything else fails.

On a related note, are there any water disturbance sensors that are worth looking into?
 
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water sensor are prone to false positives, from things like wind.

One issue with your desire, is that most door/window sensor are deisnged to reside indoors, not outdoors. Doesnt mean there aren't solutions, but there will be more limits.

If this were my house, I would probably not put fence gate sensor in, unless I coudl find some cheap options. I would go with a motion sensor out by the pool. You coudl go with a camera if you wanted, but just a motion sensor would work. I would get a Hubitat (or Smart things) based system, and you can create lots of options for your whole home. You can set up rules to trigger puch notifications to yoru phone if the motion sensor rings, or even have a siren make noise in the house. But along with the hubitat system doing motion, you can get smart light switches, light bulbs, door locks, etc. You can set up rules to lock doors at ceratin time. Turn lights on and off at certain times. Use your phone to determine if your home is occupied or not to change settings. These systems can be controlled via your phone, and require no monthly fees.
 

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