Getting the Most out of Your First Home Security System

This is a sponsored post for MONI Smart Security. All opinions are 100% my own. 

One time, my dad was painting the dining room when two police officers suddenly appeared inside the house. We had just moved into a new home with a security system and had not a single clue how to use it. My dad had pushed the window open for some air and a silent alarm went off, alerting the police. This happened not just once but twice before my parents decided to cut the service. We just couldn't figure out how to make a security system work for our family; we had too many false alarms. Fast forward to several decades later, I now have a home and three kids of my own and it's my desire to make our house a safe and secure place for my family to land. We want to be able to have worry-free holidays away and feel secure when we are at home. I'll be honest though, there was a little bit of an adjustment, but here are some tips on how we learned how to get the most out of our first home security system. 

Getting the Most out of Your First Home Security System

 1. Ease Into It

I couldn't believe how easy this home security system was to set up on our own. My twelve-year-old son was very excited about helping me activate the system and I took my time adapting to the new technology. We used the app until we felt comfortable with it {about four days} before enrolling the system with MONI Smart Security. 
There is nothing I love more than good customer service and a business that listens and adapts to the needs of the consumers, and I found that with MONI. After nearly 25 years in business, they give people options in home security, like the ability to connect with the set-up-yourself {or have your twelve year old do it!}, Nest Secure system and simple MONI activation. I was intimidated and thought our only option was professional installation, but I was wrong! However, MONI does provide services with more customized, full-service options. It's all in what your needs are.

2. Have A Family Meeting

It's one thing to learn a system on your own, but to train all of the people in your home to use it, it's another story! It really wasn't difficult, but it did take some conversations with family members on how to use the device and walking through the MONI app together. We also took time to come up with our security codes and safety words so that everyone in the family would know and remember them.

3. Leave Everything Close

Every system is different, but having everything you need close by to activate or deactivate your system is helpful. For us, that was having system tags nearby. You won't want to leave them there long-term because that kind of defeats the purpose, but until you get used to your home security system, having them nearby can reduce your anxiety.

4. Leave Notes

Most of the time our kids are leaving the house in the early morning hours without a minute to spare. They are not paying attention to anything other than rushing out the door so they don't miss the bus. These signs my youngest son made were a good reminder until we got the hang of the system.

4. Test
After we activated our MONI Security system, we put our system into test mode. Not only does a test let you know that your system is working, it can also help you understand what will happen in the event of an emergency response. It was reassuring to know how quickly we would receive an emergency response when it really mattered. You can test your alarm easily with the MONI online System Test. It will walk you through the process with step-by-step instructions. 
5. Relax

We pulled out of the driveway on the way to the airport the week before Christmas and with the push of a button on my MONI app, I was able to arm our security system. I didn't worry one bit about my kids {or me!} sharing images of our trip on social media letting people know we weren't home, because I had MONI protecting us. 

I know that there are many devices that allow you to self-monitor our home, but we were out of the country thousands of miles away. I didn't have cell service {only wi-fi} if I were alerted to a problem at home, we would have been sitting back not knowing who to contact or what to do. MONI gave us the ability to relax on vacation because we had the confidence that professional monitoring brought us while we were away. Their 24/7 monitoring capabilities provide comforting service to more than 1 million customers every day, it definitely made me feel more secure.

We easily adjusted to having our first home security system and MONI made it easy! There should be nothing stopping you from feeling safe in your home or while you are away. 

This is a sponsored post for MONI Smart Security. All opinions are 100% my own.