Portable Alarms or Security Equipment???

[Shelby Griggs]

TDR Brothers and Sisters,



Looking for advice for security for unattended surveying equipment.



Last year I lost a complete survey grade GPS setup, while setup on a job and logging data. In that case it was attended, but the person was 50 feet away with their back turned, it only took seconds for some low life to cause me a lot of grief.



Anyway, I am looking for both active, and passive systems that are portable. I found one product that is marketed as a swimming pool alarm for kids, detects both motion and heat and then sounds an alarm. LoJack is not available everywhere or I would consider that as a way to track. Where possible I chain to an immovable object.



An ideal system would secure the equipment, sound an alarm, photograph the perp, notify me via cell phone, and if all else fails allow me to track the equipment down. Of course a reasonable cost would be nice too. Needs to operate on battery power too.



Any alarm or security gurus got any suggestions? If you would prefer not to broadcast the secrets here, please feel free to e-mail me.



I think a kit designed to do all of the above would sell. Many Many surveyors are now operating with reduced crews of one or two people, and often a setup is left unattended. I hear reports of people stealing this stuff in broad daylight with the crew watching, but a few hundred feet away. They just drive up and grab and dash.



Death to the thief is probably not a good idea, even if it is deserving.



TIA for any suggestions.



Shelby

 

[Briar Hopper]

Search engines like www.google.com can turn up some wild stuff, if you put in the right key words. Try "spy equipment" or "security", and different such associated words.

On a different note, the county sheriff here used to tell me horror stories about a few drug raids he'd gone on. I got quite a lesson in the varieties of booby traps. One that chilled me to my core was the perimeter security system for a pot patch in the national forest. Whoever it was, used poisonous snakes. Several varieties, including a few eastern diamondbacks. They were secured at intervals around the perimeter with a stake, a length of fishing line, and a strong fish hook embedded in the snake.

Not exactly the most portable security system for a surveyor, and probably in violation of a multitude of laws.

You can come up with a safer, more tame version of a wildlife security system. Dogs. Or even a pet skunk. They can be "de-stunked" by a vet, are available at better pet stores. A leash & collar , preferably small and incospicuous, tie the leash to the tripod.

 

[TPCDrafting]

Smith & Wesson has a variety of security devices. Their downfall is you have to see them for the device to work. I use a Rottweiler device. She has several settings including, but not limited to: 1)love thy owner, 2)intimidate, 3)bite & drag, 4)oblitherate.

There are more settings in between these, but I think you get the picture. See if you have the dog who starts barking when someone approaches your equipment, you can then engage the S&W security system. You don't have to shoot anyone, but you can shoot their tires on their getaway vehicle.

 

[KPhillips]

I work for a security consulting & engineering firm and

securing a piece of mobile equipment is never an easy task (infact we don't usually do this kinda stuff)... .



in security sometimes your best bet is the deterrent factor... .



burglars always go for the easy target, they harrdly ever go for the compicated or real risky object.



Chaining your equipment is a good deterrent, because they can't just come and walk off with it..... depending on your location, you could carry a ground anchor that you could screw into the ground and chain your equipment to it,



you can look into wireless security systems, but... . Without knowing what your equipment looks like etc. its hard to come up with an actual system, but they may have detectors that have mercury switches that when moved will casue an alarm, alot (most) of the woreless systems have dial out features to dial a local alarm monitoring company or have a pre-recorded message that will call your cell phone and or pager.



These systems are designed for home use, but you could most likely tweak them to worl for your application.



Maybe park your dodge or whatever rig you use near your equipment and havea camera mounted inside, todays technology allows you to have a digital recorder that has built in video motion detection that will not record until something enters the field of view you have selected and then it can record and issue and alarm.



Have a big siren sittin on your dodge and if someone goes near your equipment it sounds off with a very loud horn or a pre-recorded message telling the person he is being recorded and to step away from the equipment. .



It all depends on how much you wanna spend, the digital recording isn't cheap...



I honestly think your better off using detterents, I think they will be less of a headache in the long run. If nothing else, make you a huge concrete block with a hoop in it a that you can use to chain your equipment to, pain in the arse maybe, but most crooks won't wanna mess with it...





kerryp

 

[SLVRBLT]

Shelby-



Tried to send you a PM, but your mailbox is full.



Dave

 

[Shelby Griggs]

Thanks everybody for the thoughts so far.



Briar, Snakes are out, I hate them.



Any kind of an animal is probably out, as I travel away from home quite a bit, and keeping animals in a hotel is not usually good. In addition if I tie a dog there, they would have to be tethered far enough away from the instrument so as to not disturb, and then all that would happen is they would bark, but you could still walk off with the gear.



I agree that some sort of deterrent is probably the best, the concrete block idea is good, but I need to make it heavy enough that most people could not pack it off too. Then I have the problem of loading and unloading myself. I had already thought of most ideas suggested, including the block and what sort of hoist I would need to rig up.



I think tying the gear down somehow along with a motion alarm is probably going to be as good as any. Any further suggestions on how to accomplish these items or recommendations for good portable motion alarms would be appreciated.



Dave, I will delete some out of the mailbox and see if that helps. I have not got any new PM in a long time, and every time I seem to have to delete mail to get any new PM. You can e-mail me if you like.



Shelby