DIY Alarms/PIRs/Cats

[Brian Reay]

I was discussing fitting a burglar alarm with my son-in-law and the problem of their cat occurred to me.

While they could confine the cat to a room not covered by a PIR, the layout of their house would make this far from ideal in a number of ways.

I can't believe I'm the first person to think about this problem- what to the millions of people with cats/dogs do?

(Obviously not using PIRs is an option but the idea of wires etc to window / door sensors really isn't practical. A few PIRs will 'cover' the required rooms and I think there are routes for wiring, if we can't find a wireless solution.)

[ARW]

They use pet sensor PIRs.

eg Veritas petwise.

[nothanks]

A few months ago I asked about using PIRs with purrs (sorry, I couldn't resist) and was told that the "pet proof" ones were not very effective. I haven't got the right tuit yet so can't report on my experiences.

[Huge]

We had one fitted in our garage in an attempt to reduce false triggering due to bats.

It didn't work.

But then, the bats aren't pets.

[mechanic]

Maybe the cat could be supplied with a IFF transponder embedded in its collar.

[ARW]

Well get rid of them then and say nothing. It's not like they are going to fly off and report you.

No 4 of this looks a bit dodgy

So if you find a dead bat on the floor you are not allowed to keep it?

[Huge]

Sadly not possible. Bat-proofing the garage isn't practicable. We've changed over to sensors on all the doors.

[Brian Reay]

Maybe not but the penalties for doing so are not to be underestimated and bat colonies tend to be 'known' to local enthusiasts. We discovered this while on holiday some years back and noticed some bats while walking back from the pub one night. We stopped and watched them, thinking we were alone and then had the feeling we were being watched. Tucked away in the gap in the hedge there were a group we'd seen in the pub. They had 'bat detectors', note books, flasks of coffee..... They went round all the local roosts (or want even the places bats hang out are called) at weekends, and spent Sat night watching and listening to them. Beats late night TV, at least in Wales. ;-) (Only joking, the place we were staying was really nice.)

I believe you can ask 'experts' to move them - they re-site them rather than just kill or exclude them- plus handling bats can be tricky, they can carry a disease similar to rabies.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Pet proof sensors. Basically, the lens is designed to ignore low moving objects like cats or dogs. Work OK here.

[Brian Reay]

I'm not a cat owner but don't they climb on sofas etc?

Daughter's one seems to sleep a lot. They are also trying to work out how to fit a cat flap - the only available door has glass panels. There is a wall into a conservatory but I'm not sure if you can fit a cat flap in a wall. They tell me you can get flaps which are coded to the microchips that each cat has.

[Martin Brown]

More to the point bats are warm blooded and can fly and once they get close to the sensor they look exactly like a big mammal a long way away. A spider inside the works can also screw things up with false triggers.

We also have bats although I try very hard not to get them inside the house at learning to fly time the odd juvenile will find some new tiny crack that I have missed and end up orbiting the living room light.

[Huge]

[Bob Eager]

We had a single glaxed panel fitted, with the right size hole.

Yes, some can have a 'tunnel' added too. Quite a lot of work making the hole, though.

You can - but the company was, in the past, associated with an individual on another newsgroup whom I would not trust. That has probably changed. The showstopper for me was that it only controlled inward movement, and I needed per-cat control in both directions. They assured me there would be an accessory for that, but were unable to tell me how long it would be before it was available.

I see that Pet Mate do a microchip 4 way version now, though, and they are a reliable company. They also do one that works with a small ID disc you put on the collar (not a magnet). Pet Mate have always been good for support and spare parts, too.

[Robin]

I have done so. Can make it easier to get bottom of the cat flap at about the same height as the cat's tum than in a door.

I've not done one in a cavity wall but AIUI with them a "lining" for the tunnel is *strongly* recommended ;)

[Andrew Gabriel]

I had a cat when I was a teenager, long before id chips. I tried building a lock to stop other cats coming in. Used a reed switch to be triggered by a magnet on the collar. Problem was the cat would come back in with a necklace of scrap ironmongary hanging from the magnet collected from the local neighbourhood. Gave up on the idea.

BTW, always liked the following project:

[Andrew Gabriel]

A friend was building an extension and needed to include a cat flap, so he built it into the wall. It even had a lintel over it, because he had an off-cut which was exactly the right length. The BCO saw the small hole through the wall with a lintel before the doors and windows were fitted and asked what it was. He thought it was hilarious.

[Bill Wright]

I used point-to-point active infra-red beams when I did an alarm job for a mate. I disguised the tx and rxs. It worked fine.

Bill

[tabbypurr]

sofas, stairs, ceiling fans, aerial walkways, you name it. Depending on the nature of the cat in question. There are even ones that will climb up things to get near the ceiling and leap out when people enter.

16 hours a day is the norm. Much more can be an indicator of pain.

A glazier can probably sort that for you.

certainly can.

yes, I looked into those and was unimpressed. So are most cats.

NT

[tabbypurr]

I'd pick pet-mate over staywell flaps every time. But don't assume a cat will be willing to use those ones.

NT

[tabbypurr]

Ditto. A largely outdated technology, but work well enough if the beam covers the main walkway and ideally includes a door that never blows shut. Can be a good approach where PIRs would be no good.

NT