One of the most important things you can do is protect your home. Ensuring your doors and windows are locked in the evening and whenever you leave the house is just the first step in protecting your space — having a home security system adds essential extra protection for your family and belongings.
Some families also have a helpful virtual assistant, known as Alexa. Amazon sells the smart home device Amazon Echo and includes Alexa in that system to perform various functions. One such function Alexa can perform is connecting with your smart home security system.
Can Alexa Be Used for Home Security?
Having a smart home can make life convenient in many ways. Alexa has many wonderful capabilities. It can wake you up in the morning with your favorite song, give you information about the weather and even look up things on the internet. It can also connect with your home security system to perform several functions that help protect your house, such as:
- Arming and disarming your security system: Rather than making the mad dash to the security system to disarm your home’s alarm, you can program your Alexa with voice commands to arm and disarm your security system. You might be able to use simple voice commands, such as “Alexa, arm security,” or some systems may ask you to enter a code to verify your identity.
- Livestreaming or reviewing video footage: The Alexa Echo Show device allows you to live stream video, so you can see what’s going on at home. Some people use this feature to check in on their pets through a pet cam, but you can also use this for home security camera systems. You can command Alexa to record or playback footage from different areas of your home that have camera footage.
- Listening for intruders: While you’re away, Alexa can even listen for intruders. The Alexa Guard feature can alert you to the sound of broken glass or smoke and carbon dioxide alarms in your home. You can even program this feature to bark when intruders are detected to try to scare them off.
- Setting intruder alert commands: In addition to looking for intruders while you’re not home, you can also set a plan if an intruder enters your home while you’re there. With a voice command like “Alexa, intruder alert” or something similar, you can program your Alexa to manipulate the lights to certain settings, play a message or blare a song on full volume. While this may not scare an intruder away, it may garner attention to your house, with is the last thing a burglar wants.
How to Connect Your Smart Home Security System to Alexa
If you have a security system that you want to connect to your Amazon Echo device, you can follow a few simple steps to make that happen. While each security system may have particular elements you’ll need to set up in addition to connecting the devices, we’ll walk you through the entire setup process. Follow these steps from start to finish to complete your Alexa and smart home security device setup:
1. Install the Alexa App
When you get your Alexa device, the instructions will prompt you to download the Alexa app on your smartphone or tablet. Once you’ve downloaded the app, you can connect it to your Amazon Echo device with the “Add Device” function. From here, you can set commands and begin connecting the Alexa to other devices, such as smart lights and other systems in your home.
2. Set up and Connect Devices to Wi-Fi
Since Alexa relies on an internet connection, you’ll need to make sure it’s connected to the internet. From the Alexa app, choose the device you want to connect to the internet — in this case, your Amazon Echo, Echo Show, Echo Studio or Echo Dot. Next to the Wi-Fi Network option, you’ll tap “Change” and choose the network you want to use your Echo with. It will prompt you to enter the password and then you will be connected to the internet.
Both your Amazon Echo and smart home security system should be connected to the same Wi-Fi network. Being connected to the same network means these devices can communicate with each other. If you ever have issues, one of the first things you can check is if the Alexa device is connected to the internet and that your signal is strong enough to accommodate all your devices.
3. Have Alexa Discover Your Devices
Once your Alexa is set up and on the same Wi-Fi network as your home security system, you can connect the devices. In the Alexa app, select the “Add a Device” option and search for your security system. If you cannot find it in your app, you can also ask Alexa to “discover devices.” From there, it will likely find the system since they are on the same Wi-Fi network.
4. Sign in to Your Alarm System
Once Alexa has found your alarm system, you will likely have to enter your login credentials for the security system to cooperate with Alexa. From there, you can explore the different capabilities you can utilize Alexa with, such as arming and disarming your system, as well as more intricate demands.
Home Security Systems Compatible With Alexa
Various home security systems are compatible with your smart home devices. Popular systems include those from ADT, SimpliSafe and Ring. Another popular system includes the Honeywell Smart Home Automation. Their Total Connect product includes email alerts, remote arming and disarming and entrance notifications.
What’s more, Honeywell security works with Alexa. Simply connect your Honeywell Total Connect system to your Amazon Echo device, and they will work together to keep you safe. You can control features like your home security cameras and arm your home with voice commands. You can even incorporate your security system into your routines, such as arming your house and turning off all the lights at night.
Contact Wayne Alarm Systems for Smart Home Security Solutions
If you’re looking to connect a smart home security system with your Alexa, contact Wayne Alarm Systems. We are a Honeywell-authorized dealer and provide security automation products and professional installation. With Total Connect from Honeywell, you can have features like cloud access, locks, alerts and cameras you can use and monitor with Alexa. Wayne Alarm Systems has over 50 years of experience helping homeowners keep their homes and families safe.
With professional installation and 24/7 monitoring available, Wayne Alarms Systems is the obvious choice to protect your home. We can arrange a free security consultation for your residence, and one of our representatives will be happy to answer any questions you may have about purchasing and installing a smart home security system.