Build a single-family house suitable for absence - what should be considered?

... For example, I don’t like it when you look out the window in the morning and all the downpipes made of copper are missing from the outbuildings.

Matthias

You’re exaggerating. And not just a little, but OVERexaggerating. Your fears are unfounded in that everything can be replaced. Control helps little, technology that goes beyond the value attracts or is exaggerated. Yeah, yeah, the archive... as if anyone would be interested in it. And if your archive includes the Black Mauritius, usually even the cash lying openly is overlooked because only jewelry or cars are interesting. Sorry, but one has to say it.

“The neighbor could set the house on fire with a burning cigarette”... a drone can do that too and even much more. See? It happens three times a day, but apparently we’re not that important for “it” to have “happened” to us yet [emoji6] Eureka, and tomorrow you get into an accident on your vacation.

First the archive, then the graffiti sprayers, the stone throwers, the copper thieves, occasional criminals, then there was a break-in attempt (you’re still alive with the pry mark on the frame although that is an insurance claim) ... ultimately the argument came of the possible heating failure... By the way: in none of the cases do I want to know about that while on vacation!

I find the collection in this thread very entertaining, but completely out of touch with common sense and reality. Even if Berlin is not a suburb of Föhr, I think you’re either phobically inclined or you just passed by the government district and let yourself be inspired.

Come on, keep smiling, stay at home. Lie down on the sofa. Don’t get on a plane and don’t climb any ladder. Then everything will be fine.

I also find the course of the discussion a bit strange. My question really wasn’t totally off the mark. Ultimately, for me it’s about this: What do I have to keep in mind so that as many situations as possible that can occur are somehow controllable when I’m not there. And that also applies to later times, when my parents might no longer be capable of handling things. For example, I need a notification if the heating fails in winter. I have sensors for all sorts of things, only the indoor temperature in the house is not measured anywhere. I have now solved this with a simple GSM socket with a temperature sensor.

I want to have the certainty at all times that problems that arise can be solved, and that I don’t have to cancel a vacation, for example. That’s really not so hard to understand, is it?

Matthias

I don’t know how you currently live, but I have never had to cancel a vacation because of graffiti.

Apparently, you live in your artistic world.

Otherwise, when you think everything is safe, it’s the most trivial things where something then happens.

I understand the approach of wanting to protect oneself against vandalism, burglary, and robbery. I can also understand having a specially secured archive.

What I do not find productive is the fully reportable house, for which you are reachable everywhere at all times in case something happens.

You are not talking about being informed in case of flooding of the ground floor or a fire in the house, but seemingly want to be notified immediately of every twitch. Heating, vandalism, kicked mailbox, homeless person in the front yard, neverending story.

To me, that sounds like slavery, with the house as Massa Haus. I do not find that mentally healthy.

If I were you, I would take the following tips from previous posters to heart:

a) Doors and windows with very high security standards.

b) Create good visibility for neighbors on potential entrances.

c) Simulate occupancy during absences.

d) Housesitting for longer absences.

e) Private security service in emergencies.

...

And still, something can happen. And then it is all the more annoying and expensive. Saving on measures and fully insuring oneself against vandals, etc. is also an option. Then in case of emergency, you breathe, calm down, and let the insurance agents do their work as far as possible.

This juggling with the exclusion of all possible dangers does not make one happy, does it?

This juggling with the exclusion of all possible dangers does not make one happy, does it?

That's exactly what I asked myself... Why would I want to spend all the time worrying about that... Yes, a certain level of safety is certainly good, but you just can't exclude everything. A good neighborhood that looks out for each other certainly has the greatest value in this regard.

That's exactly what I was wondering... Why would I want to spend all the time overthinking about it.... Yes, a certain level of security is certainly good, but you can't eliminate everything. A good neighborhood looking out for each other is probably the most valuable.

I think that's also age. The older you get, the bigger the fears in your head become.

No offense intended!

For example, we keep the balcony door open for hours at a time and supervise the kids on the play street.

My father-in-law is slowly turning his place into a Stasi high-security prison. With every new Aldi commercial, he buys a pager and alarm thingy more.

Last week, during a visit, I wanted to air the place out in the morning. Then this shrill device went off. He had taken a sleeping pill and was hard to wake up, the neighbors were already gathered in the garden^^

I got a telling-off first, about needing this and that to open a balcony door^^

It was funny, if it weren't so sad.

A good neighborhood that looks out for itself certainly has one of the greatest values.

Of course. But: First, neighbors are not always present. And in my specific case, they wouldn’t notice anything anyway because they are too far away. The risk side would be, if I realize this project, the south side. And it is almost completely surrounded by a public green area, where in one case even a path runs right along the fence. The responsible authority has meanwhile removed the benches because they were constantly destroyed. I’m really glad that you all apparently live in peaceful areas, but I am here in Berlin, and basically, everything that can happen does happen here. The thing with the copper actually happened, too. The only advantage you have here: when you need them, the police are on site in two minutes. But for that, you need short reporting routes that also work when you’re not there. I imagine it like this: someone climbs over the fence and approaches the house. He enters the detection range of one of the video cameras and the sensors trigger an alert to the security control center. The security control center looks at the image, sees the people there and calls the police. When the police arrive, they remotely open the front gate so that the patrol car can drive straight through to the back and arrest the people before major damage occurs. I consider that a sensible concept. The video surveillance is important because it allows the security control center to get an actual picture of the situation on site. With pure perimeter security, that is not the case. A few years ago, I once had a trigger of the alarm system, specifically the sabotage circuit had signaled. So it could have been that someone was tampering with some external components. The security control center called me and I was at the other end of the city. So I said they should send the police. The police were then on site with two patrol cars and four people until I arrived, which of course I have to pay for. That’s logical. I don’t think it’s good when four well-trained police officers are not available for other deployments for an hour just because my system sends out an alert that later turns out to be a technical defect. Therefore, the house simply has to be able to provide more information, I think. Matthias