Back on Black Friday, I bought a Ring Video Doorbell along with the Ring Chime. I’ve mentioned it before but I realized I didn’t actually talk about how it’s benefited me in my quest to keep Jim safe. (note – you don’t have to purchase the separate subscription, but I did)
There are several reasons a video doorbell keeps Jim safer.
- There is a motion sensor that lets me know someone has come close to the entryway (we live in the world of porch pirates). In our case, we programmed the motion sensor to trigger the indoor chime to sound like dogs barking. (side note – it was funny to watch the neighbourhood cat freeze, mid-way across the porch when she heard the digital dogs bark – side benefit, she’s stopped hanging out and pooping in my garden)
- If I’m not home, I’m alerted via the app and can see what’s happening at my door. This works for both motion and if someone rings the doorbell. (when I’m off at the beach taking a mental health hour, I can see how many times Jim checks for the mail while I’m gone.)
- When someone rings the doorbell I can answer it via my phone or Amazon Alexa Show (which I already have, I just needed to connect the two devices). Especially during these Pandemic times, it means I don’t have to speak face to face with anyone. Jim doesn’t have to rush down the stairs to answer.
When caring for someone with Dementia, I thought a video doorbell would be particularly helpful as it provides a secondary alert (besides my house alarm) when the front door is opened. If Jim wandered, I could see the general direction he went when he left and I’d know what he was wearing. Because I have it on video.
It’s become a very useful tech toy.
Other perks to note:
- By having the yearly subscription, all videos are recorded and saved. I can refer back to them at any time. The Ring doorbell can be hooked up to your existing doorbell power source so you don’t have to rely on battery power.
- There are fun things like having the doorbell take time-lapsed still shots. They’d be cool to review after a snow storm but they do use up a lot of battery.