Home Security Advice

To make sure that your home and family are safe, it is important that you use technology, knowledge and common sense. You don’t necessarily need a sophisticated security and surveillance system complete with DVR and an array of CCTV cameras. What you do need is some basic information about home security which you will find in this article.

Developing a Security System to Protect Your From Burglary

By far, the most common threat to your home is burglary. According to recent statistics from the FBI, a burglary occurs somewhere in the United States every 15.4 seconds. By definition, the crime of burglary is a non-confrontational property crime that occurs when you are not at home. Even though burglary is a non-violent crime it is still serious. Becoming a burglary victim can leave your family feeling vulnerable and violated.

Let’s consider what you can do to avoid becoming a burglary victim. The majority of home and apartment burglaries occur during the daytime when most people are away at work or school. The summer months of July and August have the most burglaries with February – a month when many of us appreciate being in a warm home-- has the fewest crimes. Burglaries are committed most often by young males under 25 years of age looking for items that are small, expensive, easily sold for cash. Favorite items are cash, jewelry, guns, watches, laptop computers, ipods, VCRs, video players, CDs and other small electronic devices. Statistics tell us that 70% of the burglars use some force to enter a dwelling, their preference is to gain easy access through an open door or window.

Although home burglaries may seem random in occurrence, they actually involve a selection process. The burglar's selection process is simple. Choose an unoccupied home or apartment with the easiest access, the greatest amount of cover, and with the best escape routes. What follows is a list of suggestions to minimize your risk by making your home unattractive to potential burglars.

The first part of your home security system: locks and doors

The first step is in creating your home security system is to make your home more difficult to enter. If a burglar thinks your home is too difficult to enter, he will simply bypass your home and go elsewhere. Most burglars enter via the front, back, or garage doors. Experienced burglars know that the garage door is usually the weakest point of entry followed by the back door. The garage and back doors also provide the most cover. Burglars know to look inside your car for keys and other valuables remember to always lock your vehicles, even when they are parked inside your garage. Use high quality Grade-1 or Grade-2 locks on exterior doors to resist twisting, prying, and lock-picking attempts. A quality deadbolt lock will have a beveled casing to inhibit the use of channel-lock pliers used to shear off lock cylinder pins. A quality door knob-in-lock set will have a 'dead latch' mechanism to prevent slipping the lock with a shim or credit card.

• Use a solid core or metal door for all entrance points
• Use a quality, heavy-duty, deadbolt lock with a one-inch throw bolt
• Use a quality, heavy-duty, knob-in-lock set with a dead-latch mechanism
• Use a heavy-duty, four-screw, strike plate with 3-inch screws to penetrate into a wooden door frame
• Use a wide-angle 160° peephole mounted no higher than 58 inches

The most common way for a burglar to force entry through a wooden door is to simply kick it open. The weakest point is usually the lock strike plate that holds the latch or lock bolt; if a door has glass panels that are also vulnerable. The average door strike plate is secured only by the soft-wood doorjamb molding. You can greatly improve your safety by simply upgrading to a four-screw, heavy-duty, high security strike plate. These items are available in most quality hardware stores and home improvement centers and are definitely worth the cost and effort.

Secure All Sliding-Glass Patio Doors

Sliding glass doors are secured by latches not locks. They are vulnerable to being forced open from the outside because of these inherently defective latch mechanisms. This can easily be prevented by inserting a wooden dowel or stick directly into the track thus preventing or limiting movement. Other blocking devices available are metal fold-down blocking devices called "charley bars" and various track-blockers that can be screwed down.

The blocking devices described above solve half the problem. Older sliding glass doors can be lifted up and off their track and thereby defeat the latch mechanism. To prevent this from happening, you must keep the door rollers in good condition and properly adjusted. You can also install anti-lift devices such as a pin that extends through both the sliding and fixed portion of the door. There are also numerous locking and blocking devices available at most hardware stores that will prevent a sliding door from being lifted or forced horizontally. Another good tip is to place deterrent decals (beware of dog, alarm system protected, etc. in a highly visual location on the glass door. Burglars will not want to deal with alarm systems or dogs.

Secure all Windows

Windows are left unlocked at a much higher rate than doors. An open window, visible from the street or alley, can be the sole reason for your home to be selected by a burglar. Ground floor windows are most susceptible to break-ins. Upper floor windows can become attractive to burglars if they can be easily accessed from a stairway, tree, fence, or by climbing on balconies. Windows have latches, not locks and therefore should have secondary blocking devices to prevent sliding them open from the outside. Inexpensive wooden dowels and sticks work well for horizontal sliding windows and through-the-frame pins work well for vertical sliding windows. For ventilation, block the window open no more than six inches and make sure you can't reach in from the outside and remove the blocking device or reach through and unlock the door.

In sleeping rooms, window blocking devices should be capable of being removed easily from the inside to comply with fire codes. Like sliding glass doors, anti-lift devices are necessary for ground level and accessible aluminum windows that slide horizontally. The least expensive and easiest method is to install screws half-way into the upper track of the movable glass panel to prevent it from being lifted out in the closed position. As a deterrent, place highly visible decals on the glass door near the latch mechanism that indicates that an alarm system, a dog, or block watch/operation identification system is in place.

Good home security means talking to your neighbor

Good neighbors look out for each other. Get to know your neighbors on each side of your home and the three directly across the street. Invite them into your home, communicate often, and establish trust. Good neighbors will watch out for your home or apartment when you are away, if you ask them. They can report suspicious activity to the police or to you while you are away. Good neighbors can see to it that normal services continue in your absence by allowing vendors to mow your lawn or remove snow. Good neighbors can pick up your mail, newspapers, handbills, and can inspect the outside or inside of your home periodically to see that all is well. Good neighbors will occasionally park in your driveway to give the appearance of occupancy while you are on vacation.

Experienced burglars know to look for hidden keys in planter boxes, under doormats, and above the ledge. Allowing a neighbor to have a key solves the problem of hiding a key outside the door. This neighborhood watch technique sets up what home security experts call 'territoriality' which means that your neighbors take ownership and responsibility for what occurs in your localized part of the neighborhood. This concept works for both single family homes communities and on apartment properties.

Good Security Means Good Lighting

Interior lighting is necessary to show signs of life and activity inside a residence at night. A darken home night-after-night sends the message to burglars that you are away on a trip. Light-timers are inexpensive and available at most home centers or hardware stores. They should be used on a daily basis, not just when you’re away. In this way you set up a routine that your neighbors can observe and will allow them to become suspicious when your normally lighted home becomes dark. Typically, you want to use light-timers near the front and back windows with the curtains drawn. The pattern of them clicking on and off should simulate actual occupancy. It’s also comforting not to have to enter a dark residence. The same light timers can be used to turn on radios or television sets to make potential burglars think you are at home.

Exterior lighting is also very important. It becomes critical if you must park in a common area parking lot or underground garage and need to walk to your front door. The purpose of good lighting is to allow you to see if a threat or suspicious person is lurking in your path. If you can see a potential threat in advance then you at least have the choice and chance to avoid it. Exterior lighting needs to bright enough for you to see 100 feet and it helps if it is actually bright enough so that you can identify colors. Good lighting is a powerful deterrent to criminals because of their fear of being identified.

Another important area to be well-lighted is the perimeter of your home or apartment especially at the entryway. Exterior lighting on the front of a property should always be on a timer to establish a routine and appearance of occupancy at all times. Common area lighting on apartment properties should also be on a timer or photo-cell to turn on at dusk and turn off at dawn. The practice of leaving the garage or porch lights turned on all day on a single family home is a dead giveaway that you are out of town. Exterior lighting at the rear of a home or apartment is important. It is recommended that you use security lights with infra-red motion sensors. The heat-motion sensor can be adjusted to detect body heat and can be programmed to reset after one minute. These security lights are highly recommended for single family homes.

Security Alarm Systems

Alarm systems are effective for home security but they need to be used properly. The main reason why alarms systems deter burglaries is because they increase the burglars fear of being caught and arrested by the police. The deterrent value comes from the alarm company lawn sign and from the alarm decals on the windows. Home and apartment burglars will usually bypass a property with visible alarm signs and will go to another property without such a sign. Some people, with alarm systems, feel that these signs and decals are unsightly and will not display them. But if you don’t display proof of your alarm, you run the risk that the burglar will not know you are alarmed and might break a window or door and grab a few quick items before the police can respond. Another tip. If you have an alarm, DO NOT write your alarm pass-code on or anywhere near the alarm keypad.

Alarm systems need to be properly installed and maintained. Alarms systems can monitor for fire as well as burglary. All systems should have an audible horn or bell to be effective in case someone does break in. These audible alarms should be programmed to reset automatically after one or two minutes. The criminal got the message and will be long gone but your neighbors will have to suffer by listening to the alarm bell, sometimes for hours, until it is shut off. If you use a central station to monitor your alarm, make sure your response call list is up to date. Home alarms, like car alarms, tend generally to be ignored. However, if you have established and nurtured your neighborhood watch buddy system, are more likely to be alerted when an alarm goes off.

Operation Identification Promotes Home Security

Operation Identification is a program supported by most police agencies. They recommend that you engrave your drivers’ license number, on televisions, stereos, computers, and small electronic appliances – do not use your social security number! They suggest this so they can identify and locate you if your stolen items are recovered but there is more you can do to protect your valuables.

Photograph your valuables in their locations around your home and make a list of the make, model, and serial numbers. This is very important for proof when filing insurance claims. Once you compile a list, keep it in a safety deposit box or at another location, for safe keeping. Keep receipts of the larger items in case you need to prove the value of the items for insurance purposes. Also photocopy important documents and the complete contents of your wallet- credit cards, membership cards, for example. You will be thankful that you took these steps in case your home is ever destroyed by fire or flood, is ransacked, or if your wallet is lost or stolen.