Home Safety Tips | Home Security Tips
Everyone wants their family to be safe and your home should be the safest heaven on earth for them. This is why your home security matters. In these times of economic turmoil and when jobs are not so stable, more people are pushed to resort to criminal acts like burglary and theft as a desperate measure to get cash. The crime rate keeps growing and the need to have a sound security system and do the appropriate home security measures is something that you should not underestimate.
Stay Safe With These DIY Home Security Tips & Measures
These days, installing a security alarm system is not enough. You should be vigilant and do some security measures yourself. Here is a list of some simple security measures that you can do yourself to make your home safer:
• When you have a security alarm system installed, make sure that you conceal all the wiring. Professional burglars look for the wiring system first to disconnect it.
• Make sure all your windows and doors are locked up even if you are going out for a short time – even those that are on the second floor or you are in an apartment on the sixth floor. Unlocked windows are what robbers usually search for first.
• Never leave notes on the front door for family members or service people when you are out of the house. This is a clear indicator that the house is empty and will only encourage burglars.
• Your house should look occupied at all times – even when you are out on vacation. To do so, you can use timers on your lights and radio or television so that you can turn them on and off even when no one is around. There are some security apps that also allows you to do these things from your phone.
• Is your house well-lit? Burglars target homes that are dim and have little lighting since they can easily blend in with the shadows. Although having bright lights all the time may increaser your electric bill and even annoy your neighbors, there is another cost-effective option for you. You can install lighting with a motion detector, meaning the light goes on when the sensor senses movement. This can easily spook out any burglars.
• If you have a faulty security alarm system, make sure to have it fixed immediately. If all your neighbors know that you have a defective alarm, they might not come to help the next time there is a real burglary.
• Your landscape can also make you vulnerable to burglary. Trees that are near windows or high shrubs that can conceal a burglar in the yard are significant flaws when it comes to home security. You should consider making sure that the bushes are short so that no one can hide behind them. For trees near the windows, one way to deal with it without needing to cut it down is to trim the branches extending near the windows and make sure that there is lighting near it.
• When you want work to be done in your house like deep cleaning or terminating pests, make sure you are around or have someone you trust to hang around and monitor instead of just leaving the house key to who is in charge of the service and coming back when the work is done.
• When you decide to move into a new home, it helps to change all the locks. You never know if any previous tenants still have the copies to your home or if they have relatives with copies.
• You might want to consider getting a dog. Burglars barely get in homes that have dogs. Even a small dog can be an active guard dog. Barking dogs, especially in the middle of the night, is an excellent way to attract attention to their presence.
• If you lose your keys, it is advised to change your locks – especially if it has a keychain with your name or your address in it. It is recommended to stay away from using keychains that have your personal information in them.
• When choosing locks, avoid relying only on a spring-latch lock as these are very easy to open with a simple plastic credit card. A deadbolt is much better, but if there is space between the door and the frame. Take note that a burglar can use power tools to go through the deadbolt. You can fix this by reinforcing your door with a ¾ inch panel made out of plywood or sheet metal. If your door has hinges, reset the hinges inside because all a burglar has to do is knock out the hinge pin to enter the house.
• Do not hide your spare keys outside your home. Hundreds of articles are made when it comes to the wisest places to hide spare keys, and every burglar must have read them by now.
• If you have a patio sliding door, you can get burglar proof it by setting a metal bar or pipe in the middle bottom track so the door cannot slide open. The pipe should be the same length as the track.
• Doors with glass panels are a favorite for thieves because all they have to do is break the glass and reach in and open the doorknob from the inside. You can always replace these doors or replace the glass with a harder material. Another option is to secure the door with a deadbolt in the bottom so that even if they can reach the doorknob, they still have to deal with the deadbolt.
• Do a run-through and try to rob yourself. This will help you discover if your security systems have a weakness that you might not have noticed yet. You can ask a friend to try to get in to get an outsider’s perspective as there might be things that have escaped your scrutiny.
• Some police departments or security agents do a home inspection program where they check your home and point on any weaknesses in your security then give you advice on the appropriate security measures that you should do.
• Security systems may seem costly, but it is worth it. They come with a dual purpose. For instance, security cameras inside your house can help you monitor who is helping themselves to the medicine cabinet, liquor cabinet, and others. Pin codes can be customized as well, so each member of the family can have their pins. This can help you monitor when each member of the family goes in and out of the house. If you decide to sell your home in the future, a security alarm system that is already installed will help raise the value of your property.
Remember, burglary does not only mean financial losses, but if it happens while you and your family are in the house, it can cause trauma, and in the worst-case scenario, death. With these tips in mind, you will be able to sleep better at night with the confidence that your house is secured.
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