Home security should be a concern for anyone that has valuable possessions or people that they want to protect. If you want to know more about making your home safe, you have come to the right place! Keep reading for helpful tips so you can feel protected in your home.
Do not hide your key in a mailbox or other well-known location. Instead, put your key in paper or aluminum foil and place it in a small container. After you do this, bury it in a spot in your yard where people would not think to look. This can help keep your home safe from unwanted guests.
Secure your attached garage. Lots of folks are concerned about burglars gaining access to the garage and then the home, but this can be addressed. Use a C-clamp to secure the door if it’s off track.
A home security system works by alerting the local police when the alarm goes off. The police immediately place a telephone call to your home. If you do not answer your phone and provide a security code, an officer will be sent to your home with possible backup available should it be needed.
If you need to store firewood, keep it at least 30 yards from your home. This is a combustible item, which can cause serious damage to your home if it catches fire. Buy a shed or isolate a section of your backyard for all items that you need to store that fit this description.
Be sure that your home security system has a panic button as well. The best of intruders sometimes have ways of getting into your home, even if you have the best system in place. Having a panic button in your bedroom is your best bet; authorities will be notified and will be at your house quickly.
Do not list your full name in the phone book or on your mail box. This can give possible intruders a lot of information about you and allow them break into your home a lot easier. Instead, only list your last name and possibly your first initial, this is much safer.
Pretend you are a burglar. By taking on the role of an intruder, you can check for vulnerable areas around your property. Really think hard about ways you would get into your home if you were a criminal. Check the garage as well as sheds or other places you keep valuable possessions.
How much space do you have between your door and its frame? Having too much room here is like an open invitation for a burglar to use some sort of jimmy to get inside your home. You can reinforce your door with a thin piece of plywood or sheet metal.
Where are your door’s hinges? If the hinges for your door are on the outside of your home, you should move them to the inside of your house. Having outside hinges is an easy way for burglars to grant access to your home. All they have to do is knock the pin out of the hinge.
If you are new into a house, replace all the locks. Even though the person who sold your home to you may seem honest, you simply can’t know for certain. Remember that other families may have lived there before that person as well.
One of the best ways to keep your home safe is to get to know your neighbors. Neighbors will look out for each other. Also, getting to know your neighbors is a great way to find out what is happening in your neighborhood. They will let you know if strangers have been around and other useful information on keeping your home safe.
When hiring a home security company, make sure to read the fine print on the contract you are signing. You need to find out about hidden costs, such as cancellation fees in case you want to cancel your contract before it expires. These are costs you’ll want to avoid.
If you are going on vacation, don’t cancel the delivery of your mail or your newspaper. When you do that, you never know who may stumble across the information that you are going to be away from home. Instead, ask a friend or a family member to help you out.
To secure your sliding doors, put a metal pipe in the track and then jam it against the door frame. This will stop the door from sliding and ensure that it can’t be opened from the outside. To choose the right length of pipe, measure the entire track and buy a piece that big.
The security of your home depends on your activities outside the home as well. Do not leave your garage door opener in plain view inside your car. Password protect your cell phone and computers that you use outside the home as well. Never keep important documents inside your car where a thief can find out where you live and determine when you are at home and when you are away.
Install motion detectors on your driveway and link them to your cell phone. This way whenever someone comes on your property, you get a text message letting you know that someone is there. These work great with video monitoring as well. Then you can see who is at your home when you are not there.
If you are planning on going on vacation, you need to hire someone to look after your home. Savvy thieves know what to look for when scouting out homes to rob. Uncut grass, newspapers piled up on the doorstep and unshoveled snow on the side walk are all signs that a homeowner is away on vacation.
Doing simple things like putting up a fence, a “large dog” sign or a peephole in the door can help immensely with protecting you and your family. Don’t take a chance when it comes to your family. Remember the tips in this article so you can feel safe and secure.
