Basic Home Security Information
This page contains
basic information about protecting your house, home security systems
and neighborhood crime prevention. You can find more in-depth information
by using the website directory on the right hand side of this page.
Whether you live
in an apartment, single family home, mobile home or any other type
of dwelling, security should always be something that is considered.
Many people think that they need an expensive security system but,
even though home security systems are an integral part of an overall
home protection plan, there are plenty of other measures that can
be taken.
Risk Assessment
If you are interested
in making your home more secure, one of the first steps to take
is a risk assessment evaluation. You don't need a professional to
come into your home in order to assess your risks. You can just
take a look around at your surroundings and combine that with a
little research and before you know it, you will have accomplished
the very first task. Later, when you decide to have a home security
system installed, it may be a good idea to actually get a professional
assessment just for the security risks of your particular dwelling
but for now we will just press ahead.
Your first risk
assessment assignment is to do some research. You can go to your
local police headquarters and ask them some questions about your
neighborhood. The local police station is one of the best sources
for getting specific crime statistics for your neighborhood. There
are also plenty of online resources for this task. One of my favorite
sites for neighborhood statistics is the city-data.com
website. You can go to that website and type in the name of your
city and you will be presented with much detailed information about
your city. For statistics on your own neighborhood, the local police
are still the best.
Take a look around
your neighborhood. How far away is the closest fire department?
How far to the nearest police station? Keep in mind that some neighborhoods
are more at risk than others. You might feel that you live in a
fairly safe neighborhood because you are surrounded by nice homes
with homeowners that really take care of their property. If you
were a burglar, wouldn't that be the exact type of neighborhood
that you would want to burglarize? People with nice homes usually
have nice stuff. Do you live in a gated community? Do police cars
routinely drive by your home? These are just a few of the questions
that you can ask yourself when doing your evaluation.
Home Evaluation
How secure is
your home? Do you have solid exterior doors with deadbolt locks?
Is your home at the end of the road? Do you have sufficient lighting
for the exterior of your home? Burglars tend to gravitate toward
homes that are not well lit, are located at or near the end of a
road and provide little or no resistance to home intrusion. If you
were a burglar, would you consider your home to be a good target?
Start with the
front door. Your front door should be made of solid core wood construction
and include a deadbolt lock in addition to a traditional keyed lock.
A wide-angle viewer should be installed at eye level. Never rely
on a door chain to keep out the bad guys. All they need to do in
order to gain entrance is to give the door a good kick and then
they're in. Solid door frames and kickplates are other means of
securing your front door. Inspect all of your other doors, including
your garage door, and make sure they are all secure.
The next thing
to evaluate is your windows and sliding glass doors. Don't forget
to inspect the windows on the second or third level of your home
as well! All windows should have key-operated sash locks. It is
a good idea to only allow the window to be opened 6 inches when
approached from the outside of the house. It is also important to
include an emergency release from the inside in case of fire. Bad
guys can get into the second floor windows by climbing trees or
by using a ladder that you have stored on the outside of your house.
Don't give them any more help than they already have!
After you have
made the evaluations that are listed above, do it again at night.
This time, also take note of the areas surrounding your home that
are not well lit. Are there any areas that could use some more lighting?
It is especially important to have good lighting at all of the entrance
points to your home with special emphasis on your front door. Having
that wide-angle viewer on your door will not do much good if you
cannot even discern who or what is at your door.
Making Your
Home Secure
One of the best
ways to make your home more secure is to install security
equipment. If you want to have the ultimate protection for your
house then you should consider home
monitoring. When you sign up with one of the home monitoring
security companies, they will send someone to your house in order
to do a complete evaluation in order to determine the best security
measures for your particular needs. By having your security system
monitored, you will have the peace of mind in knowing that your
house is being monitored 24 hours a day and that if anything goes
wrong, the proper authorities can be alerted immediately. The bad
guys tend to steer clear of homes that are monitored.
Other than installing
a home security system, there are also plenty of other measures
that you can take in order to have a protected home. Some of the
other security measures that you can take include:
- Installing
Quality Locks and Deadbolts
- Adding
a Peephole to your Front Door
- Installing
Keyed Sash Locks on your Windows
- Installing
Exterior Lights with Motion Detectors
- Keeping
Shrubbery Trimmed Around Windows and Doors
- Install
Window Decals and Yard Security Signs
- Take Pictures
of your Valuables
- Insert
a Stick in the Rail of Sliding Glass Doors
- Get to
Know Your Neighbors
- Keep your
Valuables Out of Sight
- Change
your Locks Whenever you Move
- Always
Keep Windows and Doors Locked
- Get a 'Watch'
Dog
- Keep Ladders
and Tools Locked in the Garage
- Make it
Look Like you are Home Even when you are Away
In the end, your
home will be as secure as you make it. Even if you do make the decision
to go with one of the home security monitoring
companies, or install your own products
and devices, you still can go the extra mile and make your home
as secure as it possibly can be. There are no security measures
available that will make your house 100% burglarproof. All you can
do is help to cut down on the odds of the bad guys choosing your
home rather than moving on to the next target.
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