Practical Ways to Keep Your Home Safe and Secure
One of the best things you can do when taking steps to secure your home is to become the burglar yourself. This is exactly what security experts try to do when they assess homes, and it's not bad for fun either. The idea is to look around and see how you would go about breaking in, and then taking steps to secure that entry method. Here are some more practical tips for keeping your home safe.
Change the locks when you move: No, not the ones on the old house. That's someone else's problem. Change the locks on the new place. This isn't even about not trusting the people who lived there before you, but what about all the people who had their key? Cleaning people, neighbors and friends come to mind. Sure, they wouldn't have robbed that other guy, but they don't know you.
Secure every possible point of entry: You may favor the front door, but burglars take any door. One of the biggest problems in home security is that people don't think past their own actions. They use the front door and therefore they secure that door with locks galore. The back doors though, especially with suburban homes, are usually weak and vulnerable. This is where you'll find the glass sliding doors that can often be lifted right off their frame. Those are the places burglars will want to go so you need to treat every entrance as though it is the main entrance.
Install a practical alarm system: Don't just install an alarm system, but install one that works. People typically only install burglar alarms at the main points of entry, but these are the places they also secure with extra locks and other security measures. As important as all of those things are, a burglar will then find another way in and if that entry point isn't hooked up to the alarm the home is suddenly without any protection at all. The best idea is to have all entry points hooked up to the alarm, and install motion detectors wherever needed.
Put an obstacle course in front of windows: Windows that are at ground level should be hidden as much as is practical. The ones that are simply accessible from ground level should be blocked off from underneath. The kinds of things that can deter burglars from trying to sneak into these windows are things like rose bushes. These lovely yet thorny obstacle courses just aren't worth the trouble a lot of the time. The crook would be bleeding before he even got inside.
Don't leave notes on your door: While the note that says "Dear Fedex, just leave it on the doorstep" seems like a sweet idea, it pretty much translates into "My home is yours for the day." So, don't do that unless you want to invite burglars in.
These days, home security is a real concern to many people who fear the rising crime rate. Thankfully, there are many great options for protecting your family and your possessions, such as a home security surveillance camera, and they don't have to cost the world. Find out more at the Best Home Security site.
