Even as many crimes in the USA are on the decline, it’s still a sound idea to make sure your home doesn’t get broken into and have your possessions stolen. Ensure that your home is less vulnerable to burglars and making it more secure by applying these measures.
1. Lock the Door Leading to the Garage
From the outside, your garage door can easily be defeated by probing and hooking onto the garage door release cable with a long piece of wire with a hooked end, then pulling on the release cable. This can be avoided by simply cutting off the release cable on your automatic garage door.
If your garage door is the “manual” type and relies on a latch, more aggressive burglars might force your garage door open by kicking or punching through, destroying the latch. To ensure they don’t get in via the garage, place a lock on the latch at the end of the day, and lock the interior door that goes into your home.
2. Reinforce Your Doors
Your front door is one of the most common entry points for thieves. 34% of burglars break in through your front door—it’s the first place they try. If your front door is a hollow one or of a flimsy design, replace it with a solid-core door of hardwood or metal that can’t be kicked in. You can also reinforce your home by adding security doors that aren’t easily broken.
Should you have glass sliding doors in your house that face your back yard, reinforce them with a shatterproof film. Burglars will try to get in by breaking doors like these. More subtle thieves can also try to enter without shattering the glass but by defeating the lock on the sliding door. You can prevent thieves from entering this way by placing a safety bar on the interior floor track, along with the shatterproof film, so that they don’t resort to breaking the glass anyway.
3. Get a Dog
A dog can be a good friend, intruder deterrent, and alarm system all in one. Thieves simply hate having to deal with a dog of any kind, so the dog doesn’t have to be big and vicious; it just has to bark loud whenever it sees strangers enter your property. Should your house be broken into, their barking can alert the neighbors. If you can’t or don’t want to have a dog, you can always get a “Beware of Dog” sign to deter would-be intruders and put in a dog bowl and dog chain to complete the effect.
4. Keep Your Landscaping Clean and Clutter-free
Bad landscaping can annoy your neighbors, but it’s a blessing to burglars. Many thieves like to target homes that have dense trees and shrubs to hide in, and a lack of outdoor lighting is a treat for them. Remove any thick shrubbery under windows and trim tree branches that burglars can climb to access your home’s roof and upper floor. Place lights in dark corners in your garden or yard, and clear out any thick bushes. You can install automated lights with motion sensors, so the area becomes illuminated whenever movement is detected.
5. Replace Old Locks
If you bought a house, note that the old occupants and their friends, family members, and those who did repairs on the home might still have keys to the locks. Replace all the old bolts and be sure to get replacements that can hold up against being kicked or picked. Install deadbolt and chain locks in tandem with the new locks. If you’re a renter, politely ask the landlord to replace the old locks.
Measures to increase the security of your home vary from the simple and cheap to the complex and costly. Try not to skirt these measures due to cost; remember that the safety and security of your home and family are things you can’t put a price tag on.
