Burglaries and other unauthorized entry into your home—where you sleep and keep your precious belongings—can be disheartening. But a monitored home security system with today’s tech can make a major difference in securing your house.
There are several common-sense home security steps you can take to help make your home less tempting to potential thieves, whether or not you have a home security system in place.
Here is a list of 6 easy home security tips you should follow right now, without special equipment or training, to avoid a home invasion.
Ensure trees and fences don’t block the view
The first step in a calculated effort to enter your home begins with surveillance. Scammers learn your habits and watch the house, looking for weaknesses and places around your house to break in without being seen by you or your neighbors.
Be vigilant to keep trees and shrubs near your home pruned so that there are fewer places to hide when trying to invade your property.
No invader wants to be discovered by circling your home or taking the time to force or break a lock. If all of your windows and doors are free of hidden stains, they will often decide that the risk of getting caught is too great to even attempt.
Hide your keys in less obvious places
Admit it. You ‘hid’ a key for a friend or relative to give them access to your home to feed the cat while you are away or in case you lose your own key. Even if you haven’t done it yourself, you know someone who has. If we all know this little ‘secret’, don’t you think even a stupid thief would know about this trend as well? Do not do that!
An intruder would much rather have quiet and easy access, perhaps not even arousing suspicion from neighbors if they are seen, rather than having to smash a window or force a door.
The first place any scammer worth their salt will check will be under your doormat, nearby rocks, around heating or cooling units, tucked away in bushes, or letterboxes.
Invest in better lighting and stronger locks
Few things portrayed in movies and on television are as easy to do in real life as they appear on screen. Unfortunately, kicking a door with a properly placed foot is really as easy to do as it is in the movies if you know what you’re doing.
When you lock your door with a traditional lock, there is only a half-inch or more of metal inserted into the frame of your door through the lock, leaving room for brute force entry. Installing and using a deadbolt in every front door makes this seemingly superhuman feat nearly impossible.
A deadbolt typically adheres to your door frame about 2-3 inches or more, which means that even if enough force is applied to the latch area and the door flexes, you are still protected from intruders. Keep in mind that a deadbolt only works if you actually use it and be sure to lock it whenever you leave the house.
Establish your safety routine
Often times, burglaries are crimes of opportunity rather than pre-planned efforts. Criminals will prowl around a neighborhood and simply test every door and window they come across, hoping to find easy prey. Don’t give these opportunists easy access to your loved ones or your possessions.
Before you leave your house each day, take a few seconds to make sure all of your windows and doors are locked and locked. If that helps, establish a routine to remind yourself of each day. As you walk out of each room toward the front door, get in the habit of making sure the windows are fully closed and locked.
Have you finished your morning shower? Check the window. Have you finished making your morning coffee? Test this window over the sink while you rinse out the coffeemaker.
Pay attention to your waste bins
Electronic shopping is super exciting and we know all you think about right now is unboxing it, setting it up, and getting it running, ready to watch, play, or listen. While you revel in the excitement of your new toy, you randomly toss the boxes next to your trash can. While these boxes are designed to advertise the cool gadgets that were in that package to customers, what they do now is advertise the cool new gadgets that are inside your house to thieves.
Burglars roam the residential streets and use these packages as enticing reasons to line your home and search for weaknesses so that your new toys can now be theirs. Instead of leaving what amounts to a flashing neon sign on your sidewalk, completely break down the boxes and fold them in your trash cans or trash cans. If they don’t fit, put them away in your house or garage until trash day, only putting them down at the last minute.
Again, fix your lighting and install more bulbs
We have already talked about how house invaders do not want to be seen and will be attracted to houses with hiding places around them. During the day, these are often behind bushes and overgrown trees. At night, it’s any dark corner.
Outdoor lighting isn’t just about walking up and down the aisle safely or lighting up the patio for the holidays. A well-lit perimeter is less of an incentive for thieves to target your home as there is no room for them to be unseen. Everything from a traditional outdoor light on with a switch near the door to lighting triggered by motion. Be sure to replace any burnt-out bulbs as soon as they are noticed to keep your perimeter lit.
With these tips, you can take your home security to a new level. You make your home way tougher to break into, if not impossible. If you want to do more regarding your residential and commercial locksmith needs, reach out to us via the means on our contact page.
We’ll love to hear from you and help you get answers to your questions. When you need a locksmith in Phoenix, Arizona, we are your best bet for professional locksmith services that’s on time, reliable, and trustworthy.