Is your house as safe and protected from the intruders as it can be? With the amount of time we spent out of our homes and leave them unattended, as well as techniques thieves use these days, it’s practically impossible to eliminate the risk of being burgled, no matter how expensive and advanced your home’s security system is. But, additional measures and tricks that might sound too easy and naïve at the first sight are actually quite effective when it comes to strengthening your home’s break-in resistance.
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Look through these ways of improving home security to see what else can be done to keep the burglars away from your residence, as well as belongings and people in it and lower the risk of becoming one of their victims.
Easy tips to improve your home’s security
Don’t neglect basic home security rules – doors and windows have to be shut before you leave the house, the mailbox should never be full, no spare keys under the doormat, no sticky notes letting the delivery man know when you’ll be home to pick up the package, and definitely no signs similar to these: “Sorry, we’re on vacation, will be home by Friday”.
Have modern security systems on your side. Security cameras and motion sensors aren’t everything contemporary security technologies have to offer. Security installation specialists are able to equip client’s homes with advanced smart gadgets that can be controlled by the person who’s allowed to have access to the system literally from the other side of the world and observe the house 24/7 if needed.
Already have a security system guarding your property? No one else needs to know about that. So, get that sign warning the burglars about which kind of security system they need to break down to get into your house off the front lawn and let the screaming alarms and immediate police notification be a nice surprise for the unexpected ‘guests’.
Put up exterior motion sensor lights at the most vulnerable spots: at the front and back door, close to the windows, etc. – the areas the burglars are most likely to get inside through. They’ll light up the moment someone gets close enough to them, letting you know about the unwanted presence and scaring the criminal away.
I’m always paranoid about leaving my door opened when I leave to work. Locking it turned into my second nature, thus the time I close it doesn’t get imprinted in my memory. To make a long story short, I can’t remember if I closed the door, even though I do that 99,9% of the time. If you’re anything like me, a smart door lock that closes automatically as you leave your house and makes it possible to check if the door is closed remotely will save your nerves and block the easiest way of intrusion. Another awesome anti-robbery feature you might like is a security system, which connects that smart lock to the general smartphone controlled system and notifies you when the door gets opened. Thus, even if the thieves manage to get through the door, you’ll know that right away.
Are you just about the same when it comes to closing windows? Ask a window contractor to install window stops then. These little metal things won’t make opening a window for more than 6 inches possible. That’s just enough for ventilation, but surely not too much room even for a petite burglar to squeeze in.
Create an illusion of presence. Program your house lights to be able to switch them on in a random order even when you’re far away from home. If you know that you won’t be in town for a few days, ask your neighbors to pick up the mail and ‘take out the trash’. If you hire a pet sitter to look after your dog while you’re away, pay him/her a little bit of extra money to stay in your house for an hour or so and make some noise.
Have lost your keys? Call a locksmith right away and change the door locks as soon as possible. You never know who managed to pick those keys up or if you lost them at all. There’s a high chance someone stole them off you.
Can’t help but post a picture from your wonderful vacation? Be patient and do that after you get home not to advertise your empty house and turn it into an easy, tempting target for burglars.
Make your house number visible, especially during the night time. This way the police won’t take ages to find your house after the alarm goes off and won’t leave too much time for the intruders to take off and escape unnoticed.