Practical Home Security Advice For Puzzled People

February 23, 2020 - Comment

Are you a female who lives on your own or with children? Are you not comfortable with the idea of physically defending yourself? If this applies to you, then home security is an extremely important concept. You can take certain steps to help yourself feel better and less afraid. This article has great home security

Are you a female who lives on your own or with children? Are you not comfortable with the idea of physically defending yourself? If this applies to you, then home security is an extremely important concept. You can take certain steps to help yourself feel better and less afraid. This article has great home security advice.

Your home should looked occupied all the time. Keep your radio, TV and lights on timers. This way, your house will always look occupied. This is just one of the many precautions you can take to secure your home.

TIP! Make your home look occupied at all times. Use timers to make electronic devices and lights turn on and off at intervals.

Consider using your dog as a place to store your spare key. Of course, your dog has to be an outdoor dog (or you at least need to have a doggy door) for this to work. Put a key on the dog’s collar so you have access to it when necessary!

Shop around when looking for a good home security system. Different companies can provide equivalent levels of service and security, but their prices can vary wildly. Make sure to obtain quotes from a minimum of three companies prior to deciding on a final one.

TIP! Comparison shopping is essential when seeking a security system for the home. You would be surprised to see that the prices are much different for each company, even though it’s for the same type of protection.

When you buy a new house, be sure the locks are changed. The previous owners or tenants might have made several copies of the key. To make sure your home can only be accessed by you, enlist the help of a locksmith. In addition, replace your locks if your keys ever get lost.

Buy housing materials that are fire resistant. This will make your home more safe, especially if you are in a dry climate that has many power lines. Fire prevention should be taken seriously because it can stop a major disaster from happening.

TIP! Is your ceiling resistant to fire? What about your flooring or roofing? This will help ensure the safety of your home, particularly if your home is located in a dry area. Because of the amount of damage fires can cause, it is important to protect your home from them.

Compare various home security systems when shopping. Several different firms may offer similar protection for wildly divergent prices. Ensure you talk to a minimum of three companies to obtain quotes before deciding the one that you believe is best for you.

If you have a garage, increase your home security by using it to house your car, rather than just for storage. Keep the car within the garage will make sure no one harms or steals it. When it is in hiding, people won’t know if you’re home.

TIP! If you’ve got a garage, boost home security just by using it for only a car instead of storage. A car kept locked in a garage is much less likely to be stolen or damaged.

Don’t make a habit of giving strangers access to your home. Even if they tell you a sob story about needing help, this warning remains true. It’s quite possible that your charming guest is only interested in evaluating the security of your home; if they find it lacking, they may be back later to relieve you of some of your possessions.

Put motion-sensor lights into your home. When a person walks by your home too closely, these lights will go on. These lights will make you aware of, and can also scare off, potential burglars. However, make sure to put in fresh bulbs every now and then.

TIP! Install lights that use a motion-sensor. These lights will turn on if anyone walks too closely to your home.

Don’t let strangers into your home. Many people are devising many different schemes to get into homes and burglarize them. Never open the door to anyone you do not know.

Consider changing your locks as a part of your home security program. Maybe you had a roommate move out or have a disgruntled ex-lover, changing the locks is the best way to keep yourself safe. This is a very easy process that you can complete within a day.

TIP! The first step in making your home more secure is to change out your locks. Perhaps your roommate left town or you have gone through a messy divorce, and you need to feel that the home is safe.

Police Department

Listen to your intuition as to whether your system is being installed by a trustworthy home security company. If the men who come to your home to do the installation seem untrustworthy, you can change your mind. Ask the company to send a different installer or simply change companies. Your security system is supposed to help you, not cause you more stress.

TIP! When dealing with companies that install home security systems, it’s important to trust your gut. This is particularly true if you feel uncomfortable with a company you are dealing with.

See if your area police department has any home security programs. They may offer things such as home inspections, engraving tool loans, and other guidance about securing your house. If your police department does not offer these programs, find a private security company.

Skylights could be a problem for the safety of your home. As nice as they look, they’re a prime target for thieves. Make sure your skylights have reliable, heavy duty hardware in place.

TIP! If you’ve got skylights, don’t forget about it when it comes to home security. Although skylights provide your home with a lot of light, it is also very helpful for burglars to break in.

Store your car in the garage if you have it. Having the car in the garage will prevent it from getting broken into or stolen. Hiding your car away from plain view is a good way to keep intruders from knowing when you are at home or not.

Lock your home when you leave, even if you don’t think you will be away for long. It may be a little surprising, but most burglaries and break-ins happen because the intruder just walks right through an open door. Once a thief is inside, he can steal a lot of valuables in a short amount of time.

TIP! Regardless of how long you think you’ll be gone, make sure to lock your doors. It may be a little surprising, but most burglaries and break-ins happen because the intruder just walks right through an open door.

Entry Points

When choosing between security companies, read everything on the contract. There may be hidden costs involved that you were not aware of. You can easily avoid these fees if you do your research.

TIP! You want to know what is included in a contract if you’re signing up with a security company. There could be fees for terminating the contract early or acquiring additional equipment down the road.

While choosing your alarm system, ask about protection for windows and motion detection as well as doors. All of your windows are possible entry points for a thief too. If you have an alarm attached to each of your windows and doors, you can keep track of all the entry points for your home. This is great for keeping the family secure.

Keep the outside areas of your home well lit. Burglars like the cover of darkness to commit their crimes. Make sure to have lights anywhere an intruder might enter. This can include garages, doorways, porches, and even near any windows on the ground floor.

TIP! The areas outside your home should be kept well lit. It will be easier for intruders to keep an eye on you and approach your home if they can hide in the dark.

If you are moving in your new home, ensure all the old locks are replaced. As nice as the previous person may seem, you don’t really know them. Many other people could have keys to the property, and you probably don’t want them to all have access to your home.

A paper shredder can be a good security investment. A thief looking through your discarded papers can find a lot of information you do not want them to have. They may even learn your schedule, so they can burgle your home while you are away. If a paper shredder is not in your budget, consider tearing your documents into tiny pieces or even burning them.

TIP! Shred any documents and junk mail that contains identifying information. You would be surprised at how often thieves look through trash to find personal information to find out when you will be away from home so they can break in.

Before you give a security company employee access to your home, make sure they’re in uniform and that they present acceptable identification. Having the name of the technician coming to your house ahead of time can help to ensure you are allowing someone who really works for the company into your home. This can be extremely dangerous to your home and loved ones. Make sure you are as cautious as you can be.

You need to get a good home surveillance system. Placing hidden and visible video cameras is a good way to keep your home secure. Visible cameras deter many intruders, but if they disable the cameras that they can see, your hidden camera can record the action. Find a security system that gives you the option to view the video feed from your phone so you can check on your home at anytime.

TIP! Consider installing a surveillance system. Installing hidden and visible video cameras are great for securing your house.

If you’re going to hire a company that provides home security, read everything in the contract before you sign it. There may be hidden costs to doing business with them, including early termination fees and surprising equipment costs. If you can’t avoid these types of fees, you should at least be aware of them.

Talk to your security company about the contract; in particular, inquire about the various contract lengths that are available to you. Compare the pros and cons of different options. Longer contracts may create a lower bill per month, but you you could maintain those monthly expenses if you discontinue service or sell the home. A short contract will avoid this, but may be more costly.

TIP! See if your security firm offers a variety of contract lengths. There are advantages and disadvantages to each.

Always request that your house or pet sitter remove fliers from your door. Crafty burglars will leave fliers on homes, and check to see if they’re being removed as a means for determining whether or not the home is vacant. Fliers that are not removed let the burglar know that the home is vacant.

Do not use spring latch locks on your doors. Defeating a spring latch lock is a trivial endeavor; experienced burglars can get through one using nothing more than a credit card. Intruders simply use a credit card inside the latch, making the lock open. If you are already using locks that operate on spring latches, improve your security by adding a deadbolt.

TIP! Don’t use locks of the spring latch variety. These locks are the simplest ones to breach, since they are able to be opened by using just a credit card.

Put in a surveillance system. Installing hidden and visible video cameras is great for securing a home. Intruders will stay away from your home if they notice cameras and hidden cameras can help identify intruders if they disable the most visible cameras. You can often view these feeds over the Internet, too.

Ask whether companies offer options to lease or buy your security equipment. Purchasing your equipment may cost more in the beginning, but this is a one-time cost which does not recur. Although leasing is usually cheaper, you may have to fill out contracts and you will have higher monthly costs. Explore both options to see which works best for you.

TIP! When checking out security companies, ask whether they allow you to choose between buying or leasing the system. Although purchasing the equipment will likely cost you more money initially, this cost will only occur one time.

Keeping people out of various areas of your home does not have to involve using multiple locks and keys. Install key-less locks instead. These locks use codes instead of keys. You can either install these locks by yourself, or have them professionally installed if you are not that handy yourself.

Avoid keeping your key somewhere expected. It’s easy to see fake rocks. Doormats and rocks in front of the house are too obvious. It’s better to have a friend, neighbor or relative keep a spare set of keys for you. If you can’t do that, you must think creatively to find a good place to keep a spare key.

TIP! Don’t put your key in an obvious hiding place. It is easy to spot a fake rock.

Keep your home safe and secure affordably. You can do it yourself. You don’t have to allow a stranger into your home to install a security system. There are alternatives out there that are much cheaper and they can really help keep criminals away. Apply these tips and make your home a safer place for you and your family.

If you use a door lock with a numeric keypad, do not use your birthday as the pass code. Your birthday is readily available for burglars to find. Instead, make it a number which you can figure out through a math equation so you remember the equation instead of the number.

TIP! Be sure not to use your birthday as the password on your door lock’s numeric key pad. A thief can easily find this information out.