Every homeowner ought to know how to keep both their home and family secure. Home invasions can be quite common, as well as natural disasters that damage houses. This article contains information on protecting your home, property and family.

Your dog can safeguard an extra key. This will come in handy if your dog is outdoors most of the time or if it can go outside through a pet door. Simply affix a spare key to the collar of the animal. You’ll always have a backup plan if you lose your key!

Your dog can keep your spare house key for you. Of course, your dog has to be an outdoor dog (or you at least need to have a doggy door) for this to work. You can purchase a special collar that will hold your spare key, so when you forget your keys your dog can let you in.

When you buy a new home, be sure to have the locks changed. You never know how many copies of the keys the previous owners made and handed out. Have a locksmith install a brand new lock. In addition, replace your locks if your keys ever get lost.

If your home has a lot of valuable items inside, then you need to purchase a safe so that all of these items can be kept in a single location. Doing so can protect your valuables in the event of a robbery. Hide the safe in a very hard to reach place like the attic or a closet in the basement.

Seek recommendations from friends and family when choosing a security company or system. Others have likely had both good and bad experiences that they can share with you that can then save you a lot of stress and time. Ask around so that you can have the advice that you need to make a good choice.

If there are people you don’t know that have access to your social media sites, then you don’t want to let all of them know you’re on vacation. Potential intruders could get a good idea of when you will be gone by monitoring what you share on social networks.

If your garage is attached to your house, make it secure. Intruders could easily break into your garage and access your home. Simply attach a C-clamp near the roller on the door track.

Secure your garage. Intruders could easily break into your garage and access your home. If your garage door happens to lift on a track, using a C-clamp can help. the C-clamp prevents the door from opening if it’s tightened on the track close to the roller.

Clear away all the dead and dried out vegetation around your home in the summer. When summer heats up, such debris can catch fire. Make sure your yard is clean for the sake of your safety – and that of your family!

Always lock your home, even if you plan on coming back within a few minutes. Many home thefts start with the thief simply walking in an unlocked door or window. Thieves can steal thousands worth of your belongings very quickly.

Changing your locks first can help make your home much more secure. Not everyone who leaves your house will leave happy, and a fresh set of locks will protect you from both former residents and acquaintances of your own looking to cause mischief. It is generally cheap and may be done in a little under a day.

Believe it or not, the wires on your house are worth stealing. Many people never realize this value until wires are stolen right out of their home. The copper wiring can be stripped and be turned in for money. Make sure the wiring is concealed or difficult to access in order to keep this valuable item safe.

Rotten Wood

Walls make the perfect hiding spot. If you own smaller things that need protection, think about keeping them hidden in the walls. You could utilize an electrical outlet, phone jack, or unused switch plate. If you use all of them, you can always have fake ones installed.

Be sure to replace rotten wood in the frame of your front door. Rotten wood is easily removed and can give an intruder a way into your home. Always replace rotting wood with fresh wood immediately to keep your house strong and secure.

Equipping each room in your house with a reliable flashlight (charged with good batteries, of course!) is an excellent safety investment. Flashlights are important for letting you navigate your home in the dark. Show your children how to use them so everyone in the family is involved.

Choose an alarm which monitors other areas outside your doors. Thieves can easily enter your home through a window. You want to be sure that the alarm is connected to all windows and entry points. Do this to keep you and your family safe.

Your first priority when you move to an apartment or house where others have lived in before is to replace all the locks. Previous tenants may have given the keys back to the landlord, but it is always possible to make copies of keys. It is possible to purchase and put in locks on your own so you can be assured you have the only keys.

Make sure that the person analyzing your home for a home security system is who he says. Thieves may say they are from a certain company to get into your home. This puts your household and valuables at considerable risk. Be careful to avoid this sort of danger.

Be certain your wires are hidden, if you have installed a security system in your home. A burglar can easily cut and disconnect wires that are left visible. Don’t let this happen; bury or hide the wires. Keep yourself safe.

There are lots of things that can go wrong with home security, so homeowners should be very vigilant. The ideas in this article will keep your residence protected. Utilize all of these ideas to maximize your home’s safety.