If you keep items of great value at home, you should realize that people may notice. Improve the security of your home to prevent burglary. Learn how to make a safer home by reading these tips.
Look for ways to make your home seem occupied. Purchase timers for electronics, lights, radios and TVs so that they will turn on and off at varied intervals. This will give your home the appearance of someone being there. This helps you keep your house burglar-free.
Only give your house key to a professional house cleaner if you trust them. When giving your house cleaner the key to your home, you need to be sure that they are reputable and honest. Do a background check on them. If the person is an employee of a firm, call your local BBB to check their reputation.
Does your canine stay in the yard while you go out? Your furry friend is also a great storage place for your extra key. Secure the key on the inside of the dog’s collar. This is very effective if your pet is afraid of strangers; therefore, burglars are not very likely to notice the key.
Home security systems offer additional features besides loud alarms during a break-in. They can actually be set to chime whenever a monitored door is opened. This can be useful if you’ve got small children that are able to open doors.
Compare different systems when looking into home security. Every company offers different pricing. Get three quotes or more before making a choice.
Spare Key
A spare key must be carefully hidden and not in the obvious spots that a person might think. Never put a spare key under a doormat or above a door jam. One good place to hide a spare key is in the collar of a dog that does not take kindly to strangers.
Turn off your phone’s ringer when you go on vacation. If the phone rings when you are away, burglars will know there’s nobody home, making the house vulnerable to a break-in when you are out.
Don’t open up your door for someone who is a stranger. Nowadays, people invent many stories of why they should come in. For instance, they may say they need to call a mechanic or the police. However, their true intent is to rob you. Therefore, only allow people you know and are expecting to enter your home.
Talk to the police department in your area to see what safety programs they have. These programs may include engraving identification codes on your valuables, home inspections, and advice about home security. Talk with local police to see if they offer these programs.
Rural Areas
Rural areas are just as prone to break-ins as cities. On a different note, some people believe homeowners in more rural areas are more likely to experience robberies because of the lack of nearby neighbors. Some think that there are less burglars in rural areas.
Be sure your expensive belongings are not visible from the home’s exterior. It is wise to invest in coverings for large windows that can give criminals a large view of your home. Be sure to put curtains on your front-facing windows so people can’t see your valuable belongings.
You should change all the locks if you just bought or rented a new home. You don’t really know the people you purchased the house from or all the folks they shared keys with, so don’t place too much trust in the old locks. Also, there have likely been other owners of the home, and you don’t know them either.
Are you aware of the fact that your home wiring is worth money? Often homeowners are unaware of this fact until they find that their wiring has been stolen. The copper component of wiring is very valuable and may be stripped from the outside of your home in a fairly short amount of time. To keep the wiring safe, be sure that the wire is hidden from view.
Motion Detectors
A great way to achieve extra security is to install exterior lighting equipped with motion detectors. At night, not only will these lights be handy to light up areas around your home,they are also a cost-effective and efficient security addition. With good positioning and properly set motion detectors, intruders will not be able to sneak up on your home unnoticed.
Taking steps to improve your home’s security is a much better plan than optimistically hoping it’ll never attract criminal attention. Take steps so that you won’t have to be afraid. Put the tips from the article to good use and protect your family and home.
