More than 240 Americans are victims of a home invasion every hour. These types of invasions typically happen when nobody is in the house and most of them could be prevented. Home security systems are a great first step towards protecting you and your family from a home invasion, but there are many steps you can take in addition to having one installed.
The easiest and most effective way to boost the security in your home is to have a home security alarm and surveillance camera installed. Outdoor security can be drastically improved by installing motion sensor lighting. Motion sensor lighting can alert both you and the invader that there is security around the house. These lights help create the illusion that someone is always in the home and let the prowler know he’s been spotted. However, even with the monitoring systems in place additional steps should still be taken. Simply installing home security alarms does not guarantee you will not be targeted by burglars.
Ensure your home is an impenetrable as it can be by checking the locks on all doors and windows. Promptly replace any defective locks or shutters. These seemingly unnoticeable faults can lead unwanted intruders right into your home. Some people will consider making their windows less vulnerable to intruders by having security windows installed. Windows and doors should be the first thing you think about when planning to prevent a home invasion. When people think about someone breaking into a home they dream up all sorts of complex ideas as to how they might get in, when the truth is most burglars enter through the front door.
A potential security weakness found in many homes that very few people consider when improving their home security is sliding glass doors. The unit which locks these doors can easily be picked or even snapped with minimal effort, making them an ideal entry point for a burglar. You can easily solve this problem by propping your glass doors shut with a length of wood. By placing a length of wood, such as a hockey stick or broom handle, that is cut to fit between the glass door and the pane of the doorway into the door’s sliding track you can make it almost impossible to open the door from outside.
Keep valuable and expensive equipment out of sight. Potential home invasions are often scouted by criminals who look into the windows of homes to see if a house is worth robbing. When they can see your big screen HDTV, home entertainment system or even expensive exercise equipment they may see you as a potential target. This also goes for your yard, your garage and even your driveway. If you drive a luxury car or have recreational devices laying around your yard it could entice theives to attempt to rob your home. This also goes for tools and yard equipment. Something as simple as leaving a ladder in your yard could be used to enter through an upper window. Keep things out of sight and out of the minds of criminals.
