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Ultimate Guide to Secure Your Home: Simple Ways to Keep Your Family Safe & Protected

Ultimate Guide to Secure Your Home: Simple Ways to Keep Your Family Safe & Protected

Crystal Nelson
September 14, 2020

Let us face it: most burglars and housebreakers can be stopped halfway through. The thing is that some homeowners simply do not know what measures they should take to properly secure their homes and vehicles. Fortunately, boosting your property’s security is not rocket science, and you will have a clear picture of how to do it after reading this guide. We will tell you about valid methods to ensure your home security and prevent burglars from doing their miry business.

 It does not take long or much to step-up your home security. The knowledge that your house and family are well-protected is priceless and worth the effort. Here are some tips on how to improve your home security, as well as some typical safety problems most homeowners neglect.

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Check the doors twice

The all-knowing statistic has it that every third of burglars penetrate the home directly through the front door. Even if your door is equipped with a massive lock, there are always lapses that the intruder may take advantage of to break into, including:

  • Weak hinges (why not try loosening them to get in?)
  • Loose door frames (oh, it seems that people here like slamming the door, that’s nice)
  • An oversized door mail slot (you did everything to help me access the lock!)

Yes, the front doors, in reality, turn out to be pretty vulnerable in the face of a sneaky invader, but there are several simple reinforcements you can install to your door to amplify its safety:

  • Installing a deadbolt lock
  • Adding a door strike plate
  • Obtaining a smart video doorbell
  • Periodically replacing your locks with more modern ones

Mind your windows

Making your home completely burglar-proof is not limited to just securing your front door. Windows are another loophole in your home security that must be duly addressed to prevent an unauthorized entrance. Some handy ways to reinforce your windows are:

  • Putting on burglar bars
  • Installing glass break sensors
  • Covering your windows with security film
  • Planting thorny bushes under your windows
  • Fitting your window wells with covers or grates
  • If you use the handle to lock your windows, keep the key out of sight
  • Placing wood dowels in the window to make them immovable

May the light protect your little world

A home with no lights on when it is dark outside is ample proof for a robber that nobody is in and it is time to get a good haul. It makes sense to install outdoor lighting around your home to hold invaders away. Places that generally require some extra lightning are

  • The garden
  • Sidewalks and pathways to the front door
  • The porch
  • The garage entry and basement doors

Leveraging home security technologies

A household without a robust security system cannot be called a completely safe one. Under the term 'home security', we understand any measures taken to ensure the safety and soundness of your family members, pets, important documents, and belongings. These protective actions span a family safety plan, property insurance, security cameras and alarms, and overall emergency preparedness among other things. Technologies are steadily penetrating all spheres of life, so why not ripe the benefits they offer to safeguard your home from uninvited intruders. This is what you can do:

  • Installing a password-protected door with alarm and automatic dispatch to the police
  • Obtaining a comprehensive home security system that will also send you text or call alerts in addition to monitoring your ins and outs
  • Deterring invaders from trespassing your property with warning signs and stickers
  • Go for some automation like motion sensors, smoke alarms, and carbon monoxide detectors
  • Go for some automation like motion sensors, smoke alarms, and carbon monoxide detectors
  • Installing a video doorbell that uses Wi-Fi to connect to an associated app and give you a real-time picture of your front door
  • Equipping your door with a digital door lock for extra anti-theft security

Make-believe you are in even when you are not

Turned lights and the shine from a working TV set are a great way to treat baddies into thinking that the owners are in, even when the home is empty. Other nifty gadgets include:

  • Outdoor motion sensor lights
  • Programmable light timers to your premises
  • Fake TV burglar deterrents that automatically switch on at evening and also can run during the daylight mimicking the work of a TV
  • Modern speakers controlled via a dedicated app can play music in your home even when there is no one in
  • Pet cameras with monitors and speakers allow you not only to monitor your fluffy buddy when you are out but pretend you are home, since your voice echoes around the apartment, and your pet eagerly howls in response giving reckless visitors a clue that humans are in place

Concealing tell-tale wires

Even if you have already stuffed your estate with professional security cameras, monitors, doorbells, and sprinkled this all with advanced smart surveillance software, it never hurts to check for exposed wires and cords. Visible wiring can easily be detected by mature trespassers, and they will just cut the wires without a twinge of conscience. Do not give a malefactor a single chance and consider installing a top-notch wireless home security system. By the way, no drilling or cutting is needed to mount wireless supervision cameras, glass break sensors, Wi-Fi-controlled thermostats, panic buttons, firefighters, or other smart Internet-powered home safeguards.

Open up hiding spots

All burglars can hide in the territory, so try to eliminate hidden areas in your property: nooks and crannies, where a potential invader can sneak into, are a big security risk. If you have observation cameras around the perimeter of your property, make sure they cover common hiding places including:

  • Gates and household outbuildings
  • Thick bushes and massive trees
  • Basement entrance and garage

Modify your doors with deadlocks

Though a solid deadbolt may come at its price, it is a thing that can thwart even the craftiest burglar. This gizmo represents a locking mechanism that cannot be anyhow moved to an open position except for turning the compatible key. Deadbolts can, therefore, make your front door more resistant to break-in.

Strengthen your sliding doors

Some homeowners equip their entryways with sliding doors which are quite easy to break in if an expert robber snaps into action. You can fortify your entrance sliding doors by:

  • Placing a dowel to the door track
  • Arranging motion-activated lighting in the area

Prune massive trees and shrubs

Large trees and dense bushes can be a great place for an intruder to lurk and wait for the right moment. Try to keep your shrubs and trees trimmed in order not to let an evildoer take advantage of their shades and thickness. Also, make sure tree branches do not hang down by doors and windows.

Never blindly trust service providers’ credentials

Playing on people’s trustfulness is another trick sneaky burglars use to get into a home. They may disguise as a service provider, appropriately dressed, polite, and competent to enhance the effect. Never trust this behavior, but ask to show you a person’s identification and working papers. Also, do not hesitate to call the organization where this service provider is supposed to work before allowing a stranger to step into your home.

Have a holistic picture of what is going on in and out your home

Setting security cameras inside and outside your property gives you peace of mind that, even in the worst scenario, you will have the evidence and can hope on justice and compensation. Moreover, a surveillance camera is a natural deterrent for wrongdoers. The more advanced the camera is, the better your home is secured. Look for models that come with:

  • Motion sensors
  • Night mode
  • Wi-Fi compatibility and mobile app
  • Weather-proof enclosure and lenses

Protect your Wi-Fi connection

Cybersecurity is an integral part of home security. If you use a Wi-Fi router at home, never use the default password and reset existing passcodes periodically. Boost Wi-Fi security by protecting your Internet connection with any WPA (wireless protected access) protocol. Without network encryption, hackers will easily attack your Wi-Fi connection, getting ahold of all the data sent through this network like personal information, social media passwords, credit card details, and more. To avoid this, you should secure your Wi-Fi router and guard your home network, for instance, by:

  • using recommended WPA2 or WPA3 security to protect access to your router instead of obsolescent wired equivalent privacy (WEP) protocol
  • changing router`s passwords
  • obtaining an advanced router that can update its firmware automatically
  • installing a firewall

Duplicate vital documents

Surely, identification documents, a mortgage agreement, and financial records must be properly kept, but it is also must not go amiss if you make copies of critical files and store them in a home safe.

Know your possessions 

Along with duplicating crucial documents, you should also make an inventory of your valuable goods and belongings. If your home gets plundered, you will know for sure which items are missing and how much they are worth. This is what you can do:

  • Take a photo of each valuable thing
  • Write down the monetary value of all the valuables and their serial numbers

Keep ladders and tools separately 

Burglars and invaders will use everything at hand to break into your home. If you keep ladders, axes, and other tools in an open view, you will make the criminal’s job dramatically easier. Store your instruments in a locked place, like a shed, garage, or basement.

Get a watchdog or pretend you have one

A hefty dog is always a great way to keep uninvited strangers away from your house. Dogs make lots of noise upon seeing someone approaching the property. If dogs are not your thing, place a “Beware of dog” sign on your gate and consider including some barking dog security alarm system to enhance the effect.

Make friends with neighbors 

People friendly to their neighbors are more confident about the security of their homes during their absence, as they can keep an eye to each other’s homes and even have a spare key for emergencies. Watchful neighbors may warn you about some strange activity occurring in your community to keep you fully aware.

Splurge on a good safe

A good, sturdy safe will effectively protect your jewelry, cash, documents, weapons, and other valuables even if a robber penetrates your home and steals anything that is not nailed down. A great safe is one that is:

  • Fire and water-proof
  • Too heavy to lift
  • Equipped with several locks
  • Spacious enough to accommodate different items

It is recommended to store weapons separately from other valuables to prevent criminals from stealing your guns and use them, while you may turn out to be on the receiving end.

Go for home automation

Similar to the national flood insurance program, home automation features can create added peace of mind by boosting the security of your home even when you are away. These clever gadgets will help you control the safety of your home along with performing other functions:

  • Doorbell cam
  • Remote-controlled lights
  • Real-time property monitoring
  • Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms
  • Router with Wi-Fi protected access ii
  • Automatic garage doors

Bottom line

As you see, most of the tips mentioned in this guide will not cost you much to increase your home security. In most cases, being a cautious and careful owner is enough to stay on a safe side. However, even a small investment in a decent home security system can prove an intelligent choice in the long run.

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About the author 

Crystal Nelson

Crystal Nelson served as a police officer for 10 years and knows every intricate turn security issues can take. Being an adviser to various security platforms, Crystal also uses her knowledge and skills to write reviews on security technologies and their application. Crystal is a regular contributor to Espysecurity.


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