Legal Blog For Professionals

These days everybody is anxious about the security of their homes and justly so! According to official American government statistics, the quantity of house burglaries has increased by nearly ten percent in the last five years to about fourteen million per annum.

That is a lot of homes. I was burgled ten years ago and I have studied and done my best to never be one of those statistics again. In this article, I will pass on some of my home security tips on how to make your home unappealing to thieves.

The first thing to think about is whether you have anything in your garden, shed or garage that will help a burglar get into your home. Things like ladders, crow-bars, screwdrivers, sledge hammers. If you do, then lock them away. Keep the shed and garage doors locked at all times. If you have a ladder that will not go in the shed or garage, chain and padlock it to a brick wall, so that nobody can make use of it to get in.

Never believe that your home is less at risk just because you or someone else is inside it. Some thieves are crazy and it is easier to ask someone where the money is than to try to find it yourself. It is easier to demand the keys to the safe than to break the lock. I know. burglars came into my house while I was at work. They saw my safe, but could not get into it, so they came back three nights later when I was at home. It was truly not pleasant.

Do not put a spare front or back door key under the mat, a flower vase or near-by rock. Thieves expect people to do that and it is the first place they look. If you are thinking about leaving a key with a neighbour, pick your neighbour carefully. In fact select the family well. Does the family have teenage kids? If so, could their friends learn that that ‘spare key’ is to your home? Do you trust all the friends of that children? Do you even know them?

Beware of people you do not know. I do not mean be fearful, but someone asking to make an urgent call because of a ‘breakdown’, could be casing your house or sizing you up. If you want to lend a hand, make the call for them or direct them to the nearest public telephone booth or a shop.

Keep all your doors and windows locked. If practical locked closed, while you are away from the house, but you can get window-stay locks so that you can lock a fanlight window ajar a few inches too. This is very helpful in the summer or if you have pets. Lock upstairs windows as well – your neighbour may have a loose ladder that a thief can use.

Do not display your valuables unnecessarily. Video recorders, DVD players and even the TV can be put in cabinets. Jewellery should be put in a box or a safe. Cash the same. Your house is a home, not a presentation case to would be thieves.

My last home security tip to make your home unappealing to thieves is to stay alert and to warn your neighbours of any slip-ups they are making too. If you can elevate the general awareness of crime in the people around you, everyone will be a lot safer.

Owen Jones, the author of this piece, writes on many topics, but is currently involved with wired home security systems. If you are interested in Security Systems For Home Use, please click through to our site.

One of the most basic steps you can take when building your home security system, is the setting up of garden security lighting. Garden security lighting is also one of the most effective ways of discouraging criminals and it is one of the cheapest techniques too. All in all the installation of garden security lighting is the most effective and cost-effective method of home security

Other outdoor security gadgets such as security cameras are much more expensive and only serve one purpose, that is the security of your home. On the other hand, garden security lighting can be used to supply a welcoming light to guide the way to your front door to your visitors or to light up your backyard if you want to sit outside or admire a particularly beautiful group of flowers. They are also good for illuminating a fountain on a pond.

Adding motion sensor lighting controls to your garden security lighting also increases its effectiveness. The passive infra red motion sensors will pick up body heat automatically and switch the light on framing the moving object in a powerful beam. Microwave sensors provide a similar function but work on motion. They extend the length of time the bulb will last and reduce electrical use, while making sure you get light when you need it.

However, if you sit behind drawn curtains in your home at night, you may not see the warning of the lights coming on. Therefore, some of these garden security lighting units have a built-in bell or buzzer which makes a sound when the light comes on. You can also have them send a signal to your main indoor alarm system control box, which will beep and let you know where the light is that was activated (front, rear or side of the house).

Garden security lighting can also be solar powered. This makes them slightly more expensive to buy but very much cheaper to put in and to run. Some of these lights are permanently fixed to the house’s fascia boards while others are just pressed into the ground. This latter sort are ideal for garden parties that go on into the night, as long as you remember to put them back where they belong before going in.

It is a good plan to direct the motion sensors of the lights some four feet above ground level or they will be switched on by every cat that comes over your fence in the middle of the night. Similarly, you can turn down the sensitivity of the PIR or microwave sensors so that the sensors do not pick up birds like pigeons.

The lights have daylight sensors on them too so that the motion sensors only activate the light at night. Some of these sensors will still record movement in the daytime and report it back to the main unit if you want that.

So, all in all, there are plenty of different options when you are considering home security, but garden security lighting has to come at the top of your list, if you want an effective, reassuring home security system.

Owen Jones, the author of this writer, writes on many topics, but is currently involved with home security systems comparison. If you are interested in Security Systems For Home Use, please click through to our site.