Home Security – How Best to Keep Yourself and Your Property Safe?

Posted On Thursday, 05 May 2022 20:11

The U.S. has a burglary problem. There are more than 2.5 million burglaries taking place each year in North America, working out at nearly five per minute. While this number is reportedly going down, it is still a shockingly high statistic – and one worrying homeowners each and every day. So, what basic steps can you take to improve your home’s security?

Locks

First and foremost, you should ensure that your home is physically secure. Are your existing door and window locks secure enough to prevent a break-in? There are two ways in which any given lock can be breached: by picking, or by force. The latter is going to be a far more common form of forced entry than the former, with many even pre-meditated break-ins preferring speed over precision.

With this in mind, you will want to pick a secure enough set of locks that can resist picking relatively well but are more importantly built to take a kicking. Make sure locks are upgraded for every door and window – opportunists and professionals alike will try every possible route of entry, so don’t try to cut costs by kitting out the first floor only. 

Safety Lighting

Your next move for protecting your property should be to disincentivize potential entrants. Lighting is an incredibly effective way to do this, with the right lighting system that will catch – and stop – trespassers in their tracks. Safety lighting systems commonly use photocontrols, or photoelectric sensors, which turn halogen lamps on upon sensing a change in lighting conditions. In essence, safety lights are motion-triggered, alerting anyone in or near the house to the presence of a moving body on your property.

Alarm Systems

Next up, there are several different kinds of alarm systems you could employ to further disincentivize entry – or to alert the neighborhood to a forced entry if a trespasser gets past your defenses. You could install a perimeter alarm system, which trips when a trespasser crosses a boundary or an infrared sensor system. Conventional domestic alarm systems are triggered when a door or window is opened, requiring a keycode to be de-activated.

Security Cameras

Lastly, security cameras are a shrewd purchase for the home-wary. They are also becoming much less expensive to buy and to install; camera-equipped doorbell services like Ring enable you to “answer” the door even when out of the house, with a fish-eye lens you can check in on throughout the day. More sophisticated CCTV systems would allow you to monitor your home’s perimeter at all hours – and in the unfortunate event of a break-in, you would be able to use the footage to identify the trespasser and bring them to justice.

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