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Begin
with a home "security" check. Start with the front
door and work clockwise around the entire inside of your home,
then go outside and check the back yard, fence and shrubs, gates
and garage.
Shrubbery should never block the view of your front door. This
allows an intruder the opportunity of privacy to gain entrance.
A wide angle viewer in the door lets you know your visitor in
advance. This item is recommended over a chain lock as the
visitor can be identified prior to unlocking the door.
LOCKS, BOLTS AND HINGES - A dead-latch is an inexpensive lock
set that keeps a burglar from simply slipping your door open
with a plastic credit card. This method of entry is common in
many areas, but very easy to prevent.
AUXILIARY DEADBOLT: For extra security, a single-cylinder dead
bolt lock, with one inch throw and case-hardened insert, is
recommended for all exterior doors. If you have easily breakable
glass within 40 inches of a deadbolt lock, it should be
augmented with a stronger type of glass or plastic to provide
adequate security.
Most police departments do not recommend double-cylinder
deadbolt locks for residential use. A double-cylinder deadbolt
lock is keyed on both sides of the door, and therefore can only
be opened (or closed) with a key. This provides additional
security, but it is at the expense of personal safety. For
example, you could lock yourself in and not be able to escape in
case of fire or other emergency.
DOOR KNOB ALARM: A door knob alarm can alert you of a potential
intruder as soon as he touches your metal doorknob (for
non-metal doors only).
HINGE PROTECTION: Here's a handy tip if you have an exterior
door that was improperly installed with the hinges on the
outside. Anyone can come along and remove the hinge pins, and
easily open the door. To protect such a door (if it is not
feasible to properly install a new door with inside hinges) you
can follow these simple steps: (1) Remove two screws, opposite
each other, from both leaves of the hinge. (2) Insert screw or
concrete nail into jamb leaf, protruding 1/2". (3) Drill
out the opposing screw hole in the door. Do this in the top and
bottom hinge of the door. When you unlock the door it will open
and shut as normal, but when you have it locked, it can not be
opened even if someone removes the hinge pins... it remains
firmly in place.
DOOR STOPPER: Using a small piece of quality wood (hardwood or
pressure-treated lumbar), you can create a strong door wedge to
prevent your door from opening. You can also purchase a metal
door stopper that sounds its built-in alarm to alert you when
someone tries to push open the door.
WINDOW TYPES: Many burglars enter homes by simply breaking a
glass windows. A good deterrent is to have better quality glass
installed at vulnerable points around the perimeter of your
residence. Most burglars avoid attempting to break the following
types of glass due to the fear of attracting attention:
LAMINATED GLASS is made by a vinyl or plastic interlayer
sandwiched between two layers of glass. This type of glass adds
additional strength to your windows. To gain entry, a burglar
would have to strike the glass repeatedly in the same spot in
order to make a small opening. Most burglars are reluctant to
create this type of noise for fear of being detected.
TEMPERED GLASS is made by placing a piece of regular glass in an
oven, bringing it almost to the melting point, and then chilling
it rapidly. This causes a skin to form around the glass. Fully
tempered glass is four to five times stronger than regular
glass.
WIRED GLASS adds the benefit of a visible deterrent. Extra
effort will be needed to break the glass and then cut through
the wire located within the glass, in order to gain entry.
PLASTICS: Plastic material is divided into two types : acrylic
or polycarbonate. The acrylics are more than ten times stronger
than glass of the same thickness and are commonly called
Plexiglas. Polycarbonate sheets are superior to acrylics and are
advertised as 250 times more impact resistant than safety glass,
and 20 times more than other transparent plastic.
ALARMS: A window alarm can protect you by alerting you to an
attempted intrusion and by causing the potential intruder to
flee. You can also use an infrared motion detector that will
monitor an area and sound an alarm when any movement is
detected. While considerably more expensive, to fully monitor
all windows and doors, a whole house alarm system can't be beat.
Add a surveillance system and you'll have maximum home
protection!
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