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What are some suggestions for securing your house from an intruder? Right now we have a GE Simon XT alarm system, but it doesn't cover breaking a window. We put some PVC pipes in the tracks of the lower floor windows as well. What other suggestions do you have?
EDIT: I also would like to know what structural changes I should be looking at. A simple one is to ensure that the deadbolt goes into a stud (they don't always!). Any other suggestions like this would be great.
Don't have anything valuable. Or at least, don't appear to.
Look like you care about upkeep and security. You don't have to outrun the bear, etc.
Secure your air conditioners if they're in-window. That's so easy to do.
Avoid doors which have glass near the doorknob. I watched This Old House putting in a beautiful glass door in a crappy part of Boston and all I could think was smash and twist.
Watch out for other means of entry — popping out screens and windows can be avoided if you keep the area around the window clear (no garbage cans to stand on, no shrubs to climb), or if you're really worried, bars on the windows(!). A large dog door can be a way in; secure it.
But mostly, don't look like a target.
Some tips I remember from an interview with a burglar a few years ago (can't find a link now):
Make it difficult for someone to conceal themselves while breaking in. If a burglar has to be in full view of the neighbors while he breaks in, it increases the risk of him getting caught. Avoid tall/thick shrubs around your windows and doors. Avoid privacy fences.
Having good exterior lighting on a timer helps, but the best thing is a motion sensor floodlight. When a motion light kicks on, it says "hey, something's going on over here", which will draw attention to your house.
Those little solar walkway lamps aren't bright enough to matter.
Avoid having stuff in plain sight that says "we have lots of $$$". If you have an expensive car, keep it in a garage. If you have nice stuff in your house, keep your blinds closed.
Burglars case a neighborhood before they rob it. They know when you leave for work. They know when your neighbors leave for work. If you have neighbors that are home during the day, it will make your house a riskier break-in.
If you have a security system, don't put one of those "Protected by ADT" stickers on your door. Knowing which brand of security system can provide enough info on how to disable it. Get a generic sticker.
Get a dog. The bark is more important than the bite. A little yappy dog can be more of a deterrent than a German Shepard.
Remember, the goal isn't to make your house completely break-in proof. It is simply to make your house a less attractive target than the other houses in your neighborhood. Look at the surrounding houses and adjust accordingly. You don't want to be the lowest-hanging fruit!
Buy a crappy, broken laptop from a flea market for $5. Leave it in the entrance hall. Leave the front door unlocked.
Most intruders just want to grab something valuable and get the heck out. The faster you can give them something that they think is (a) portable and (b) valuable, the faster they will leave.
You could add some inexpensive window break alarms to supplement your current alarm system.
If your concern is while you are away at night, you can also set up lights to go on/off using a Lamp/Appliance timer outlet:
It has a security feature that turns the lights/TV/radio on/off randomly ("a random setting option, which can turn lights on at unpredictable times to make your home appear occupied when it isn't").
In addition to everything else listed here, I am a fan of anti-kickin devices like the Door Devil. Have a deadbolt (single or double cylinder) to help protect against forced entry. A locking door knob does nothing to protect against a kick in.
Why not have some fun with it and throw some lasers into the mix? Check out this instructable: http://www.instructables.com/id/Protect-Your-Home-with-Laserbeams/
You could even have it stream the intruder from a webcam! http://www.instructables.com/id/Twittering-Laser-Tripwire-with-Webcam-Capture/
You could easily set up lasers to cover your windows, so if someone does break in, they get set off immediately. You could even throw an Arduino into the mix, so you could get a text or email if they ever go off!
I recently went through the process of securing my home with an alarm system. Being new to the neighborhood we were worried when there were break-ins down the street. We did some research and got a few quotes from best security systems and also used the site as a helpful resource when figuring out what our house actually needed.
Don't have "bumpable" locks. Check YouTube for how easy it is to get into a Kwikset lock, for example, including their anti-bump models.
It may sound odd, but make it very hard for anyone to get out of your doors without the key and don’t leave the key buy the doors – e.g stop the doors from being easy to open from the inside when they are locked. The first think someone looks for when they break in, is a quick way to escape if needed. No easy escape way and an alarm sounding will get most people to leave very quickly.
Then lock down all your laptops, so they don’t get grabbed while the person is leaving.
I don’t see a need to cover everything with an alarm, as someone is likely to look round the house first to find what to take, provided there are enough movement sensors and it is not a pre-planned job with inside information, they will set of one.
Me personally ,what I did after a trip to Europe and saw them there is come back and looked up residential security shutters on Google and found Alutechsecurity.com. These are great , I feel like I'm in fort Knox when they are down, also I tied them into my zwave smart home system to secure them down from anywheres. I would we check them out to start.